Reinhard Schramme and Bernd Goretzki then went straight to the limit: at the end of the day, 1034 kilometers were on the counter of their EB28. Their flight took them first in blue thermals then under well-developed cloudy skies far to the northeast. And it went up high. Those who followed the first flights on the glidernet saw Bruno Gantenbrink in the late afternoon with his NimEta at 5700 meters MSL! Ten pilots and Arcus teams used this first opportunity in Bitterwasser for the excursion over the Kalahari.
Photo: In the OLC you can track the flights over time in the weather satellite images. Here is a shot in the early afternoon from the flight of the Schramme/Goretzki team.
In early September, the containers holding the gliders for the 2026/27 season were loaded in Waghäusel. Transported by trailer, truck, and cargo ship, the gliders are now on their long journey to Namibia, to the Bitterwasser Flying Lodge.
The Bitterwasser Flying Lodge was the main sponsor of the Junior World Gliding Championships, where from August 2 to 17, 2026, around 80 pilots from 22 nations competed for the titles in the Standard and Club classes. The grand prize for the JWGC winners was a one-week stay at the lodge, including travel and an airplane.