Air Space for Google Earth

Worldwide airspace data for GoogleEarth can be found on  3dairspace.org.uk.

Unfortunately not completely up-to-date...

If someone has a link to more actual data, kindly inform me using the comment function - thanks!

Covid-19 / Erkältung / Grippe - die wichtigsten Unterschiede

Es hat ja sehr viel Unsinn zu dieser 'leidigen Sache' im Netz, doch diese kleine Tabelle scheint mir keine schlechte Zusammenfassung...

Bild: TagesAnzeiger

Ein weiteres Anzeichen für Covid-19 scheint der Verlust des Geschmacks- resp. Geruchsinns zu sein.

'bliibed gsund!'

Covid-19 / Corona-Virus -Stand 16.3.20

Liebe Flugschulen, liebe Clubs

Der Bundesrat hat am 16.03.2020 die Massnahmen gegen das Coronavirus deutlich verschärft. Der SHV ist der Ansicht, dass sie keinen Interpretationsspielraum offenlassen. Sämtliche privaten Veranstaltungen sind verboten. Ein organisiertes Fliegen ist verboten, sei es kommerziell oder nicht-kommerziell.
D.h. Schulen müssen ihr Programm komplett einstellen und Clubs dürfen keine Flüge organisieren. Die Benutzung eines Club-Busses ist untersagt. Auch Biplace-Flüge sind verboten.
Aber es wurde keine Ausgangssperre beschlossen, deshalb bleiben nicht organisierte Flüge erlaubt. Natürlich müssen die Hygieneregeln unbedingt eingehalten werden: «Der Bundesrat ruft zudem die Bevölkerung dazu auf, alle unnötigen Kontakte zu vermeiden, Abstand zu halten und die Hygienemassnahmen zu befolgen.»

Der SHV wird auch den X-Contest sistieren.

Sportliche Grüsse
Das SHV-Team

Laax/ Crap Sogn Gion - new harness/ reserve

Sup'Air EVO-XC3

First flight with my new harness here in Laax/ Crap Sogn Gion - albeit only a short one, as still some adjustments need to be made for me to feel completely at ease.

I also got a new reserve: x-DreamFly: x-Triangle 160.

Grap Sogn Gion: East launch

As I couldn't make these adjustments on the spot, I drove back home after this extended sledder :-(

Stubaicup -day 3 :-))

Sunrise at Thalerhof - looking promising

Great flying day here in Stubaital! In the morning, the gondola to Elfer broke down and was out of service for about an hour. Therefore everybody had to go to Kreuzjoch/ Schlick 2000 for launching. This actually is the better launch in the morning, but much smaller. So there has been a queue for setting up and then also for launching. But already some small thermals had devellopped :-)

Today I could test fly:
- AirDesign Rise4 (L)
- MacPara Eden7 (L)
- Icaro Buteo XC (L)

Kreuzjoch/ Schlick2000

AD Rise4

AD Rise 4: easy launch, good performance in thermals; But I cannot reach the (left) A-riser in order to make big ears :-( 
Martin from AD said that this could be fixed if I ever wnted to buy this glider...

MacPara Eden7

By now nice thermals could be found in several places.
Mac Para Eden7: good launch, good performance; but I didn't like the glider very much: the C-steering is very hard to use; big ears are also quite hard to pull. I didn't feel very comfortable by the way the glider 'transmits' what's going on.

above launch (Schlick2000) looking east towards Innsbruck/ Patscherkofel

Looking S-SW: Neustift/ Elfer; Habicht; Stubaier Glacier

Icaro Buteo XC

Unfortunately by the time I was ready on Elfer for my third flight, high clouds from the next cold front started covering the sky and only very weak thermals could be found.

Buteo XC: good launch, great performance in (weak) climbs; agreable C-steering. BUT: the canopy is way too heavy and it has too many cells, that means it is rather difficult to pack.

Conclusion: I liked the Buteo XC best. But I won't buy any of those tested here. I'll wait for the Rook3 (777), Ikuma2 (Niviuk). A friend of mine from Switzerland flew the Kangri (UP) today and liked it very much; but the 'L' only goes to 115kgs. He also tried the Rook3 (in MS) and I'm awaiting his feed back.

 

Stubaicup -day 2: no fly due wind/ wx :-((

A word about my accommodation here: Thalerhof in Telfes: great (and quiet) location; very good relation price-quality! Extremely friendly hosts; excellent breakfast and dinner (I had half-board); good WiFi; spacious rooms.

a part of the breakfast buffet

Friday's dinner...

The 'surcharge' for this excellent dinner was only 15EUR/ night - a real great value!

 

Stubaicup -day 1

For the first time I travelled to Austria to attend the Stubaicup. Even though the forecast didn't look very promising in advanc, once more this valley proved to have its own micro-claimate:  a bit of blue sky in the morning and thus even some weak thermals to prolong the (test) flights.

sunrise at my hotel: Thalerhof in Telfes

Elfer (left) Kreuzjoch/ Schlick2000 (right)

Quite some manufacturers are present and I had prepared in advance a list of possible wings I wanted to try if they would be available in 'L'. Unfortunately the Corona crisis can also be felt here as some brands didn't receive (yet) all gliders in all sizes. Among them Niviuk, where I wanted to test their Ikuma2. And also 777 didn't bring the Rook3 to Neustift. I could talk a little with the guy from this brand and he hopes that the 'L'-prototype will arrive from Sri Lanke within the next 5-6 weeks. Until I have not flown this glider I will not make a final desicion about a replacement of the Rook2 (resp Maestro).
 

Elfer launch

I have to say that the organisation is close to perfect: good information, lots of helpers on launch. I could setup, then walk to launch where the wing would be spread out and when ready to go the helpers would stop all other take-offs for a moment so there would be no incidents. I think this is especially important, as almost everybody is testing new wings and is concentrated on a good launch. LZ is HUGE, so even 10 ore more pilots landing at the same time shouldn't be a problem - provided everybody uses a bit of common sense ;-)

Today I flew 2 wings:
- Skyman CrossCountry2 (L)
- Sup'Air Leaf2 (L)

CrossCountry2

After a flight of little more than 12 minutes it's very hard to say a lot about a glider:
launching (zero head wind/ even a touch of tailwind) was easy! Some thermals permited a little climb, which felt good. The only thing I didn't like on the CrossCountry2: the split A-lines are attached so high up, that I'm unable to reach them with my (damaged) left arm... But Markus meant that this is something that could be fixed if I ever wanted to buy this wing.

Leaf2

Same as above; the flight lasted just 2 minutes longer ;-)  The Leaf2 has very long lines, at least much longer than on the CrossCountry2. Easy launch in almost no head wind. Grabing the split A-lines was no problem, but the brake handles are too small. Turning in the weak thermals felt comfortable as well. Packing the glider in the (too small) bag Sup'Air provided is a bit of a hassle.

777 Rook 3

Finally some information about the new Rook 3 from Triple Seven...

Info here: 777 Rook 3  or here

So far only one size (MS) has been certified and it will be probably May before the 'L' will be available...