Grob glider fleet
There are enough air frames to keep the 'winch' fleet going for years,even if some of the 'damaged' ones are used for spares recovery.
The Vig situation is also not that bad if common sense prevailed and they overhauled the current engine. Even if they went for a 'new' engine then one of the standard Limbach models would be an easy fix as they are already retrofitted in that airframe. I personally would not opt for a gearbox type engine as it just adds another complexity that is not justified for a training fleet operation.
The whole point of operating a SLMG is to reduce the level of 'issues' to that as near as possible to a pure glider.
Even the 'parachute' option is questionable on both fleets due to the average operating height and the added question of the reality of being current enough in escape drills. When the ATC moved from the Mk3/T21 to glass the operation did not justify parachutes as an added safety measure as there had been no case that required it.In the case of the VIG it just adds weight that reduces performance,and an engine fire situation would be better served with a 'single lever' control that cut the fuel off and engaged a halon bottle.The main issues with the winch fleet will be finding enough suitable sites that can accommodate the operation and are also near to centres of population.The Vig operation is ideal for dealing with 'upper air work' and the first handling of control so has its place if the fleet is kept.There may have to be some 'out of box' thinking on extending summer w-ends to include frid-mon with staff from disbanded schools involved. None of this is rocket science or beyond reach; but does require some serious decisions at the top and the inclusion of the schools to see how they can adapt to new challenges.
What it WILL REQUIRE is inspirational leadership by someone who the schools can rely on and getting back to the basic reason of what they are there for;which is to get Cadets airborne in something they can eventually get to fly themselves !