Rolf Bödeker is probably the pilot with the most hours in the world as co on Arcus / EB28. But the division of labor between the crew is not quite as simple as this picture might give the impression. Rolf: “After two and a half hours the change takes place.“ The pilot not flying can by no means withdraw to the as a passenger. Flight management is his task, so the important clarification of where the turning points to be set during the flight. If you want to be fast in Namibia, you have to recognize the lines that make the fast flight possible and use them consistently. Reinhard: “It is important to create a barogram without any jagged edges.” It is nice to have six-meter thermals, but if you only get down in between, the big distances, the 1000 k and more cannot be realized. In any case, Reinhard and Rolf are well-rehearsed, they always play at the forefront in the race for the long distances – sometimes over short distances with particularly high cutting speeds.
Early October is the ideal time to prepare the runways for flight operations. You can land at the Bitterwasser Flying Lodge in every which direction—depending on how you look at it, on 8 runways (plus one emergency runway), each in two directions. Jeremias carefully levels the landing area over the course of several weeks.
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.