Jacques Bott <<jacques.bott>>
writes:

Thanks to Bill Thar, I had the opportunity to make an almost 3hr
demo flight of the Sparrowhawk in Wurstboro airfield 80 miles northwest of New
York July the first.

The Sparrowhawk is an 11m wingspan, 70kg empty weight glider whose airframe is
made of carbon fiber by Windward in Bend (Oregon).

http://www.windward-performance.com/sparrowhawk.php

It meets the US ultralight glider requirements whose difference with the French
(European?) rules is that it is not required to be foot launchable. This allows
to design a wing with a small area and for the Sparrowhawk with an 11 meter
wingspan and a short wing cord we have an aspect ratio similar to the 15m glider
and a speed range similar to the "normal" gliders.

Unlike other exotic gliders, the Sparrowhawk looks like a very nice conventional
modern glider, plus when you look at its short wings, you cannot stand thinking
at a "fighter" aircraft.

The cockpit is surprisingly roomy and, thanks to the BRS, you are not lying on
your personal parachute, thus it is very comfortable.

Though I was briefed about the sensitivity of the flight controls, I slightly
over controlled during the take off but adapted myself quickly to the extreme
handling. In my 18.000 airtime I never flew an aircraft with such light control
forces, and about the roll rate, the only better one I flew was the Giles
aerobatic carbon plane with its 500°/sec. You can fly the Sparrowhawk with 2
fingers and your tiptoes; a small side stick would have been largely enough
instead of its normal stick.

This, plus the lightweight, allowed me to out climb all the other gliders in the
weak and elusive thermal of the day. I thermalled at around 75km/h, up to 90
when banking a lot to stay into the small cores.

Checking the stall speed after slowing down progressively I was stick full aft
at 63km/h with little buffeting but the nose didn't pitch down and I could keep
control of the bank with the feet. I then picked up speed and put the nose at a
20° high attitude: the glider stalled at 63km/h and this time pitched down, the
recovery was uneventful.

As I spent most of the time trying to stay in the air due to the weakness of the
thermals I didn't have the opportunity to check the high speed range (VNE
215km/h). I glided mainly at around 100km/h and in some long week positive vario
area as low as 70km/h.

I also did some ridge soaring, noting that the turn radius was significantly
wider than with the ultralight gliders I'm used to fly (Swiftlight, Atos VR),
but the quick response of the Sparrowhawk to my controls inputs is something I'd
really appreciate when flying very near the rocky faces of the Alps mountains
(or else) in turbulent conditions.

Approach speed was 90km/h, landing was uneventful, the roll was shorter than for
the "normal" gliders though I didn't use the brake, but significantly longer
than with the Swiftlight.

The Sparrowhawk is for sure the best ultralight glider. It can be easily
aerotowed by an inexpensive ultralight trike for half a gallon a tow. It is easy
to fly. It is the glider every glider club should own in order to allow
youngster to fly.

Would the European ultralight glider rules be the same as in the USA, for sure
I'd sell my Swiftlight and buy a Sparrowhawk.

My philosophy about gliding is lightweight. I think the glider community took
the wrong way after the first composite gliders appeared (Libelle, ASW15,
Cirrus, LS1): they enter into the race for better gliding ratio by increasing
the wingspan, resulting in bigger and bigger gliders, therefore heavier and
heavier thus more and more expensive, needing longer fields for out landings. So
I imagine the stress of a glider pilot at the controls of a 200.000€ glider when
he is low. The result is the majority of the glider sold today by the German
factories are powered glider who are even more expensive. Are the owners of
those powered gliders still glider pilots? They have to start their relight
procedure at 400m above ground in order to do it with good safety margins.

Ultralight glider pilots are used to manage low points, I can remember drifting
for 20km in a zero vario at 100m above ground until the air mass encounters a
trigger: a lake, or a forest, or a hill or shadow. I almost always recover from
my low points with the Swiftlight.

During one of my last cross country flight with my Swiftlight in the Alps, after
departing from Serres airfield with the first thermal of the day, crossing the
Durance valley, picking up improving thermals, passing over La Motte du Caire
and Vaumeilh glider airfields, I was 40km away entering in the higher mountains
area in a first good thermal at 2000m, my happiness and quitness was suddenly
disturbed by the a fast approaching terrible chain saw noise: one of those
200.000+ Euro big motorized glider was arriving 100m below me. Those guys are
really doing another sport.

So I completely agree with Greg Cole who is designing lighter carbon gliders,
which have for the same wingspan than "normal" gliders a better aspect ratio,
thus a better gliding ratio.

His 15m Duckhawk to come should have the performances of the 18m "normal"
gliders and should climb better. I hope he makes a 13.5m wing for the
Sparrowhawk to enter in the new FAI class and that there will be a solution to
fly it in Europe. There is a real market for this new class and the Silent is
selling very well.

Had the FAI chosen the Sparrowhawk instead the ugly PW5 for sure the "World
class" would have succeeded.