Darlton Gliding Club (DGC) is a

gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...

club located in

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

near the village of

Tuxford Tuxford is a historic market town and a civil parish in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 2,516, increasing to 2,649 at the 2011 census. Geography Nearby towns are Ollerton, Ret ...

History

Darlton Gliding Club was formed during June 2007 by the merging of the former Newark and Notts Gliding Club and the Dukeries Gliding Club when both of these clubs lost use of their airfields. Darlton is now the only gliding club in the county of Nottinghamshire. The Dukeries club had been based at Gamston but when they lost the use of this site they were able to acquire the land at Darlton. Subsequently, the Newark and Notts club lost the use of their airfield at Winthorpe when the adjoining showground did not renew the lease. After a short period of ground-sharing a formal decision was made to merge the two clubs into one and the new Darlton Gliding Club was formed. Initially there were no facilities on site – gliders were rigged and derigged each day – so the priority was to erect a

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

. A

portacabin A portable, demountable or transportable building is a building designed and built to be movable rather than permanently located. Smaller version of portable buildings are also known as portable cabins. Portable cabins are prefabricated structu ...

was also installed to act as a clubhouse. Much work has been put into improving the grass, and it is now able to support year round operations. Club members have since erected a second hangar and the original portacabin has been replaced with a new clubhouse which wa
officially opened
in April 2011. The club gained access to mains electricity on 30 September 2017 to power the clubhouse and hangars.

Operations

The club is run on a non-commercial basis by the members for the members. All non-flying activities are shared on a voluntary basis. The runway is oriented 05/23 (into the prevailing wind) and the area offers good soaring opportunities.

Soaring Soaring may refer to: * Gliding, in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes * Lift (soaring), a meteorological phenomenon used as an energy source by some aircraft and birds * ''Soaring'' (magazine), a magazine produced ...

flights have been achieved in every month from February through to November. Most launches take place using a

winch A winch is a mechanical device that is used to pull in (wind up) or let out (wind out) or otherwise adjust the tension of a rope or wire rope (also called "cable" or "wire cable"). In its simplest form, it consists of a spool (or drum) attache ...

however, in late 2014, some members of the club collectively acquired a Eurofox, allowing the ability to

Aerotow Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is a ...

. Motor glider operations are permissible and a group of members have a Falke

motor glider A motor glider is a fixed-wing aircraft that can be flown with or without engine power. The FAI Gliding Commission Sporting Code definition is: a fixed-wing aerodyne equipped with a means of propulsion (MoP), capable of sustained soaring flight ...

based on the site.

Club Fleet

The current active fleet consists of: * K13 – Two-seat trainer *

K21 The K21 is a South Korean infantry fighting vehicle. A replacement for the K200-series, it was formerly designated as K300 or XK21 KNIFV (Korea Next-generation Infantry Fighting Vehicle). The initial production began in 2009, with the Republic of ...

– Two-seat trainer * Astir CS Jeans – Single-seat *

Janus In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus ( ; la, Ianvs ) is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces. The month of January is named for Janu ...

– Two-seat advanced * Discus – Single-seat advanced

History

Operations

Club Fleet

See also