This point of view will probably infuriate some
Not infuriate, but it does depress
.
I haven't done any serious gliding for nearly 20 years now, but before that I was as keen as any. Gliding to me was a way to fly when money was more than just tight! I also learnt an awful lot about airmanship, co-operation, team spirit, airframe and general maintenance. Costs were minimal because the old wood and fabric gliders were easily repairable and there were plenty of experienced people passing on their skills. The membership was split very approximately 40% retired, 40% young and 20% middle aged. Our instructors were perhaps "older" than equivalent PPL instructors (although my first PPL instructor was a retired WW2 bomber pilot!) but they were extremely competent. There were very few accidents that I can remember attributed to age or gliders breaking up. Then, like now, most accidents were stall spin, or very occasional mid-airs (between gliders normally). I'm now officially stuck in the middle age category
and represent the one constant reason gliding is an ageing sport ... Work/time constraints stop us 25-55's from affording whole days to gliding. The other reason is fewer younger people showing an interest. This I attribute to us slowly becoming a nation of "watchers" rather than "doers". With exceptions of course, many kids now would rather watch telly or play on sims, than actually get out and do for real! ... a sad fact, but it seems a real one.
Given the above, how will hugely increasing the cost of gliding help stimulate the sport???
Many instructors are unpaid so the idea of older instructors holding onto jobs does not hold any ground for me.
Sorry, my post made a generalisation that covered instructors of all types. Gliding, is of course mostly voluntary and unpaid. But then? How will forcing these voluntary unpaid gliding instructors take a class one medical do anything other drive them away?
I also welcome an increase in C of A inspection standards, and would like to see these done by qualified aircraft engineers (I have seen some gliders issued with a C of A which make me balk).
I have seen some powered aircraft issued with a C of A which have made me balk!!!
I might be wrong but I think that gliders are now being forced to adopt full C of A to JAR standards by qualified engineers. Why, I don't know? What is wrong with a similar system to PFA or the old BGA system but with qualified inspector sign offs? I might be behind with this bit, as it's all changing so fast!
As I said ....
Personally, I think it would be quite refreshing if everyone, from pilots to politions, could look at something that works well and say "Hmmm, that works well .... let's leave it alone then".
By inevitably increasing costs and driving away unpaid instructors, we will be shutting the doors to those youngsters who do want to get off their bums by pricing them out. The "oldies" will also be driven off by costs and strict (but of doubtful benefit) medical standards, and we will be left with just the (few) well healed, self congratulatory clique of pilots that have always plagued the sport. If there is anything good to come of such a sea change, it will be that they will have to remember what it was to drive a winch or tow each other about
Shame really, I always hoped to go back to soaring in my old age
SS