Flighttest of the new LXNAV HAWK wind and variometer indicator

Have you already heard of the new HAWK variometer technology for gliders? I am going to show you some scenes from my first flight tests.
The HAWK technology was invented by Prof. Heinrich Meyr and Peng Huang and is licenced to LXNAV. They are distributing the innovative wind direction and -speed calculation together with a variometer function as a software option for their S10/S100 and newer LX80xx and LX90xx devices.
Have a look on this video and decide by your own, if this is really the next big thing in gliding!
#gliding #soaring #hawk #windfinder
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[@FayenceSoaring]

A "Like" and a new subscriber! Great job from one KZbin creator to another! I look forward to more of your videos.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Wow cool thank you for your nice words! I love your videos too, keep up creating 😃👍😍

[@premde]

Excellent! Well done!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hello Paul, thank you for your comment 😍!

[@ChessInTheAir]

Danke! Gut gemacht und sehr hilfreich!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo, Danke dafür! Hey ich wusste gar nicht dass du auch Österreicher bist 😀! Gehört und gelesen hab ich ja schon einiges von dir, aber erst jetzt habe ich mir deinen Lebenslauf angesehen 😀 - cool! Alles Gute nach Amerika aus Linz! Rudi

[@ashrafkandiel]

Very good my friend. I wish you all the best. Really it's amazing.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hello Ashraf, thank you for your comment 😃👍

[@TheSoaringChannel]

Ironically I just flew with the S100 and HAWK enabled for the first time today. It was incredible. In thermal and convergence flying: you can find lift lines and simply fly STRAIGHT INTO THE WIND! Then you stay on the lift line until it runs out. Absolutely incredible! Today I removed my TEK probe, and it will be stored in the trailer until the day the glider is sold. I'll never use it again!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Thanks for you comment 😃! Good idea to use it to fly staight into the wind to find lift lines! I will keep that advise 😃👍

[@TheSoaringChannel]

@@RudisGlidingAdventures just did a half decent flight for my area a few days ago. Down low when near a thermal - the wind will point to the thermal. At the top of the thermal it will point away from it. This is if you are in its immediate area. The thermals that day completely disturbed the 20kt wind aloft to ZERO and sometimes opposite direction of the prevailing wind, but only in the thermals immediate vicinity. Very handy to have noted this! Inside the thermal many times I saw the wind needle pointing directly to one side of the glider - meaning the core was right next to me, and when it went to 0-5kts I may have been in it. I'm going to investigate this further but I did notice it several times.

[@macflysf27]

Cool erklärt - DANKESCHÖN 😊

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Gerne 😀! Danke fürs Schauen 😀👍!

[@grmpflying]

Schön gemacht und gut erklärt! Nach der Präsentation des Erfinders am Segelfliegertag in LOGO letzten Herbst ein super Beispiel, wie das dann in der Praxis aussieht!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, Danke für deinen Kommentar 😃! Ich halte HAWK in der Praxis für eine wirkliche Innovation 😃!

[@EnriqueGraciaColl]

I had some very good initial feelings with Hawk but I have had quite misleading days with it too. Sometimes when low I have been stuck in thermals that Hawk signaled as positive enough but I realized my altitude was going down. It is not a good surprise to realize that when you have little margin. Also in other thermals when Hawk was barely positive and I went up solidly. I started with a lot of trust after the trial period but I have put back the sound back to TEK which seems to me now that is less reliable at the start, more false positives and more time lag, but more reliable when staying in the thermal. Maybe I have something wrong, but I have had both experiences. My negative surprise was how much you tend to trust vario sound, up to the point where it can get you into a bit of trouble by staying in a too weak thermal for longer than needed.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hello Enrique, thank you very much for your comment! I share your thoughts and after some years of experience I Plan to do a follow-up video on that topic. I have learned quite some lessons with it where I think it is worth to share. By the way: I still fly with both needles enabled (HAWK and TEK) and I am struggling if I should put back the audio of the variometer to TEK. Besides of that I love the horizontal wind indication, in particular in mountainous terrain I never want to miss ist again!

