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EUROCONTROL EUROPE AIR SPORTS Sporting & Recreational Aviation Conference GLIDING. Günter Bertram. Numbers and types. Gliders 22.000 gliders, 90.000 licensed glider pilots Cross country flights up to 1000 km+ are flown (often across borders) More than 550.000 km can be flown on a good day
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EUROCONTROLEUROPE AIR SPORTSSporting & Recreational Aviation ConferenceGLIDING Günter Bertram
Numbers and types • Gliders • 22.000 gliders, 90.000 licensed glider pilots • Cross country flights up to 1000 km+ are flown (often across borders) • More than 550.000 km can be flown on a good day • Modern gliders are equipped with navigation systems (GPS), flight recorders, anti-collision device (FLARM). • MTOM< 850 kg, max 2 POB, some gliders have an engine, • Self Launching (SLG), Self-Sustaining (SSG), Touring (TMG) _________________________________________
Regulation • Gliders Regulated at EASA level • Certified aircraft (CS-22) • Controlled maintenance • Pilots hold an ICAO glider pilot license • Operations strongly organised in gliding clubs • Community feels over-regulated
Journey Example Glider (860 km flight)
Glider Characteristics • Needs a big area to operate and sometimes high altitude (wave flying in mountains) • Equipped with radio, and sometimes transponder • Manoeuvres better than a balloon, but not as good as an airplane, and are unable to maintain an altitude
Glider Characteristics • Wish to go through controlled airspace on ATC clearance or in segregated airspace • Many gliders may fly together in the same thermal • The pilots fly to exercise a sport • Sometimes difficult for the pilot to simultaneously communicate with ATC and concentrate on staying airborne
Airspace Problems • Aerodromes needs: • Easy VFR access to adequate number of conveniently located small aerodromes • Reasonable VFR access to busier aerodromes • Separate arrival and departure paths and procedures for slow and fast aircraft • Short and/or parallel runways to minimise conflict with IFR traffic • Flexibility in the handling of VFR traffic
Airspace Problems • Lower Airspace ( GND - FL95) • Accommodates most General and Sport aviation and aerial work activities • Middle Airspace (FL 95 - FL195) • some, but limited activities • Upper Airspace (195+) • Rarely used, but access required for certain activities
Lower Airspace ( GND - FL95) • Problems are mainly in the Lower Airspace: • complex patchwork • restrictive vertical division to controlled airspace • Large, inflexible TMAs • Sometimes over-controlled by ATC • Conflicts with high speed military aircraft
Equipment Issues • Equipment carriage requirements not harmonised across ECAC countries • Equipment programmes aimed at one specific airspace user (commercial IFR) with no consideration for other users • Cost-benefit analysis does not take other user groups into account (8.33 kHz radios, Mode S TXPD)
Equipment Issues • Wider use of GPS for VFR activities (Galileo ?) • Lack of forward planing ! (ADS-B) • Lack of co-ordination between ATM planners: airspace harmonisation, Modes S, ADS-B, 8.33 kHz
Technical Limitations • Limitations on equipment carriage: • Mass: • gliders are weight critical • Certification: • Equipment certification makes equipment costly • Maintenance: • Periodical maintenance is expensive • Electrical Power: • gliders have no generator! • Need of a low power transponder
Our concerns for the future • Lack of sufficient, contiguous, airspace for VFR cross country flight (better analyses of VFR needs) • Use of airports not used today (low cost carriers) • Unnecessary complexity of airspace (lack of harmonization) • Cost of equipment (8.33, Mode-S) • Lack of FUA implementation • Denial of access (even when equipped and/or airspace is unused) • UAVs