UP – Misti

An Acro All-rounder

The Misti project started back in 2015. The goal was clear: build a trademark UP glider for the acro scene – a durable product that pilots love to fly. At the end of 2018, we went back to the drawing board with Ondrej Procházka to tease out the essential points of such an all-round glider; and build it.

We were striving to come up with a glider that suits most pilots, starting with beginners. A wing that is as easy as the current “relaxed” acro gliders. In a big size, you can have it as a glider to enter the acro flying world. In addition, we ended up with such maneuverability and usable energy that the glider in a smaller size will capture the heart of advanced pilots.

The project would not have had such a good outcome without the skills of our chief designer Franta Pavlousek. His many decades of glider development experience make the UP Misti a very complete and interesting glider to fly.

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Description

What are the 4 essential points of our acro glider?

– Predictable behavior
– Ideal amount of energy
– Optimal brake pressure and travel
– Simple and robust

Predictable behavior

Similar to cross-country gliders, acro gliders must fly consistently and have predictable behavior. Over the last decade, acro gliders of all brands have advanced and made progressing in acrobatics safer. The UP Misti continues this trend. After hundreds of hours of testing, the results show that the glider doesn’t do unexpected things. The backfly is very easy and creates a clean controllable backward motion if flown with freebrakes and hands wide open. The aggressiveness is damped, especially if flown around 4 kg/sqm, and stays very manageable even above 6 kg/sqm – precise brake travel and pressure feedback help keep control of the wing.

Ideal amount of energy

The correct amount of energy is essential to fly acrobatic tricks and to feel the fun factor of a glider in this category. With the UP Misti, we focused on packing the maximum energy so you can choose the fun factor depending on how heavy you fly the glider! It is important to realize that the available energy of a specific glider is tightly connected to the take-off weight. If you plan to start Rythmic SAT training, the UP Misti is suitable to fly around 4,25 kg/sqm. At this flat-area loading, you can master all tricks; there will be enough energy while keeping a high safety margin. If you want to go hard and have energy for tricks like a Superstall to Infinity tumbling, you want to be towards 6 kg/sqm on the Misti.

Optimal brake pressure and travel

The brake pressure is one of the essential characteristics of an acro glider. If the pressure is too heavy, some tricks are hard to pull, which puts stress on the tendons and muscles. This has resulted in numerous pilots having chronic inflammations and trouble training for several hours. On the other hand, if the brake pressure is too soft, it can be tough to feel the glider and execute negative tricks cleanly. A glider like this is technical and especially hard to learn to fly in the beginning. It has been the key focus of the Misti project to stay in the middle between heavy and soft, ideally on the softer side, to get as close to perfect as possible. We conducted multiple tests of different brake geometries, profile changes, mini-ribs as well as attachment point positions to find the best balance. The final setup will make you want to fly this glider. Shorter travel with pressure on the lighter side will give you precise control and several hours of pleasurable flying.

Simple and robust

Nowadays, it is easy to construct a glider with all kinds of cool inventions like vents and pressure valves. But are they really making the glider better? We took a closer look at them during testing but opted with a simple design. The key will always be a well-chosen airfoil. If the airfoil is good, vents are unnecessary added weight. This saved weight contributed to a glider that is more robust and long-lasting. The construction of UP Misti follows the highest standards: reinforced leading-edge taped up between cells, tension straps on all cascades, specially angled attachment points, and the strongest line material available. We have built a tank – made for hundreds of hours of heavy use.

WINGLOAD RECOMMENDATIONS:

Depending on your level and preferred style of use, you have to plan on getting the correct size of your glider. Follow the table below, and calculate your loading values as following:

TOW in XX Kg divided by m2 flat surface behavior.
E.g. 100Kg complete Takeoff Weight / 20 sqm = 5,00Kg/m2>

Kg/m2 flat 
4,25                     beginner/first tricks

4,25-4,50             freestyle*

4,50-5,50             easy acro

>5,50                  dynamic acro

*(Rythmic SAT/Infinit working) 

SIZE  14 16  18  20 22 24 33-Bi
Surface area flat  14,0  15,97  17,92  20,04  22,32  24,77  32,99
Surface area projected  12,0 13,7  15,4  17,2  19,2 21,3 28,4
Flat span  9,03  9,65 10,22 10,81  11,41 12,02 13,87
Projected span 7,30  7,8 8,26 8,73  9,22 9,71 11,20
Flat aspect ratio   5,8
Projected aspect ratio   4,4
Number of chambers  52
Total line length incl. brake  306,9  327,9 347,3 367,2  387,6  408,3  471,2
Total # of lines incl. brake  278
Glider weight kg  4  5 5 5  6  6  8
Certification load test load test load test load test load test load test load test
Recommended weight range: min  60  65 70 75  80  85  120
Recommended weight range: max 95 100  110  120  125  130  145
Max allowed weight 115 120 125 130  135  140  207