Flew one in the 70s as an ATC cadet at RAF Kirknewton near edinburgh. Happy days. If you think the cable launch is fun/scary ask him to do a practice cable break next time! 😀🫣 Great to see the old barge still flying.
Brilliant vid as ever. Particularly interesting to me as way back in the glorious summer of 1976 I flew my first aeroplane - a Slingsby T-21 primary glider on a gliding course at Nympsfield in the Cotswolds. It might have been simple, but it was an aeroplane and as the late great Brian Lecomber said (probably the best airshow aerobatic pilot ever and who died of natural causes) "don't ever treat any aeroplane with anything other than the greatest of respect - they have thousands of ways of killing you". The Tiger Club, who also flew aerobatics in simple but demanding aeroplanes, had a note on their panel "All Aeroplanes Bite Fools". I went on to fly and have a share in some complex and capable types such as the aerobatically-unlimited Yak52 and my favourite that I flew for 35 years, the fabulous 'mini Spitfire' taildragger Chipmunk. None of them, including that T-21 I flew in that hot summer nearly half a century ago, had such an admonition on the panel. Perhaps they all should have done. But far outweighing that is the fact that each and every one of them has thousands of ways of thrilling you - so long as you are not a fool or a f*ckwit. Thanks again for a super vid. Vince (not the Vince in your video but a much older one, obviously!)
Ah, I remember RAF Sealand, When I was a teenager I used to cycle from Heswall on the Wirral all the way to Sealand on a nice warm summer's day to watch the gliding.
Many many pilots started this way. I still remember my PPL instructors words to me when we first met, " Do you lead with rudder or Aileron", I said neither, to which he relied "You must be an ex glider man". Wonderful memories and a great flying community.
Brilliant video, brought back memories of flying in Sedbergh's in 1970 as an air cadet. Once the launch was over and the glider settled down, you could hear people talking on the ground hundreds of feet below you.
Hello, my first solo was in one of these, glad to see they're still flying today. I trained at RAF Halton with the 2236 Stanmore air cadets, great times!
What a great video. My first flight ever in an aircraft was in one of these at RAF West Malling, with the air cadets in 1979. It was an amazing experience, like a flying in an armchair. We had the longest flight of the day, (20min!) after getting lift over some greenhouses. A flight I have never forgotten. What an amazing video Terry - thanks.❤
This brings back memories of sports afternoons on Wednesdays when I was at RAF Halton during my apprenticeship in the late 70's. Our "Barges" had full canopies iirc but the takeoff with the winch launch to about 1200 ft was pretty exciting. I think I can even remember the preflight which was "CB SIT CB" for Canopy, Ballast, Straps, Instruments, Trim, Controls, Brakes (iirc). I didn't pursue gliding but in later years got my NPPL and am now building my next aircraft. Can't believe it will be 50 years next year that I went to Halton:|
Wow, how cool is that thing. When I was a cadet in Canada, we had old schweizers... enclosed cockpit. That thing looks like it is as basic and as close to flying like a bird as you can get!
Terry I flew in one of those on an "experience" day in the 70s well before even thinking of taking up flying. As you say 5 minutes seemed like longer. I also wish Kamil the best for what ever direction he takes. Well done for taking him up on his offer.....Good to see PY & CZ out together.
Another superb video, thank you. I used to fly in the Grumman Avenger at North Weald and the number of times the then resident Glider club would keep us waiting at the hold to take off for what I dont know. Avengers werent cheap to run!
First time I ever left the ground as an ATC cadet was in a T21 sedburgh glider at RAF Halton , I think around 1972 ! Caught the bug and flew hang gliders until 1994 then took my license and bought a Pegasus Quasar microlight and continued flying that for 22 years , I am a flying addict!!
Flew Sedburghs from Weston s Mare while I was in the ATC in 1957. My mate had an RAF flying scholarship and we could rent a Tiger Moth in Bristol for 12/6 and hour and nip down to Weston and buzz our mates in the Mk7's and Sedburghs. When on winch duty we had to do cable breaks and we discoverd that the wire cable had a hemp core which supplemented our meagre supply of Woodbine roll up tobacco. Little did we know!!! As a model maker I was also a dope junky. Great days.
I had a couple of glider flights at Edgehill a year ago, they were super friendly and quite happy letting me fly my microlight in there. I really loved flying in the glider, far more than I enjoy 3-axis flight, but as for riding the thermals, I’ll need a lot more practice !
Great video Terry. What an incredible induction into gliding. It goes to show that you can have fun in the air at both ends of the cost spectrum. That T21 looked brilliant. I used to own a little X’Air microlight which was about as aerodynamic as a barn door and flew at about 55mph but it was so much fun!
