Hey Grant awesome tool you build there how did you come up with these values ? they are very close to what i would consider healthy wing loading but I have nothing to back these numbers exept my own feeling, maybe you have have some good reaoning behind this. Also if you update this for proj. area please leave the option for flat area when it comes to handling this is clearly the better number to look at in my opinion.
One more thing to add; on the very big sizes ~28sqm and up you can and should fly them not only higher loaded relative to certified range but also with higher absolute wing load because bid wings are inherently less dynamic
On the wing loading for bigger sizes, is that your experience? The only experience I have is when flying tandem, and when the glider is loaded close to the top it becomes very dynamic and tricky in light wind conditions. Being over the top becomes near unmanagable.
Being in the middle of the range and 75% the tandem is more than dynamic enough.
Hi the tandem is a very good example for this, my Tandem is certified up to 220kg, the heaviest i`ve flown it is 195 and thats still dampened and not very dynamic. When i take that wingload (4,75) and put it on a low B wing (because thats what a tandem essentially is) that would be like overloading a 24sqm (for example Epsilon) by 25kg.
Hi Chris, I think I can see what you're getting at. If you have a look at the description in the article above you'll notice tandem wing loading on the upper end goes well into the 5kg range.
The majority of tandems we fly here commercially (skywalk, Gin, Ozone) are high Bs. But regardless, it's not a straight swap, just as the optimal loading varies between sizes of the same class.
So what seems like a high loading on a tandem (say 5kg) would be very high on an EN B solo, it's not comparing apples with apples and the figures are relative.
Tandems due to their large size and inertia will always feel more dampened, but at higher loadings are far easier to do wingovers on etc.
When I say higher I mean within the certified range (of the tandem) and when one gets to the upper limits getting into spirals and wingivers go in far easier than when the glider is loaded light.
In light wind conditions takeoffs and landings become even more tricky if one exceeds the certified weight range due to the incredibly high loading.
Hey Grant awesome tool you build there how did you come up with these values ? they are very close to what i would consider healthy wing loading but I have nothing to back these numbers exept my own feeling, maybe you have have some good reaoning behind this. Also if you update this for proj. area please leave the option for flat area when it comes to handling this is clearly the better number to look at in my opinion.
One more thing to add; on the very big sizes ~28sqm and up you can and should fly them not only higher loaded relative to certified range but also with higher absolute wing load because bid wings are inherently less dynamic
happy landings Chris
Hi Chris, glad you found it useful. I based the calculations on the averages of various sizes and classes through various manufacturers, see here: https://flow.grantonthefly.com/i/187846150/6-the-evolution-of-loading-class-by-class
On the wing loading for bigger sizes, is that your experience? The only experience I have is when flying tandem, and when the glider is loaded close to the top it becomes very dynamic and tricky in light wind conditions. Being over the top becomes near unmanagable.
Being in the middle of the range and 75% the tandem is more than dynamic enough.
Happy flying, Grant
Hi the tandem is a very good example for this, my Tandem is certified up to 220kg, the heaviest i`ve flown it is 195 and thats still dampened and not very dynamic. When i take that wingload (4,75) and put it on a low B wing (because thats what a tandem essentially is) that would be like overloading a 24sqm (for example Epsilon) by 25kg.
happy landings Chris
Hi Chris, I think I can see what you're getting at. If you have a look at the description in the article above you'll notice tandem wing loading on the upper end goes well into the 5kg range.
The majority of tandems we fly here commercially (skywalk, Gin, Ozone) are high Bs. But regardless, it's not a straight swap, just as the optimal loading varies between sizes of the same class.
So what seems like a high loading on a tandem (say 5kg) would be very high on an EN B solo, it's not comparing apples with apples and the figures are relative.
Tandems due to their large size and inertia will always feel more dampened, but at higher loadings are far easier to do wingovers on etc.
When I say higher I mean within the certified range (of the tandem) and when one gets to the upper limits getting into spirals and wingivers go in far easier than when the glider is loaded light.
In light wind conditions takeoffs and landings become even more tricky if one exceeds the certified weight range due to the incredibly high loading.
Hope that helps, Grant