[@FPVFrieKi]

Danke Rudi, für das nochmalige zeigen nach der schon sehr ausführlichen "Late Nicht Soaring" Bericht. Das ist wirklich ein Schritt in eine neue Generation und Entwicklung:) Aber ich bin mir selber noch unschlüssig über die Gebühr 1200€ für die Freischaltung...wobei ich dennoch die Entwicklung von Prof. Meyr sehr Wertschöpfe!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo, ja das kann ich kann verstehen. Man braucht ja auch schon mal ein geeignetes Vario auch dafür, da kommt schon was zusammen. Danke für dein Kommentar!

[@rianmonnahan]

Thanks for the video. I just installed the demo version and was wondering how to interpret the indications. Now I have a better idea. Cheers

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Good to hear my video helped you 😃 - thank you for leaving me a comment!

[@tomscholtes5897]

Hi, gute Ergänzung zum Late Night Soaring topic von gestern, danke für die anschauliche Darstellung :-)

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, Danke für deinen Kommentar 😃👍! Ja ich muss sagen, der Termin gestern war der Auslöser, um dieses Video endlich fertig zu stellen. Die Aufnahmen entstanden ja schon letzten Mai, da wurde es Zeit 😃 Und wie du sagst, ich denke auch dass es die Theorie von gestern im Late Night Soaring ganz gut ergänzt 😃

[@thomasbaro7377]

@@RudisGlidingAdventures - klasse! Gerade dieses "Hands on" ist eine sehr gut Ergänzung zu der sehr ausführlichen Information bei Late Night Soaring... mal schauen, ob ich meine Haltergemeinschaft überzeugen kann, vom 50 Jahre alten Blumenauer EFA 1/3 umzurüsten auf das S100 :)

[@florianhoflehner2877]

A lot of airliner features now in your silent 2 electro! Amazing how far technology has come. Especially considering how small that instrument is….

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Florian thanks for your nice comment 😃! Yes those Instruments are getting more more sophisticated 😃 a regular airliner has often much less features 😃! By the way this movie was filmed with the clubs Duo Discus 😃

[@josies.9653]

Hello Rudi, I already have the LX - AHRS installed, what happens when Hawk is installed on top? The LX AHRS is it still active, is there a second menu icon for the Hawk AHRS or is the Hawk based not only on the Hardware but also on the LX-Nav AHRS-software ? And if it is based on it, why to pay twice for the AHRS function ?

[@sergioelia9878]

Nice explanation. Thanks. What is the difference, in terms of measured wind, between HAWK and the "standard" wind calculation of S100? Since a while now, S100 introduced a third page where we can see the 2 large wind arrows.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Sergio i do not know the exact circumstances. I would assume that HAWK delivers wind instantaneously, so you get an updated and very accurate wind direction and strength every second. I don't think this is possible with the "usual" wind calculation, however this algorithm works. Maybe LXNAV can give you a more detailed answer. Cheers

[@theenthusiasticamateurpian9033]

I see that the central part of the vario displau is now used to display these large wind arrays. But what about the integrated vario and netto data usually displayed there ? These data are absolutely necessary to my opinion.

[@garyosoba6141]

How does this differ substantially from what has been available with the Air Glide vario for nearly a decade? Also, are you able to select either the TEK or the "real-time" response for your audio inputs? Thanks for your review!

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Gary, thank you for your comment! Good question, I don't know the Air Glide Vario exactly, but as far as I remember you need a separate sensorbox, which needs to be located far from any electromagnetic disturbance. You do not need this with HAWK. Furthermore, of course you can select the input for the audio signal, so you can choose the HAWK therefor. I think you could even de-select the TEK indicator needle if I remember correctly.