Absolutely wonderful video that brought back so many memories for me. I got my solo glider pilots licence in a T21 in the late seventies at RAF St Athan, as a member of the Air Training Corps.
Hi Terry, This piece takes me back many, many years to a visit to a BAE site near Manchester. I cannot remember the name of the place but I do remember seeing a couple of Vulcan bombers parked up outside their respective hangers. This alone made the trip worthwhile, though retrospectively I wish I had had, at the time, a greater appreciation of the history associated with these remarkable aircraft. But to the business at hand. The site was operating a very similar winch based glider launching facility to the one featured in your piece. I can still distinctly recall the feelings of dubious scepticism upon inspection of the winch, as mounted into a 'cutout' in the side of an old wheel less coach, whose engine provided the power. But nevertheless, when my turn came, I bravely took my place in the nose seat directly in front of the pilot and off we went. The ensuing... complicated mix of thrills tinged with abject terror is to be experienced. But only once for me, I'm afraid! When invited for a second go, I politely, but firmly declined. What a whimp!! Hahaha. We really are, in many ways, just a rag tag collection of memories. Cheers for stirring up a few of mine. Stay safe that man.
My first solo flight in a glider was in a T21 at Farnborough in the early 1970's. That was when the airfield was used by the MoD when it used to be called the 'Royal Aircraft Establishment'. It's now a privately owned (and very busy) business airport called 'Farnborough International Airport'. Sadly gliding from Farnborough has now long since gone and the nearest gliding airfield is the long established 'Lasham Airfield' set between Basingstoke and Alton in Hampshire.
Another great video Terry, I was always wary of glider airfields when flying (although I used to try to visit my local glider airfield, by car, once or twice a year just to watch and get a feel for their MO - tug pilots are fun to watch when overflying roads, fair bit of sidesliping going on). My dad used to fly T21s back in the day. As I wrote elsewhere, real bugs in the teeth aviation 😲😀👍
Brought me back to my time at the Kent gliding club in the 1960’s. T21’s don’t stay up very long unless you get a strong thermal. Kamil looks like he will go far.
Most dual glider and powered airports here generally have contra circuits. Eg gliders do left land and powered do right hand. I think you need your rotary license with all those obstacles.
Wow. Very recently, I spoke to my wife (and best friend ever) about trying a glider flight. I googled Wormington to find it is only eighteen miles from my home. I know where I and my wife will be trying my glider experience :) Great video, thank you.
Haha the smile on your face was perfect. Really good day and crazy airfield procedures. But it was great to understand gliding in more detail. Recommended.
I never did feel comfortable in the Slingsby and Cadet when I was 13 in the ATC, scared witless is more apt. But I found my true love with powered flight after my 1st flight in a Chipmunk 😁
Hi Terry great video. I flew in one of these at 14 as an Air Cadet at Debden! Terrifying. 😂 My first flight in a light aircraft. Just for info… we were called the Air Training Corps, or ATC then
Experianced this piece of brick also in A.T.C. iN 1970 ties!!! Now learning in modern gliders .. in gliding fraternity this brick is revered for some reason.. a breeze block flies better , thankfully only 1 flight a long time ago .. nice video , well posted and camera work in such bright conditions , especially with these new screens one cannot see in the bright sky..well done ..oops sorry gliding community about comments about this brick/ breeze block ..😊😊
Wow this takes me back to my days as a member of The Woodford Gliding Club in the eighties one hobby I wish I had kept up with the T21 is a beautiful aircraft
Hi, Martin.....My Dad was also a member of the Woodford club ( David Ilett ) My uncle (John Ilett ) was a gliding instructer there in the 1960s. I only flew once in the "red " glider.... (one behind the other)....My sister flew in the T21 "blue " glider. My Grandad was airframe inspector on Lancasters during the war.....Long after his death, my gran remarried to an inspector on Vulcans..... I am the Black Sheep of the Ilett family.....I never worked at AVROs.....or in the RAF......i went downwards instead. .....I joined the Royal Navy and served in submarines. I lived in Bramhall ...schooled at Hazel Grove and now live in Orkney where i have just retired from being manager of Eday Airfield. Wishing any aviation / submarine enthusiast ....All the very best......Mike Ilett.
@@d165354 Hi David it was a great club I got introduced to by my Scout Leader who was ex RAF Regiment after he was asked by a contact if any of our venture scouts were interested in trying it out so I jumped at the chance and also flew in that red Glider. Then I then found out I could join as an older cousin worked at BAE Chadderton. never worked there myself (to thick 😂) but had great time in the club and met some wonderful people. I live in Tameside now and it's a shame now that it's now a housing estate.
Really well put-together video! I think you do a great job describing your thoughts and feelings throughout the flight. What do you use software-wise for putting these videos together?
