Simviation Forums

i may be completely ignorant here, but i cannot figure out how to get the glider towed. everytime the game loads, the glider is sitting on the runway, and that makes no sense. any info is greatly appreciated. thnx

we dont have a function yet for a glider tow.

in order to get the glider working, hit Y (slew mode) and hit F3 (slow rise) or F4 (fast rise). go to a desired height and hit Y again. your gliding.

Ramos

Pretty much the only way to get up in the air is to use Slew.

another thing you can do, and what i do, is get a tow plane, like a cessna or something and fly it until you reach the desired altitude, then switch over to the glider and fly it

at least, this way you get to take off

there is another sim, however, called MicroFlight, which is centered around small aircraft, such as ultralights and sailplanes... and it has the ability to tow gliders.
graphics are nowhere near FS though, and it is payware, but you can download a demo version

Moach

Someone posted instructions on setting up a simulated winch launch some time ago. Forget quite how it's done now but I tried it & it works fine. Maybe a search would find the topic.

Ah - obviously not glider fans

Go to the following link and download an AS-28 which has an amazing simulated winch launch

http://virtualsoaring.org/aircraft/2K4/asw28-fs91.zip

You can set the pull off height and it even buffets when you disconnect. As a glider pilot I can tell you it's pretty good.

Here ya go.

There is another way to do this too.

From the Menu get the MAP up.

Add 10 to your alt, so if its 512 set it to 522.

Set your speed to 150-200 (higher speed = more altitude)

Hold in up on your joystick and hit the OK button.

Now you will be shooting up into the air as though u have been fired from a catapult.

Gain as much height as possible then level out.

If you wish to stay airborne for a longer period you will require addon scenery that puts thermals into the sim.  

hmmmmm i didnt know there no thermals in the game, so this must mean that it really doesnt matter where you fly the gliders then right?

nope, just the winds. we've been talking about thermals for a while, but we've been talking about addons we never get a lot. just takes time.

Ramos

Also, if you are looking for good quality payware with awesome glider tow, as well as winch launch, feel free to check out LAGO's Emma Field...

I was just flying there this afternoon! All kinds of goodies, Fritz telling me where to park, sunday afternoon tourists coming and going in their planes as well as cars.. I even took a drive in the jeep in the sim and when I came up to the gate to leave the airport the guy standing there opened it for me! Loads of fun, and comes with some repaints for a few of the stock aircraft in the sim as well, alebit kind of odd colors, but well worth the money in my opinion if you are truly looking for good glider activity and towing. I even sat there and watched as two guys came up in their van pulling a glider in a trailer, they got out, put it together, and went flying! They even came back later, put it away and left!

Hi
Same site above but the util section
http://virtualsoaring.org/utilities.html
grab the winch lauch script file (it can be converted to any aircraft with vet) and follow the link to cross contry soaring this little app builds random thermals/lift where ever you fly
cheers
Wozza

...There are lots of flights to download with thermals "built in" and many of the gorgeous sailplanes which come free have simulated lauches as part of the package............I just have to give it full throttle from the field and up she goes as if on a winch.......close the throttle and off the line and away we go.............

     I used to fly my c172 to the height I wanted and then change  to a glider............commoner

Emma Field has a glider tow, that works nicely..

2002 you could press a button and be towed behind a plane, that was in online mode though.

Actually there are plenty of thermal add-ons for FS, just go to our glider download section and you'll be sorted
Also quite a number of the add-on sceneries we have of glider fields/areas have thermals added