[@Paul-vh6ul]

Glider pilots have never had accurate real time wind direction and speed. So now we need to figure out how to use that information. The manual for the Anemoi Wind-Indication-System (similar to Hawk Wind) says that real time wind information can be used to detect/confirm the core center of a thermal. And also for finding lift in Rotor under Wave. I think wind direction might also suggest whether to turn left or right to thermal when lift/sink causes an uncommanded roll. Might also be good for finding the small section of a convoluted ridge line that is producing lift. I've found that in mountains/hills, the wind direction changes depending on your location relative to the terrain. Might also good for finding convergence lift, especially on blue sky days (no clouds). I like this instrument because it requires a new skill to interpret and exploit. Maybe there are new soaring techniques to discover. WRT Hawk, I wonder if LXNav will figure out how to use sound to convey important wind information. I could live without the audible vario sound. I mostly use the averager on my S7 and body sensations to thermal. In gusty conditions, the beeping is not great because of the lag and I'm not sure that I need it. It will be easier to read the wind info at a glance once Up=heading on the display. One thing I like about the Anemoi instrument is that it's small size allows it to be positioned near the top edge of the instrument panel, make it easier to read at a glance.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Paul, thank you very much for your comment, it is very interesting to read! After your mentioning here, i had also a look into the anemoi handbook. Very interesting, that they think it can help to find the center of a thermal. I will definitly try to use Hawk and this information this season to find out if it is true. Also other comments here indicate that there could be much more valuable information to gather from those new instruments! Cool. I will check it out on the next flights. Thank you for your comment 😀!!

[@petes485]

I flew with HAWK wind in weak thermal conditions a few days ago. Similar thoughts to Rudi regarding the TEK vario lagging behind HAWK.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Pete, thank you for your comment! I am looking forward to fly with HAWK again soon, as our season is already starting 😃👍

[@gdineyt]

Hello, Thanks for the videos. I have a S80 and unfortunately this option is not available for it at the moment. Is it possible to display the wind arrow relative to the glider trajectory? It seems S100 displays the estimated wind direction relative to the north which is less practical...

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hello Godefroy, yes this was a little Bug in the software at the time I used the free demo version (may 2021). I think I even mentioned it in the video. This has been corrected now. You are right, track up mode makes more sense.

[@d-kuabab5303]

Hallo Rudi, besten Dank für deine schnelle Antwort. Ich möchte noch eine Frage hinterher schieben: Bei Motorseglern, insbesondere bei Eigenstartern, besteht während des Motorsteigflugs keine genaue Vario-Anzeige. Deswegen nutzen einige Modelle eine "Hilfs-Konstruktion", in dem eine Umschaltung Vario auf den statischen Druck durchgeführt wird. In meinem jetzigen Flieger gibt es diese "Hilfs-Konstruktion" nicht. Nun meine Frage: Berechnet HAWK für den Motorsteigflug die korrekten Steigwerte oder sind die Steigwerte im Motorflug auch sehr stark gestört durch die Propellerwirbel?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo, puuh, gute Frage. Nachdem ich das nie in einem Eigenstarter ausprobiert habe, kann ich leider nichts dazu sagen. Am besten mal den Hersteller kontaktieren würde ich sagen

[@trevorstuart3674]

Hi Rudi, If building a new panel from scratch is there any point having a mechanical vario and TE tube if HAWK is installed?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hello Trevor, no, there is no difference. You just need to connect the pressure tubes also to the HAWK. Cheers, Rudi

[@swissgliderpilot6871]

I have to test it, but it seems to be interesting

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Yes, try it. I have now flown almost a complete season with it and it is really a great step forward in my opinion! If you have the possibility to try it, i highly recommend to do so. Also the precise wind indication is a great help!

[@lorenzofornari]

I tried the DEMO yesterday, and found out a very large difference in vario average in the first 2 circles, then in steady climb the difference was little: 4.5 versus 2.5 m/s at the beginning of the thermal (very turbolent) and then 3 versus 2.8 m/s. About the wind, since you can not see the HAWK and NOT-HAWK wind at the same moment, you can not compare, but since it was a windy day, I could appreciate the quick change in calculated wind, and it was really correct! you can see it at best when flying on a ridge with multiple orthogonal ridges decreasing into the valley, and the wind is not really 90° with the main ridge. The climb was where the HAWK expected, this means the wind was ok. I have to try it better, and understand the parameters to be set, a pity for the price, will not buy it this year for sure.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi Lorenzo, i totally agree to most of your points. I have now a bit more experience with it and in the meantime my S100 now shows exclusively the HAWK Wind and Variometer information. I had really good results during my last thermal flight. I had much less (almost no) "test circles", so where i thought there is a thermal, but there wasn't. This helped me to improve my cross country speed. I probably will do an update on that video. And yes, a pitty about the price! Thank you for your comment!

