E-News Volume 129

NEW GLIDERS!

Condor 330 Training Glider

The Condor 330 special-purpose training glider is now in production and available for purchase by flight schools. See the complete glider information later in this bulletin.

Fusion 141 SP

The SP version of the Fusion 141 is now in production! We appreciate the patience of all of you who have waited for the SP upgrade to the smaller Fusion. The 141 SP features a re-designed VG system with expanded range – both looser and tighter, and includes the new airfoil and the spring batten upgrade option introduced on the 150 SP. Handling and performance are improved. A recent performance comparison indicated that the 141 SP performs equally in glide across the speed range to the 150 SP, which is a significant performance improvement for the 141. A pre-production 141 SP was flown to second place in the Women’s World Championships this summer by Françoise Mocellin, who finished just behind Kari Castle on a Fusion 150 SP. General specifications, pilot weight range, prices and available options remain the same on the SP as for the original Fusion 141.

Eagle 164

The word on just how good this glider is has finally started to get around. Pete Lehmann flew 127 miles on his first Eagle flight! If you haven’t flown one yet, you need to get a ride on one. We have inventory Eagles in process for quick delivery.

COMPETITION RESULTS!

The Fusion 150 SP and Fusion 141 SP and the Falcon 195 had an excellent competition season. (The Falcon 195 ?!? – Well, yes, world class pilot Pete Lehmann, on a Falcon 195, won the 2000 Region 9 best of three flights format XC contest over 2nd place finisher Dennis Pagen on a Litespeed! Congratulations Pete!) Back to the Fusions – this year’s results are summarized below. Congratulations to all of the Fusion pilots listed!

ACCESSORY NEWS

New Brauniger SONIC Vario In Stock

This small, helmet mounted, audio only vario has very good response! It has switch positions for up only, and up with sink alarm. The thresholds and volume are adjustable. The inexpensive battery lasts about 100 hours, and is easy to replace. The SONIC Velcros to the side of your helmet and has a safety lanyard. It comes with an understandable owner’s manual, and a little carry bag that’s really cute! We have them in stock.

70K-4100 IQ Sonic Brauniger Vario
Suggested Retail $199.00

New USHGA Promotional Video

Paul Hamilton and Matt Taber have collaborated on a new ten minute promotional video on hang gliding. The project was funded by the USHGA. It is professionally narrated and makes hang gliding look fun and easy. Tandem, aero tow, boat tow, truck tow, and foot launch are all covered. We suggest that you contact the USHGA to order inexpensive copies to promote lessons in your school. You can buy them in quantities of 10 or more for only four dollars apiece. It makes a great business card to hand out to interested students. If you get only half of them back, it is an amazing promotional tool for only $2.00 each!

The USHGA will be working on a membership drive to help grow the sport. Please forward your ideas on this important project to rob@www.willswing.com.

Drogue ‘Chute Review In Hang Gliding Magazine

Mark Stucky did an excellent and informative review of the Wills Wing harness mounted drogue chute in the August issue of Hang Gliding Magazine. Drogue chutes are in stock at the following prices:

ID# 75B-4010 Suggested Retail $97.50

SAFETY ADVISORIES

Folded Under Mylar

Recently there was a tragic fatal accident involving a 147 Ultra Sport. The pilot launched uneventfully in 15-18 mph winds, turned left and made one pass along the ridge, and then started a right turn. At this point the glider apparently stalled, and then hit the ground in a nose low right turn. A post accident inspection of the glider revealed that the rear edge of the mylar insert was folded under over several feet in the inboard section of the wing.

We have issued warnings and advisories on this potential problem as far back as May of 1991. Most pilots still do not include the leading edge pocket and mylar insert as part of their pre-flight routine. What makes the problem so dangerous is that the behavior of the glider in the air is very different from what the pilot expects. A severe or large area disruption of the top surface shape causes the wing to stall at a much higher speed than normal, and requires that the glider go to a much lower angle of attack to un-stall the wing. The result is that at an airspeed and control bar position that would normally correspond to flight well above stall speed, the glider is still stalled and wants to drop the nose and also the wing on the side where the folded mylar exists. The pilot’s “natural” inclination is to push out, which only delays the recovery from the stall and the re-gaining of control.

