Aeolus Hang Gliding School, Groton Mass, 1991

Here is an old video (1991) from the Aeolus Hang Gliding school in Groton, MA. It was the oldest running school before it closed in the mid 1990's. It was run by the nicest group of people you could ever meet. This 15 minute clip shows the students flying the "standard" Rogallo type gliders used by the school. You will see some crashes in there, and the 1991 year end "bonfire party" at the end. You will see Thomas "Chuck" Searle speaking at the 4:00 minute mark, he was the founder and original owner of Aeolus.
Sadly he passed away in 2007.
http://www.tributes.com/show/Thomas-Searle-80694242

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• aeolus hang gliding school
• hang gliding
• hang glider
• crashes
• groton ma
• rogallo
• hang
• glider
• crash

[signguy8250]

never noticed how much "Z" looked like Freddie Mercury

[jcalis]

@signguy8250 Everyone looked like that in the 80's.............

[Abubobbledo]

So because of the lower glide ratio do they still use the rogallo type gliders for teaching?

[jcalis]

Some schools may still use them but most have switched over to modern single-surface trainers long ago.

[Abubobbledo]

I hadn't realized how much glider designs have changed in twenty years.

[jcalis]

The old "rogallo" style gliders were built in the mid 70's and used by the school because they were easy to control and had a poor glide ratio. They worked well for the limited space the school had to work with. They also designed and built their own gliders, the "Echo" and other rigid-wing types. I believed they held the patent for the sliding / folding mechanism used on most modern gliders.

[tomlanning]

Brings back so many memories. Good times, good friends ... some not with us anymore.  Thanks for posting.