Aircraft Fleet

Training Aircraft

Alexander Schleicher K21

The club owns two training aircraft, R20 and R35. Both are ASK 21's, manufactured by Alexander Schleicher sailplanes in Germany. Both aircraft received extensive refurbishment in mid-2006. As a training aircraft it is fitted with two cockpits, one for the student in front, and one for the instructor behind. Both have the same controls, which are linked, to allow the instructor to effectively teach you the art of flying.

Single Seater Aircraft

The club owns several single seater aircraft, for the more experienced solo pilots to fly. By definition, these have only one seat, and are generally of a higher performance than the training aircraft. The result, however, is that they can sometimes be trickier to fly, so a new solo pilot will spend a short time flying two seaters solo, before progressing to the single seaters.

Alexander Schleicher K18

The K18 (callsign 'R36') is the only wooden glider in the Four Counties fleet. It is also the easiest to soar, and on both weak and strong days, the K18 can usually be found in the hands of an early solo pilot at the top of the nearest climb. The K18 is relatively young for a wood and fabric glider, being one of the last models widely constructed in this fashion. On its release, the K18 was overshadowed by the higher performance fibre glass single seaters being rolled out at the same time, and as a result only around 50 were ever constructed. Most of those in Britain were bought by the RAFGSA, and so it is rare to find flying K18's outside of military gliding.
The K18 will normally be a pilots first single seater, and more than likely the machine in which most of the FAI Silver Badge will be done, including the height, duration and distance.

Schempp Hirth Discus CS

The Discus CS (callsign 'R10') is the club's glass fibre single seater, designed as a Standard Class racing glider, which regularly sees action in competitions with GSA pilots. The Discus type was first produced in 1984, and dominated the world racing scene throughout the 80's, winning the 1985, 1987 and 1989 World Gliding Championships. It continues to be highly placed in national and international competitions, and despite Schempp Hirth ceasing production in 1995, the Discus is still in production under licence in Czechoslovakia, hence the Discus CS. By 2004 over 850 Discuses had been produced, and they continue to be produced, despite the introduction of its successor, the Discus 2. The best measured glide ratio is 42.5:1, and while obvioulsy being a high performance aircraft, the Discus CS maintains docile handling, which, coupled with its low landing speed and powerful airbrakes, make it easy to handle, even for inexperienced pilots.
R10 is the clubs competition glider, and when not required by the club or the GSA, can be taken away to national competitions or expeditions during the summer (with the CFI's permission!).
Club members will normally have a bronze and 35 hours before flying the Discus.