Technical Bulletin TB980810 – available on our web site – gives a detailed explanation of this problem and how to deal with it, as well as another common set up error involving the bridles. Please share this information with your students and customers, and encourage them to include these items in their pre-flight.

Platform Towing Accident

In July of this year there was a platform towing accident in which the pilot was seriously injured when his nose wires became disengaged on release due to improper routing of the nose line. We first issued advisories on this problem in June of 1989. We have issued a new advisory on our web site, and in the September issue of Hang Gliding Magazine. Please help us to distribute this safety information as widely as possible.

Design Solutions vs. Education

We are actively working on design related solutions for both of the above problems. We are mindful of the fact that a design solution, if achievable, is preferable to one based on requiring that specific procedures be either followed or avoided. We are also mindful of the fact that design solutions to such problems are not easy to achieve, and of the need to make sure that an attempt to solve the problem through a design change does not create additional problems or dangers which may not be anticipated. And we also realize that even an effective design solution can only be effective on those gliders on which it is installed, and, if not easily retrofittable, will not likely benefit the largest percentage of pilots. We will continue to pursue both design and education to address these types of problems.

Fusion Turbulence Induced Structural Failure

Until recently we had not had any reports of any turbulence induced in-flight inversions or structural failures on a Fusion. Two aero pilots that we know of have stopped upside down and tumbled out of blown loop attempts, though each recovered without failure. However, in late June Scott Angel ran into some extreme turbulence in the Owens Valley on the Sierra side while crossing the Onion Valley in the lee of a very strong westerly flow aloft. Lenticulars were present. Scott went into a long vertical dive after leaving 2000 foot per minute lift. He reported that the wind noise in the dive was the loudest he had ever heard, and estimates that he passed 100 miles per hour. Then the glider tucked. Fortunately he got his ‘chute out and landed unharmed. He brought the wreckage to us for an inspection and rebuild. The front section of one leading edge was broken just forward of the center sleeve. Both wash-out tubes were broken, both sprog front sections were yielded out of column, and both sprog cables were stretched about ¼ inch. In spite of taking the Fusion to over 50 mph at negative 30 degrees, and over 35 mph at negative 150 degrees on the test vehicle, we have never seen this level of damage before. He pulled some very serious negative load! We are very glad that Scott survived. He was lucky.

Bottom line: if the winds are gusting beyond twenty miles per hour, or you suspect rotor turbulence, we strongly suggest you stay on the ground.

CONDOR TRAINING GLIDER RELEASED

We are happy to announce the general release of the Condor 330 training glider. We have completed a series of vehicle tests and flight tests on the glider, and a number of Condors have been in use in flight schools over the last five months.

Condor Specifications

The Condor airframe and battens are entirely 7075-T6 (except for the control bar and kingpost which are 6061-T6).

Condor General Description

The Condor 330 is a special-purpose training glider designed for first solo flights by hang gliding students under direct instructor supervision, at very low altitudes. Focus of the design effort was to produce a very large span, very large area glider of very light weight, that would be easy to ground handle, launch and fly, and that would easily achieve flight in little or no wind at very low groundspeeds from a shallow slope.

Condor Operating Limitations and Flight Characteristics

The Condor is intended for use in still air, or in very light winds which are very smooth and uniform, without appreciable gusts or thermal activity. Because of its large area and span, control of the glider can quickly become very difficult in any degree of wind, thermal activity, or gusty conditions. The intended flight profile for a student pilot is for a foot-launched flight from a low and shallow slope, in calm or near calm wind conditions, with a straight glide at low altitude to a landing. Maneuvering should be restricted to minor heading changes of 20 degrees or less, and bank angles should not exceed 25 degrees and are better limited to 15 degrees or less.

