In this Episode of The Thermal, I speak to Dirk Corporaal…the winner of the 2022 FAI’s Pirat Gehriger Diploma. Dirk has spent over 20 years writing and developing an exceptional student manual for glider pilots…that’s now available in multiple languages.   And remembering a rock star of aviation and gliding…Einar Enevoldsen…the man behind the Perlan Project. His longtime friend Ed Warnock tells us about this remarkable man.   And a history flashback. Scott McGaugh the author of “The Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin”…puts us in the cockpit with American combat glider pilots and their missions in World War Two.   That’s all on Episode   #41 of The Thermal.

On Episode #40 of The Thermal…a feature interview with IGC President Peter Eriksen and the growing concern over mid-air collisions.    I also speak to this year’s winner of the BGA’s Bill Scull Safety Award. Wolf Rossmann tells us all about his on-line safety tool FlySafe.   And Dr Dan…talks to me about the real danger of Altitude Decompression Sickness and the impact on glider pilots. It’s another danger we need to pay attention to.   That’s all on episode #40 of The Thermal.

In this Episode of The Thermal, Mathias Schunk tells us what it’s like to crash a JS-1 at 100kmh and survive. It’s a hell of a story…not to be missed.  And we hear from Dutch pilot Jeroen van Dijk and his epic 2022 summer flying his LS-3. Jeroen flew not just one but two 1000 km flights out of his home base…the Amsterdam Gliding Club. That's all on Episode #39 of The Thermal.   

In this Episode of The Thermal, Crisis in the Air. We hear from a British pilot who kept cool and saved himself and his glider. American pilot Roy Bourgeois knows how to escape the Northern Winters. He has just returned from his 27th gliding adventure in South Africa…he gives us the inside scoop. And there’s a new App for analyzing IGC files. One that will help you figure out if you’re a safe pilot. That’s all on Episode  #38 of The Thermal.

On Episode #37 of The Thermal…pilots who make a difference. Beryl Hartley has been a cornerstone of gliding in Australia for almost 60 years and has just been recognized with an FAI award. Liz Sparrow – was one of the key movers and shakers behind last summer’s highly successful Women’s World Gliding Championships that were held in the UK…lets us in on the recipe for success. And Elena Yakymchuk (Elaina Yak-um- chook)…a pilot from Ukraine who with some help from her friends in the UK was able to represent her Ukraine at last summer’s Women’s Worlds. That’s all on Episode #37 of The Thermal.