Come Fly With Us
For those who have never been in a glider we offer an Air Experience Flight in one of our two-seat gliders. An experienced pilot will give a short briefing so that you will know what to expect before you take your place on the rear seat of the glider. Our winch will launch the glider to over 400 m before the cable releases & you fly almost silently through the air. Dependent upon the weather you will be able to see the area to the West of the City of Hamburg together with a view of the river Elbe. The flight will normally last about 7 - 8 minutes in still air; if there are thermals present it can last longer. The cost of such a flight just covers the expenses (we are not a commercial organisation). Flights can only be paid for in cash - we are not equipped to take payment by credit card or similar.
If you are interested in exploring further whether gliding is for you we offer a Trial Membership (Ger.: Schnupperkurs) for two weekends (in practice any 4 days within a relatively short time span). During this trial membership period you take part in all activities within the club under supervision. That means you partake in the full club activities from getting the planes out of the hangar in the morning, performing the daily inspection to putting the planes to bed in the evening. During the day you will fly with an instructor - you will occupy the front seat since this is the beginning of the formal training program. You will also learn how to help others when it is their turn to fly - these activities include attaching the winch cable to the next glider and giving the launch signals. Particularly of interest to younger people (minimum age 14) is driving our cars on the airfield which we use to bring the launch cables from the winch to the take-off area and to retrieve planes that have landed on the runway.
There is no specific fee for this Trial Membership - you will just pay the launch and flying fees at the same rates as club members. In our experience most people who take part in our Trial Membership offer do join the club and continue with training. Most have "caught the bug" after just two days (one teenage girl recently decided to join on her first evening).
If you are already a Licensed Glider Pilot who has moved to the Hamburg area (e.g. for employment) contact us and we will assist getting you back into the air.
For further information get in touch with us either via the contact form below or by sending an e-mail to info(at)lsv-pinneberg.de.