Thursday 30th November to Sunday 2nd December
Posted: 04/12/2017 20:07
Thursday 30th November. A moderate to fresh NNW'ly, with gusts in excess of 30 kts, was accompanied by frequent and at times heavy snow showers, confining the gliders and tugs to the hangars and those members who braved the weather to the club house. Thursday also turned out to be the first ice day of the winter, the temperature never getting above zero, the associated wind chill being -10.4C.
Friday 1st December. The continuing NNW'ly had declined in strength to become light to moderate and the showers had also declined in frequency and intensity. However, the snow cover on the airfield precluded any flying, although making for some attractive photos, those below being provided by Andy Parish.
Saturday 2nd. The Atlantic anticyclone responsible for feeding the arctic air to the UK over the last few days had slipped south, allowing somewhat milder air to reach the UK together with high/medium level cloud cover. The milder air, however, had little effect on the snow cover,as the following photo shows, the result being another non-flying day, .
However, resourceful glider pilots are not to be prevented from undertaking outdoor activities, which in this case resulted in some power sledging, as illustrated below.
Sunday 3rd. The continuing slow rise in air temperature as a light to moderate NW'ly blew on a generally sunny day, led to a thaw of the lying snow, this resulting in a waterlogged airfield and no flying. The day did have, however, a nice sunset, a digital image of which has been provided by John Carter.
This blog describes a snippet of life at the Yorkshire Gliding Club. Why not take a flight and try it yourself, or we can teach you to fly as a full club member.