Costs
Gliding is the cheapest way to learn to fly. CUGC members are privileged even further with reduced fees at the Cambridge Gliding Centre. In return, CUGC members are expected to help out with the club operations. The costs of gliding are split into two main categories: membership and flying.
Annual Membership
- The student CUGC membership fee is £140 per year (after attending a trial flight) or £160 without a trial flight.
- Staff and alumni should join CGC. They will, of course, be able to participate in most of the CUGC activities.
Flying Fees
The cost of a given flight consists of a charge for the launch (by winch or aerotow) plus a charge for time spent in the air.
As a CUGC member you pay ≈60% of CGC soaring fees. CGC’s flying fees can be found on their website. Moreover, you have access to our own glider FRV (Centrair Pegase, single seater) at £15 per hour.
Some illustrative charges are listed below, please see the CGC website for the full list of CGC fees.
| Charge | CGC (full members) | CUGC (students) |
|---|---|---|
| Winch launch | £12.15 | £10.15 |
| Aerotow to 2,000 ft | £40.00 | £40.00 |
| Flying for every 5 minutes (two-seater) | £4 | £2.50 |
| Flying for every 5 minutes (Junior) | £3.45 | £2.25 |
| Flying the CUGC glider FRV (Pegase) for 5 minutes | £1.67 |
You thus pay £15.15 for a winch launch and 10 minutes’ flying in a CGC two-seater, where CGC members would pay £20.15 for the same flight. A 20-minute flight off a 2,000 ft aerotow would cost you £50 (£40.00 for the aerotow + 20 minutes at £10).
Training
You will not pay for instruction. Most of the instructors are volunteers. As such, please be helpful and respectful to them.
Long term costs
If you are thinking of taking gliding up as a hobby, you are probably interested in how much it going to cost in the long term, we usually think of going solo as costing about the same as the Varsity ski trip.
The cost of going solo depends on your level of commitment and students can fly at a range of budgets. Below is an example of a “typical” student who aims to get from complete beginner to solo. This is not the cheapest option, but the most common.
| Item | Cost | Quantity | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Membership | £140.00 | 1 | £140.00 |
| Winch Flights (10 min each with instructor) | £15.15 | 60 | £909.00 |
| Aerotow Flights (20 min with instructor) | £50 | 1 | £50 |
| Miscellaneous (log book etc.) | £20.00 | 1 | £20.00 |
| Total | £1119.00 |
Coming twice a month will allow you to progress to solo reasonably quickly (in a year).
