Becoming a Glider Pilot

Flight instruction in gliding follows a syllabus laid down by the British Gliding Association.  Instruction is free of charge (you pay for the launch and soaring fees) and you will fly with fully qualified BGA rated pilots in dual-control two seat gliders, all the way from your initial flight up to your first solo flight. From that stage your training is a mixture of supervised solo flying in club single seat gliders and dual flying to develop your skills and check your progress. Your training can be loosely broken down into the stages below, and can take you from initial flight to cross-country "pundit".

Trial Flight

Your first ever flight will take the form of a 'Trial Flight' using an Aerotow launch (i.e. the glider is towed into the air by a powered aircraft). During this first 15-20 minute flight you will see how the glider flies and be shown the way the controls and instruments function. The Initial Flight Pilot will handle the all the flying, but can offer you the opportunity to "follow through" on the controls as they bank and turn the glider. This flight gives you an introduction to being airborne and see all aspects of a glider flight from launch through to circuit,  approach and landing. Your pilot will de-brief you on the flight afterwards, answering any questions you have. This trial flight will be the first (hopefully of many) in your logbook and acts as start point for subsequent instructional flights where you will have the controls formally demonstrated and gradually start to take over parts of the flying yourself. Your Trial Flight voucher gives you 4 weeks membership of the club, and in this period you can come back and take instructional flights and/or experience winch as well as further aero-tow launches.

Training to Solo

On subsequent lessons you will learn about many aspects of flying gliders soaring.  All BGA clubs follow a strict learning syllabus that will take you right from the earliest stages through to becoming a fully qualified glider pilot. We provide training free of charge with fully qualified BGA instructors and your first target will be to fly solo. Don’t worry – you will only do this when your instructors are certain that you have all the necessary skills to safely take-off, fly and land the glider. There are no hard and fast rules as to how many launches are needed before going solo, most people take between 50 and 100 flights (a mix of winch and aerotow launches). You will also learn some of  theory of  flight, airmanship skills such as navigation and weather interpretation and the laws and rules of the air.

You will need to get to meet some basic medical standards before flying solo.  Gliding medical standards are based on those used by the DVLA  for driving - so in most cases if you can drive a car you are fit to fly solo. The BGA website gives the full details here.

First Solo

There comes a point when your instructor knows you're ready to fly by your self. This, your first solo flight, on your own in one of our two-seat gliders,  will be one of the most memorable experiences of your life. We send many pilots on their first solo flight every year, with ages ranging from 14 years (the minimum age you can legally fly solo) to well over state retirement age.

Going solo marks the start of the second phase of learning to become a soaring pilot

Beyond Solo

After you’ve successfully flown solo you will progress to flying single seat gliders. You can continue your training to become a fully qualified glider pilot by completing the  syllabus to achieve your Bronze Certificate and Cross-Country endorsements (or the newer EASA SPL sailplane pilots licence). Our specialist training will equip you with the skills to make informed decisions about your planned flying, navigate cross country and deal with unusual situations, such as landing off-site in a farmer’s field.

Once you are a fully licensed pilot, qualified to fly anywhere in Europe, the sky really is the limit and, depending on your personal aspirations, you can decide to take advantage of further specialised coaching to develop, for example, into cross-country flying, competition flying, or even glider aerobatics. You can even become an instructor who will train the next generation of pilots.