[@LSVFlachkurbler]

lorenzo: Same problem here. I could never tell from the Hawk Audio signal if the thermal I found was 1.5 or 2.5m after the full first circle. Displayed climb not consistend with the real integral value. Hawk is convincing in flying energy lines to avoid wrong pullups but I cannot use it as normal vario in thermaling.

[@manfredwassipaul3126]

Servus Rudi, da du schon über Erfahrung mit dem HAWK verfügst möchte ich folgende Frage stellen: Das Interessanteste wäre für mich die Relation des aktuellen Windes zur Flugrichtung. Kann man ein Flugzeugsymbol am Bildschirm darstellen und dann sehen aus welcher Richtung in Relation zum Flugzeug der Wind aktuell kommt? Liebe Grüße Manfred

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo Manfred! In der aktuellen Version sollte das nun gegeben sein, dass die Windrichtung relativ zur Flugrichtung angegeben wird (track up orientation). Als ich die Aufnahmen letztes Jahr gemacht habe, war noch ein kleiner Bug in der Testversion. Wie gesagt, jetzt sollte es passen 😃 Liebe Grüße Rudi

[@davidmoody6033]

If the Hawk responds more quickly than the TEK vario, does that mean it has "no" lag and corresponds exactly to "seat of the pants" or "feel", or is it rather "closer" to instantaneous response? My last coaching encouraged me to respond to "feel" and not the variometer indication, and made a great difference to my flying. So, will the Hawk give me an improvement, in your experience?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi David, thank you for leaving me a comment! I would say the Hawk coincidences with the "feel of the pants" over a great range, for sure better than only with TEK. If have to say i only used the 30 day trial last year when i made this video. For this season, i have the full license so i can use it over a longer period of time and gain more experience. I think by the end of the season i will do an update of my impressions with the HAWK.

[@davidmoody6033]

Hi Rudi, Just noticed your TE multi-probe at 1:37; not related to your video, but I "lost" my probe after a field landing, and it looked exactly like your one. I purchased the sailplane second hand, and have no way of identifying the manufacture/model number of the probe I lost, so I can obtain a replacement. It had three pressure tubes (Pitot, Static, TEK) and the same shiny/matte appearance Are you able to assist?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi David, mine is from ESA systems: www.esa-systems.com I hope that helps you!

[@davidmoody6033]

@@RudisGlidingAdventures Thanks for your response; now I can go ahead and order a replacement (for next season, I guess).

[@bluekernel2448]

haha cool aber ich versteh noch nicht ganz wie jetzt alles tatsächlich gemessen wird, man braucht ja den groundspeed oder nicht?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, ja das ist gar nicht so einfach. Groundspeed kommt vom eingebauten GPS. Alles weitere ist höhere Mathematik 😅. Wie genau das funktioniert, wurde gestern in Late Night Soaring vom Erfinder erklärt: m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6TTootrmdatfJY

[@d-kuabab5303]

Können die HAWK-Wind-Vektoren auch "Track-Oben" dargestellt werden?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo, ja wie im Video kurz erwähnt, war das zum Zeitpunkt der Aufnahme (Mai 2021) ein kleiner Bug, der sich eingeschlichen hatte. Ich habe den Hersteller darüber in Kenntnis gesetzt und bekam dann einmal die Info, dass es jetzt korrigiert sei. Die Windanzeigen sollten alle immer "Track-Up" sein. Macht ja auch Sinn

[@Fukenbumen]

