Rollason Condor?

[WBerry]

Hi, I've started a group in the midlands and we're looking around for an a/c. The Rollason Condor looks good, has a great useful load, and there are some seemingly well priced examples.

Is it as good as it looks? Whats the catch, I'm wondering. Is it tricky to get parts for, I've not heard of the type till recently?

All thoughts appreciated.

[Alan Cooper]

I owned a Condor for many years and sold my last ones a few months ago,moving on to a Robin DR400 for my old age.Spares are not a problem being either generic aviation parts,easily manufacturable or common to Jodels (see Airworld catalogue).When Rollasons closed their factory I purchased all the Condor specific spares from them (a transit load).These spares were not useful for day to day operation but are helpful in major rebuild.Basically they were the metal components laid down for a further batch of ten airframes which were never built and some spare tailplanes/rudders etc.I have passed these spares on to Neil Butler (G-AWSS) for safe keeping , the good of the marque and they are now stored in Scotland.The LAA office at Turweston hold the manufacturers drawings and paperwork.There is no owners club as such but most owners know a few others ,so a loose network is in place there is a good website / forum at www.rollason-condor.co.uk this excellent resource is sadly not as active as it deserves to be.A lovely and much underated aircraft with delightful handling.

[Bill McCarthy]

Alan, any idea if the LAA inherited the plans for the Rollason Beta as well. I soloed in Condor G-AWSN away back in Rochester in '76. They stalled and spun quite well.

[Alan Cooper]

Sorry Bill no idea about the Beta and the LAA you,ll have to ask them.A lovely aeroplane I,d love to have had a go,pity none of the Rollason examples survive.I believe AWSN is still extant I remember her well at Rochester we must have learnt at the same time!!.Your right about their spinning and of course we were made to do it until we got it right.The training was a bit rough and ready but i,ve always felt it was an excellent grounding for my career.I feel really sorry for my young co-pilots nowadays the training is very procedural with so little emphasis on "stick and rudder " skills and in trainers that are frankly so dull and undemanding.

[jangiolini]

Hi I know of another one for sale G-AWAT which resides in the LAA hanger at Cumbernauld! I believe Martin Burns is your contact! I have flown in it several times and find it a really nice aircraft to fly and maintain very straight forward with superb access!

[J.C.]

They are a sound aircraft and excellent first aircraft.The only thing that stopped them being as poular as jodels is probably their limited fuel capacity which doesn't stop them being good tourers,it just makes it them efficient.
Never heard any other gripes about them.

[mikeblyth]

SN hasn't flown since lunchtime, went to Fenland for bacon sandwich and cup of tea

[Bill McCarthy]

G-AXGS and G-ATAU were the other two I flew out of Rochester. SN was my favourite though - first solo after 10 hours. The stall and spin in "the direction of your choice for three full turns" was not my favourite exercise. We did not use radio in Rochester in those days. I would love to revisit. Great to hear that SN is still going strong. Of the limited number of aircraft that I have flown, the Jodel 1050 is a real joy to fly.

[David Hardaker]

Bill
Your Condor flying training sounds just like mine !
It was all done non-radio, and no intercom either.
I solo'd in G-AWEI (9h 20min), and flew G-AYFD, G-AVZE, G-AXGV mostly. Qualifying cross-countries from Sherburn were Skegness-Doncaster. Again all non-radio.
Skeggy was the home of CFI Rex Larsen, an ace Auster pilot.
Spinning in Condors was exciting. My instructor will still have the bruise on his arm where I tried to grab the first substantial object I could find to hang on to, as we tumbled into my first spin. (sorry Doug !)
We never went anywhere at more than 90 knots...
All this was in 1972-3.
As has often been said, if you can fly a Condor you can fly 'owt !

[Brian Hope]

At the risk of this all getting to sound like an old farts reunion, I also learned at Rochester in the mid seventies on those same Condors. They were part of the Universal Flying Services fleet that Rollason's hired out to a number of flying schools around the country. I was paying £9 an hour then, sounds cheap but I was earning 9/10s of buggar all in those days (still am!) so it was just as hard to afford then as it is now. I had two excellent instructors, both ex service, who taught because they loved to teach, not because they were hours building. Sadly Universal went tits up before I had finished my training, but such was the quality of instruction that at less than thirty hours I had done the lot, including the solo cross country (Stapleford and Ipswich) and the dreaded spinning. I moved on to Robins at Headcorn to complete the course and then like so many others drifted away from flying for a few years because it all got too expensive. PFA came to the rescue in the shape of the Jodel and the rest as they say, is history.

[mikehallam]

Possibly a negative point or so.

[b]Condors [/b]aren't all on the LAA register, or weren't when I was keen on one.
CAA is more hassle/cost.
The u/c legs on the one I saw were well knackered, expense there & as it was on a CAA, Mr. Smoothy's look alikes weren't accepted due to the usual lack of the right bit of paper.

Pls. correct me if I'm wrong.
Otherwise it's a strong safe lump of flying machine !

[merlin]

I understand that they are all now on or moving to the LAA.

I also learnt on them in the seventies, Doncaster, and if only I had hangarage up in the NW I'd love to be in a group on one.

[J.C.]

There's one advertised on www.thehangar.co.uk.
Looks good,new fabric and recently o/h engine.

[Alan Cooper]

The type has been orphaned by the CAA and is no longer eligible for a CofA.As far as I know they are all moving on to permits.The Condor i sold recently was purchased partly on account of having nice legs.VBR

[howard bradley]

Its the aircraft I will go back to , I have a Jabiru 450 a nice ship and fast , but as the economics start to pinch (I am 71 ) I will be looking for a Condor , I have 500 hrs on type as a Tug pilot with the 0-240 engine , what a machine I have been pulled into the vertical many times by a glider pilot and come out of it in one piece , side slips , fast return to tera -firma , cross winds all no problem . the a/c was GATAV one slot from GATAU ,she came from Lasham and I believe is still flying after rebuild , without hesitation I say go for it .