Author: Ziad Bassil

ADVANCE IMPRESS 3 My main harness for the past 2 years was the Impress 2+, which was very comfortable for my taste. Then came the Impress 3 M . 1.81 m and 73 kg inside the M size. The construction of the harness and details are ‘impeccable”. It is very rare to find between harnesses such a jewel in terms of “finessing” 😉 ! The harness impresses you to the level of handling it with respect. Swiss precision! 😉 In the air: In order to feel better the harness, I did make a flight in the Impress 2 + and…

NOVA FACTOR 2 Launching this glider is very easy, in strong or in weak wind. In the air the glider has very close handling as the Mentor 2 S, very nice to steer ,and i could place it easily wherever I want inside the core. I felt that the factor 2 S has a tiny less trim speed than the Mentor 2 S. When the conditions were smooth and consistent I found that the factor 2 S at 95 has a very nice climb, a bit better than the Mentor 2 S at 95. Flying the glider in relatively turbulent…

ADVANCE SIGMA 8 The glider arrived to my doorsteps and in the truck for the take off. Having tried nearly all the Sigma’s, I was waiting for the 8th version. Launching in high wind is relatively easy and I didn’t found and pitch forward. In nil wind the glider has a small tendency to stay a bit behind. I flew the glider in 4 different harnesses. An impress 2,an impress 3, an ADVANCE lightness, and an Sup’air Evo XC2. First flights on the Impress 2 at 93 showed a very gentle and comforting glider. It felt like I wasn’t…

GIN TRIBE After test flying the EVO Sprint ,the TRIBE came and I flew it in different conditions ,to get an idea about what’s behind that concept. It is a simple 4 liner, just like the Sprint Evo. Launching the glider doesn’t require any special technique. After some time spent on the DELTA, UP XC2, Sprint Evo and the Mentor 2, I was quite relaxed flying the TRIBE. It resembles the XC2 and the DELTA in comfort, and accessibility, but the Tribe is a bit more maneuverable only inside tight cores. It feels like you can stop the glider inside…

Launching: 1- Omega 8 25@94 = Poison 3 S @ 94 =Mantra 4 ML /MS (Very easy even in no wind) 2- GTO M & GTO Small 3- AD-Pure -Venus 2 M& S 4- Peak 2 A- Climb with a head wind (>15 km/h) 1- Mantra 4 ML @ 103 – AD-PURE M/S @ 93 2- Mantra M/S @ 93 – GTO M @ 103, 3- PEAK 2 24 @ 60 % of the load range 4- Omega 8 25 =POISON 3 S @ 95 = VENUS 3 M @ 104 5-. Venus 2 M @ 103 B- Climb >…

AD Gliders PURE : Introduction: AD gliders is a new brand created by designer and world champion Stephan Stieglair with Martin Gostner ,after moving from UP, to create their own dreams and designs. I have flew almost all Stieglair designs ,from the old series of Kantega’s ,Summit’s,Trango’s,Targa’s…The feeling under those creations are unique, as it is difficult to miss it. Today the PURE S/M arrived and I am already airborne at 94 all up with an impress 2 +… Launching: Pulling the A’s the glider rises slowly at first 75 % then a dab on the brake is needed to…

I have an MS available now @ 93 all up ,and it seems that it resembles the ML @ 102 .It has the same feeling in the air .It is a bit floaty and efficient in weak thermals as the glider always continue to bite in the thermal (nice feeling) .The handling is the same as the ML. I was hoping for more dynamic response,but it felt exactly as the ML ,may be just a very slight increase in brake pressure and same reactions to maneuvers. The ears are quite usable ,because you could loose some heights,and if the accelerator…

Mentor 2 S & Sprint Evo S, & Rush 3 M Most easy to fly: 1-Sprint EVO 2-Rush 3 3-Mentor 2 Climb rate in weak conditions .NO head wind (

My ever first school glider 20 year ago was a UP Flash. I still remember the red cloth with multicolor design on the edge, that feeling and that smell of the tissue with this arrow logo going UP in the sky. Uli Weismeyer legend pilot ,Richard Gallon were on UP gliders at the time and the brand was very strong in the competition scene with their Katana ‘s and later on with the Gambit, escape with Oli Russell, Steiglar ,Brinkeby… I flew quite all the UP range, from Stellar, Vision, vison classic, Soul. All the Summit range ,nearly all the…

OZONE RUSH 3 After flying the Mantra 4 and the Delta before I realized that OZONE has found a very comfortable profile with excellent performance. Now after the NOVA Mentor 2 has raised the bar for the new EN-B’s, I was intrigued to see what the Rush 3 would be like. Standing on take-off with 96 all up weight on the M (85-105) size. Launching is easy and the glider lifted me quickly into the air. The brakes travel is the same as on the Delta (Typical OZONE) Long brakes, soft very easy to steer with an average to good…