Weather
The weather at Camden is very different from that in Sydney. Here's what you need to know.
7-Day Gliding Forecast
Camden Airport (YSCN)
This forecast is a prediction only and may not reflect actual flying conditions. You will be contacted by the club duty pilot or instructor to confirm operations if it affects flying.
Camden Airport sits in the Macarthur region, about 60km southwest of Sydney. Weather conditions here can be significantly different from the coast. The area is known for its excellent soaring conditions, particularly in spring and summer when thermals can reach great heights.
Several factors affect whether we can fly on any given day, including rain, wind strength and direction, cloud cover, and fog.
Online Weather Information
How the Weather Affects Gliding
Rain
Rain is more than something which gets you wet! A wet glider can’t fly as far from a given height as it could if it were dry — in gliding terms, it has a reduced “glide angle” caused by the water droplets disturbing the airflow over the wings. Rain showers also tend to reduce visibility from the glider’s cockpit, so we will briefly suspend operations until the weather improves.
Wind
Wind is not, despite common misconceptions, required to keep a glider aloft. A slight breeze is of no concern to a glider pilot — if anything, it helps to stir up the air mass and encourage pockets of warm air to break away from the ground layer and form rising updrafts called “thermals”. If the wind is too strong (above about 25 knots) then it can make for an uncomfortable ride due to the turbulence created, especially close to the ground. Our tugs have a maximum crosswind strength that they must keep in mind when taking off and landing — once this is exceeded they must either change runways or temporarily suspend launching operations.
Cloud and Fog
Cloud and fog affect visibility, and the height to which we can launch and fly our gliders. If we get a thick early morning fog (thankfully a rare event), we will start operations later than usual. Unlike instrument-rated powered aircraft, flying in cloud in a glider is not permitted in Australia. The Club follows strict rules on the minimum distance we can fly below and near to cloud (in what are called “Visual Meteorological Conditions”). That said, the right sort of cloud can also be a glider pilot’s best friend. Generally, thermals can be found underneath the white puffy “cumulus” clouds often seen on fine days. However, thermals can exist on cloudless days too — these are what glider pilots refer to as “blue” days, and generally make the search for thermals more interesting!
In Summary
Gliders can fly in a wide variety of weather conditions. The overall concern is of course safe operations, followed by passenger comfort (particularly important for people experiencing gliding for the first time). Summer is the best season for experienced pilots to enjoy long soaring flights. We also often have good weather in winter, and this is a good season for pilots who are learning to fly.