Aspire towing

[Pilatuspc12]

Hi,

I just towed a friends Aspire (RE), Rudder Elevator 2Meter glider and it did just fine behind my Telemaster Electro. Everyone says "Ailerons" only, but this bird flew just fine. It was set up to tow with full throttle take-off and half throttle afterwards. We flew the half pattern to 600feet AGL and he released and flew for about 5 minutes, no lift. With lift he stayed up about 10 minutes. After release, I came down in a slip and brought the tow line back to the pits. Excellent, it was !

Randy

[Len]

Congrats Randy, Whatever works is a good thing. I think the reason everyone says ailerons on is because experience shows a rudder /Elev sailplane will eventually bit you. Of course it can be done, we've all done it one or twice over the years, I did it with a Gentle Lady back in the 80's.
In the end fact still remains, especially for guys trying to get into aerotowing and wishing to have the greatest chance at success, that a sailplane with ailerons will improve their success rate and allow the aspiring aerotow pilot a great experience the first time out.

Glad to hear you got out towing.


LEN

[Pilatuspc12]

Thanks Len,

We have a couple of guys who have the radian gliders but they have motors in theirs and don't want to convert them over. The folks here are pretty economically challenged and are having a hard time allocating the funds for a nice glider. It's too bad really, the lift here in this part of Colorado is outstanding. We'll get these Dust-Devils and they will lift up all sorts of junk lying on the ground. Pieces of paper, bags, small pieces of wood, small cats and dogs, you know! The lift is phenomenal. I wish I could get some more guys/gals interested in this sort of towing as it is really nice to bring the towline back to the runway, not stuck in the weeds and cactus with a snarled turn around or retriever. Oh well, I'm waiting for Tom Martin to make a quarter scale Pawnee Brave and then I'll have to build one of those and see what I can pull up! Onward and upward.

Randy

[Pilatuspc12]

Well,

just like everyone said, the glider in tow has to have ailerons! They are right. We have tried again and again and cannot duplicate a successful tow with these Aspires. Oh well, Onward and Upward. These guys at this club just don't want to spend the money on gliders with ailerons, so what's a guy to do?

[a10flyr]

Hey Randy,

My purpose built tug can cradle and tow launch...both at the same time....makes life much easier. While I've had a few sucessful r/e tows I would rather not do it.

[Steve P]

Well,

just like everyone said, the glider in tow has to have ailerons! They are right. We have tried again and again and cannot duplicate a successful tow with these Aspires. Oh well, Onward and Upward. These guys at this club just don't want to spend the money on gliders with ailerons, so what's a guy to do?

It can be tough. Try to be sure you're going directly into the wind, the speed it not too high (slower is better in this case), do a long straight climb out with the tug before initiating a turn, and encourage the sailplane pilot to stay off the rudder unless vital. Resist the temptation to get it airborne quickly because you haven't had success -- try to slow and easy approach a few times.

Keep trying and remind the sailplane pilots to dump at the first sign of trouble, don't try any bold saves. Towing and ailerons just go together. I'm torn between not wanting you guys to quit and not wanting you to break anything.

Hang in there

[Butch B]

I agree with Steve. There is another method to try. For r/e sailplanes I try to get the sailplane pilot to use a launch dolly. They are simple to build and easy to use. I think it stables the sailplane through the lift off. I have even towed competition sailplanes with a dolly and Velcro for a tow release. I carry mine everywhere I go.

[Pilatuspc12]

Yep, they are using a dolly and we are going as slow as the Telemaster Electro will go with about 20 degrees of flaps. These guys are not the best pilots but I'm trying to get them to upgrade to something with ailerons. Hopefully, in the future, this will happen. No Bucks, no Buck Rodgers, I heard once at a certain aviation movie!