Mayor Scheller secures the gliding championship in Mötzow!

Mayor Scheller secures the gliding championship in Mötzow!

What an exciting event in the sky over Brandenburg an der Havel! Today, August 13, 2025, the German cross-country gliding championship will take place. The Brandenburg-Mühlenfeld airfield will be the venue for 90 talented sailing pilots who will compete in this exciting competition. The Mayor of Brandenburg, Steffen Scheller, took the time to be on site at this prestigious event. Thanks to his quick reaction and contact with Interior Minister René Wilke, the championship flights were approved despite a state visit to Berlin - just 15 minutes after the request!

The participants have been diligently preparing their aircraft since the early hours of the morning, and the first takeoffs are scheduled for 12:30 p.m. The distances to be flown vary between 100 and 500 kilometers and require both skill and strategic thinking. The use of thermals and the planned flight path are crucial for success. The pilots use different starting methods, either the winch start, in which the gliders accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just two seconds, or towing with an aircraft. A GPS logger records the flights in order to precisely analyze the performance.

A look into the future of championships

For those interested, there is also news about the upcoming German Championships. Registration for the championships in the 18 meter and open classes will be postponed until at least November 15, 2025. The reason for this is the so far unsuccessful search for suitable organizers gliding.aero reported. Dates have already been set for other championships such as the German Junior Championships in Musbach (July 26th - August 4th, 2025) and the championship in the doubles class, which will be held in Brandenburg (August 12th - 23rd, 2025). The latter is particularly exciting, as teams have only been allowed to fly with a designated co-pilot since 2024 - a change during the championship is no longer possible.

Clubs that are interested in hosting the German Championships in the 18 meter and/or open class should contact the office soon. Registration will be activated as soon as all organizational details have been clarified.

Promoting young talents

A special concern of gliding is the promotion of the next generation. gliding.de highlights that the provision of high-quality open class gliders and access to training for talented juniors in competitive and performance cross-country gliding is central to the development of young pilots. From 2025, a support aircraft in the form of a Nimbus 4T will continue to be operated by the Förderverein Segelflug e.V. in order to give young talents the opportunity to take part in national and international competitions and thus establish themselves in the sport.

The award ceremony for today's championship will take place on Saturday, August 23rd at 10:00 a.m. If you would like to get involved, you can find all the details about this exciting event and further information about the championships on the website Brandenburg Aviation Club read up.