I flew the T21 as an air cadet many years ago along with the T 31 Slingsby Tutor which was a random version. We’re you at Wormingford for the Hurricane fly by as that was the flight with John which I covered in that video?
Wouldn't it have been wise to wear goggles in that open cockpit or was there enough windshield so that eye protection wasn't an issue? Non the less it looked like fun.
Hey, it was me flying it in the video. I find that, with my height, I sit such that the windscreen means I am not sitting in the airflow. I've been flying it for over a year now and never had an issue with the airflow or getting stuff in my eyes. And it cruises about 30-35kts (much more and it gets cold), so there's not much wind anyway, even for those that are a bit taller than me and sit higher than the windscreen. So it's mainly a matter of preference as to whether or not people tend to wear goggles :)
0:30 Pretty much all gliders and ultralights should have this placard by law. I learned to fly gliders in the CCF (in addition to ab initio aerobatic training from age 13 in the Bulldog); all of my time was in the Schleicher ASK.13, always winch launched. They used a General Motors 6046 12 cyl 2 stroke diesel from a Lend Lease M4A2 Sherman tank and I got to help out with winch operation from time to time. I was in awe of that massive, war vet diesel. Even though I've ridden some powerful motorbikes, this is still the quickest acceleration I've ever felt. It isn't a good idea to fly an open cockpit aircraft without proper eye protection. Flying goggles exist for a reason and sunglasses just don't cut it. I'd be wearing a full face helmet to fly this glider because of the high CG. Could easily nose over on landing if you hit a hedgehog or vole burrow. I would say 17 is too young to be any kind of flight instructor because, at that age, you feel invincible. Just because someone is quiet and soft spoken and knows their theory doesn't mean they're mature. The lack of eye protection reads like confirmation bias, which is a bad habit for any pilot. I'd say not wearing eye protection in an open cockpit aircraft makes you a fu*kwit. Being a natural stick and rudder pilot will only get you so far and I question whether this kid has the mentality to be an airline pilot. It also says something about your own attitude. I would have told the young man, 'Thanks for the invite but if you aren't going to wear proper eye protection, I'm not flying with you.', as someone of your age should be mature enough to do. But that doesn't get the views, does it? The T.21 isn't so much permitted to fly aerobatics as it is just old enough to be exempt from modern regulations. I wouldn't be flying aerobatics in a wooden aircraft of this age, much less doing a loop that close to the ground. The ASK.13 was a stronger aircraft and still prohibited from doing intentional spins and aerobatic flight.
I am quite honestly baffled how you seem to be able to draw this many conclusions about someone you have never met from a 15-minute video (where the poor guy doesn't even speak). Having been in flying all my life, there are many great teenage pilots, especially within gliding, a lot of whom understand the dangers of what they're doing and fly better than their older counterparts. Just because you're young doesn't immediately mean you're stupid and immature. Yes, that tends to be the case for a lot of teenagers, but that's like me saying that all older people shouldn't fly cause they're at risk of incapacitation due to medical reasons. It's not right to group everyone just based on their age. People are different and mature at different rates. There's 50 year olds out there who act like teenagers and 18 year olds who have the maturity of someone twice their age. It just depends on how someone has been brought up. And with regards to your comment about the T21, perhaps you should do a little more research, as you clearly have no idea what you are talking about. The British Gliding Association (the governing body for gliding in the UK), states in its data sheet that it is semi-aerobatic. This means it can do aerobatics which pull positive G. The BGA can prohibit gliders from doing aerobatics, even if they're non-part 21, as is the T21. Also, why don't you look up some photos of people flying T21s. No one in their right mind wears a helmet in a glider. You'd make yourself look as much of a spanner as you are with your comment. When it comes to eye protection, you're flying around at 30 knots. And if you're short enough, the majority of your face can be behind the windscreen, which means your face is out of the wind anyway. It's probably safer to wear eye protection, but you're making it out like he has total disregard for everything safety-related just because he chose not to wear goggles/glasses. And I am not sure how you could say it's confirmation bias, as that's something totally different (looking for information to prove a pre-existing belief). Unfortunately it's people like you who put young people off aviation. You see young people succeeding and trying their absolute hardest to get into the aviation industry, and your jealousy or perhaps just sheer desire to be miserable is what leads you to comment stuff like this. Being this harsh on this young, aspiring pilot through drawing conclusions by extrapolating deeper meanings from something as simple as not wearing some eye protection in a glider. Kamil, don't let yourself get discouraged by small-minded people like the one I am replying to. You will go far in aviation, you've already proven that you can. It'll be people like him telling you that they saw this video and loved your story when you achieve your goals, which I have no doubt you will.
