by Frank Irving (Formerly of Department of Aeronautics, Imperial College)

This book is concerned with the sport of soaring, mainly with the mathematical basis of sailplane design and operation. It does not tell the beginner how to fly, but it will give an experienced pilot some background, with historical notes showing how ideas have evolved and could develop in the future. Some of the material is taken from OSTIV (Organisation Scientifique et Technique Internationale de Vol a Viole) publications and from Technical Soaring, neither of which is readily available to the general public, including papers by the author and others. Extensive references are provided in each chapter.

• The Sailplane in Still Air:
  • Units, and Some Basic Ideas
  • Wings and Winglets
  • The Drag of a Sailplane
  • The Equations of Motion
• Instruments for Soaring Flight:
  • Instruments for Soaring Flight
  • Other Instruments
• The Sailplane in the Atmosphere:
  • The Sailplane in the Atmosphere
  • Flying in Thermals: The Classical Analysis
  • Some Ideas on the Practice of Cross-Country Flying
  • More Advanced Ideas on Cross-Country Flying
  • Optimisations in General
  • The Effects of Wind
  • The Effect of Centre of Gravity Position
  • A Brief Note on Computers, Flight Data Recorders, GPS, etc.