It is suggested that the instructor should fly the Condor, both from the training hill, and from a higher launch, in mild conditions, in order to become familiar with the glider’s flight characteristics. Operating limitations for the student pilot should be significantly more restricted than those under which the instructor would operate for the purposes of becoming familiar with the glider. Still, the instructor needs to be aware of significant areas of caution in the operation of the glider as the Condor does not meet normal utility class air worthiness standards.

For the launch phase of flight, the glider generally balances well, retains a suitable pitch attitude during the brief launch run, and leaves the ground within a few steps even in light or no wind.

In wings level flight, the Condor exhibits flight characteristics typical of a large single surface glider with ample sail billow. The roll rate is slow and highly damped, though initial response in smooth air is relatively immediate. Pitch response is damped, and pitch pressures on either side of trim are high. We recommend trimming the glider for flight at the speed the instructor wants the student to fly. In our experience a trim speed of 15-18 mph works best. Trim speed increases with increasing bank angle, and for this reason it is best to limit operation to shallow bank angles, especially for students. In a 20-degree bank, you can expect a trim speed increase of 3 to 5 mph. Beyond 45 degrees of bank, the glider can become significantly roll unstable, and develops an increasing nose down trim. During recovery from a 45 degree banked turn, the can glider exhibit continued nose down trim and roll instability resisting the recovery until the bank angle is reduced to about 25 degrees. We therefore recommend that flight operation be strictly limited to bank angles of 25 degrees or less even during operation by the instructor.

During landing there is relatively high back pressure on the bar while flaring.

The Condor 330 is a special purpose glider. It is not a utility class glider, and does not meet utility class airworthiness standards. It utilizes a very lightweight structure and has very limited structural capacity. It is most certainly not in any way suitable for tandem flight, nor for any abrupt maneuvering. It is designed for solo flight only, within the placarded weight range, at very low altitudes above the ground (no higher than you care to fall). It is designed for straight and level flight, with minimal maneuvering. At no time should the bank angle be allowed to exceed 25 degrees, due to concerns with roll and pitch instability at bank angles above 40 degrees.

Condor Vehicle Testing

The Condor is not certified to any airworthiness standards, nor does it meet general utility class standards. We have conducted pitch tests and positive load tests on a three component test vehicle over a limited range of speeds, loads, and angles of attack.

In pitch tests at 15 mph, the Condor was shown to be stable over the entire tested angle of attack range from plus 35 degrees to negative 18 degrees. In pitch tests at 22 mph, the Condor was shown to be stable over the entire tested angle of attack range from plus 35 degrees to zero degrees. In pitch tests at 28 to 32 mph, the Condor was shown to be stable over the entire tested angle of attack range from plus 15 degrees to minus three degrees.

In positive load tests, the crossbar was observed to be approximately one foot out of column at the maximum recorded load of 884 lbs (440 kg) at 32 mph (51 kph) with the glider at maximum lift angle of attack, indicating that airframe structural failure was imminent. (There was no damage to the glider in this test, and all deformation was elastic). Applying a standard aviation safety factor of 1.5, the Condor should never be flown so as to allow for the possibility of more than 590 lbs (268 kg) total load. This represents a limit load factor of 2.3 G’s at the maximum recommended pilot weight, and requires that maneuvering speed be limited at 24 mph.

Try a Condor in your school, it’s a fun, slow flying trainer!

Sold to instructors only.

Inventory Gliders On The Web
Check the web at www.www.willswing.com for gliders in stock ready to go!

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Where’s My Closest Dealer?

To find the dealer nearest you, please go to www.www.willswing.com, click on ”Learn To Fly!” then click on the map where you live. A list of dealers in your region will appear.

Contact Us

If you have questions we might help you with please feel free to contact us in any of the following ways:
On the Web – www.www.willswing.com
By E-mail – Comments@www.willswing.com
By Phone – (714) 998 – 6359
By Fax – (714) 998 – 0647
By Mail – 500 West Blueridge, Orange CA 92865-4206

That’s it for now, thank you for your interest in Wills Wing!
We welcome your suggestions.

Please Fly Safely!
The Wills Wing Crew