Aviation logbook.
Glider pilot and SPL holder. FAI Silver C badge: 1000m height gain, 50km distance, 5 hours. 100km diploma. Member of South Wales Gliding Club.
From Air Scouts at 14 to the French Alps. Twenty-five years in three acts.
A passion for soaring and a keen interest in motorglider cross-country flying.
I first went gliding at 14 with the Air Scouts and promptly forgot about it for two decades. Returning in 2022, I somehow ended up becoming a member of South Wales Gliding Club, flying the French Alps, learning to fly motorgliders and somewhere along the way I bought my own glider.
This section documents my milestones as a pilot, the practical tools I've created to help fellow pilots in their training, and the adventures I've experienced in the skies.
Chronology / logbook entries, big days.
First flight at Aston Down
Started gliding with the Air Scouts at age 14.
Returned to gliding
Resumed training at South Wales Gliding Club after a long break.
First solo
Completed first solo flight in April 2023.
Silver duration (5 hours)
Flew for five hours in May 2024 for Silver badge duration.
SPL achieved
Passed the SPL (Sailplane Pilot Licence) in July 2024.
Bought a PIK 20D
Purchased a PIK 20D glider, a Finnish high-performance single-seater from the late 1970s with a rich competition heritage. Owning an aircraft is a different kind of commitment: you're responsible for its maintenance, its airworthiness, and everything that follows from taking it into the air.
Started TMG training
Began motorglider (TMG) training in October 2024.
First TMG solo
First solo flight in a motorglider, January 2025.
Silver distance & height
Completed a 50km flight and 3,281ft height gain for the Silver badge in May 2025.
100km diploma
Flew 100km in June 2025 for the 100k diploma.
TMG cross-country
Completed qualifying cross-country flight in a TMG, June 2025.
Flying in the French Alps
Flew in the French Alps: ridge, wave and thermal soaring among serious terrain.
Side projects / for pilots, by a pilot.
Glider avionics
Custom instrumentation for the PIK 20D, where embedded electronics meets soaring.