Why would you still want to see the "conventional" vario indicater when you have upgraded to the superior one? It would confuse the hell out of me. The license fee is BTW rather high. LX Nav is basically saying to its customers that their already expensive system came with underperforming software but for another 1000 euro you can finally have the full monty. I would be hesitant to spend this amount of money. And will the hawk software be included on new LX units or is still optional?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, thank you for your comment! I would assume, that with more experience the pilots are going to switch to the HAWK indication and stay with it. About your other points: good questions, but I cannot say anything about them. Maybe somebody from LXNAV could do that

[@d-kuabab5303]

Flachland-Flug 4,5h mit HAWK-Demo-Lizenz: Einstellungen: Vario und Sollfahrt Anzeige und Audio : HAWK. Ich habe sehr große Unterschiede zwischen dem roten und blauen (HAWK) Zeiger auf dem V8 gesehen. Mein Fazit: HAWK hat mich kein einziges Mal bei der Thermiksuche in die Irre geführt. Dies wäre öfter der Fall gewesen, hätte ich dem üblichen roten Vario-Zeiger vertraut. Für mich stellt das HAWK-Vario einen positiven Generationssprung dar. Offene Frage für die HAWK-Demo-Lizenz: AHRS ließ sich nicht kalibrieren.....Ist dies bewusst so, bei der HAWK-Demo-Lizenz?

[@d-kuabab5303]

weitere Kurz-Info: Der AHRS ist bei der Demo-Lizenz enthalten und funktioniert. Was war das Problem: Ich hatte zwar den Rumpf in ausgerichtet (wie Wägung). Aber beim Kalibrieren des AHRS hatte ich die Haube geöffnet, mit der auch das I-Brett schwenkt. So hatte der AHRS (bei geöffneter Haube) einen Horizont bei -55 Grad und konnte deswegen nicht kalibrieren. Nun, bei geschlossener Haube und das V8 deswegen in Soll-Position: Kalibrieren kein Problem.. und funktioniert.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hallo, Danke für dein Kommentar! Ich konnte nun bei einem ausgedehnten Streckenflug das HAWK Vario weiter testen. Mittlerweile habe ich nur mehr die HAWK Nadel eingeblendet und auch die Sollfahrtanzeige folgt nun dieser. Fazit: wie du schon geschrieben hast, ich hatte viel weniger (eigentlich kaum) Fehlversuche beim Thermikfinden. Ich bilde mir ein, dass das ein wesentlicher Grund war, warum ich eine höhere Schnittgeschwindigkeit erzielen konnte. Mir gefällt das HAWK immer besser. Leider ist es halt nicht ganz billig.

[@bkailua1224]

AHARS is included, if you already have AHARS do you get a discount on the HAWK price?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, thank you for your comment! Puuh, good question, I don't know, I think it is best to contact LXNAV or your local dealer for that.

[@bkailua1224]

@@RudisGlidingAdventures I got the answer from LXNAV, you can get a discount if you bought your AHARS in the last 12 months.

[@williadYT]

Watching the needles I see they are always very close to each other. Probably not enough to make any difference.

[@OnerousEthic]

Could someone please confirm or deny that this is all possible due to inertial sensor input and massive computation?

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

yes, only the standard 3 pneumatic connections, GPS and computation are required to give such a great output! So all you need is already installed in your glider.

[@buzzinbritain8222]

? Encourages a lot of head in cockpit?

[@johngalloway156]

Surely not! Accurate information, clearly presented, reduces head in cockpit time.

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

Hi, no I don't think so. Normally you just have a quick look on the wind that's it. There are many more possibilities to be distracted from looking out, like for example monitoring your Navigation Computer too long. So I don't think that this new variometer/Wind indicator technology leads to more head-down time.

[@gxlbiscuit]

Please say the hawk option isn’t a subscription

[@RudisGlidingAdventures]

😅😅, no, thank god it's not 😂😂

[@tztz1949]

I have one. But my algorithm is better, quicker and I spend less time looking at my dash in a fat fingered attempt at experience and currency instead of another instrument feigning better tech.. just go fly and figure out how to thermal.