A typical day at the club

Under the leadership of our Chief Pilot and instructors, teams are formed to open the hangar doors and take out the gliders and tow planes. In groups of three or four people, the hangars are emptied of our aircraft which are positioned at the edge of the runway before the daily briefing scheduled for 10:00 a.m.

The daily briefing is a highlight of our activity. Its first part is devoted to a meteorological analysis of the flight zone. This forecast is essential for safety. It allows our Chief Pilot to emphasize the particularities of the day. The second part is devoted to the regulatory aspects of the airspace in which the pilots will operate. Then comes the machine distribution, the chronological sequence of the flights with the attributions and responsibilities of each. All this may seem complicated for a novice, but this routine is very quickly assimilated and understood.

Between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., the beginner school and the introductory flights occupy the runway.

Around 12:00, there are people on the club terrace to share a small meal.

Then, around 12:30, the first gliders are lined up on the runway and the tow pilots start the noria to take off the most experienced pilots wishing to take advantage of the first thermals to make a big flight. No time to breathe, everyone is busy on the runway to hook the cables and gradually take off the thirty or so gliders waiting. In less than an hour, our four tow planes put everyone in the air.

The school is organized in the middle of this noria to allow all the students to fly with their instructors.

Around 2pm all the gliders are in flight. Only the dual-control students and the young pilots who have been released to try their hand at flying remain on the field. The other pilots are already galloping towards Briançon or the northern Alps depending on their experience.

Around 6pm, the day is coming to an end, the thermals are diminishing and, one by one, the gliders are returning to the field. They then have to be cleaned and stored in the hangars so as to be ready for the next day.

When everything is finished and the sun is starting to set, we meet up with our friends at the clubhouse for a refreshing drink. The pilots talk about their exploits: some have made their first solo flight or their first circuit, others have covered hundreds of km, reaching Mont Blanc or the Matterhorn. Some evenings, a barbecue is prepared and those who have flown meet up with those who have worked on the runway all day.

At AAVA, gliding is an activity where teamwork, solidarity and conviviality are shared values.