Gliders

Dudek has built a reputation as one of the premium suppliers of paraglider wings in the world – the introduction of wings such as the Universal and the WRC Nucleon have made them the benchmark.

“The fastest XC PPG glider in the world hands down. Raw unadulterated next generation speed that brings PPG gliders to the next level. The glider has major improvements over the Warp 1 in the areas of Launching, Speed, Efficiency, Directional Stability, and Steering Comfort. For experienced XC pilots waiting on a product that will let them take their flight to the next level, the Warp 2 delivers in leaps and bounds. Cover larger distances by flying faster and more efficiently, the Warp 2 is what we have been waiting for.”

– Eugene Cussons
PPG instructor, Nirvana/Dudek Test Pilot and NRT XC race pilot

Slightly slower than our Dudek Warp, the Drift Air is designed for well qualified pilots that would like an agile glider for XC use. With great trim speed it does not lag behind the pilot during Take-off and includes some of the new technologies Dudek has been working on to control the pitch of the glider during pull-up. The glider can be compared with the Snake 1.2 but major advances make it one of the most exciting gliders to fly in the range. Very stable in turbulent conditions and with newer brake line system called the TCT (Triple Comfort Toggle) which combines Tip Steering and TCT+ handle. Very new and unique system for ultra comfort control input

The Hadron 3 is Dudek’s latest answer to make a comfortable, easy to use, XC glider that is very stable. Related to the Hadron XX the glider has been improved to have a easier launch, better controls and efficiency. The Hadron 3 is very stable in rough air and with a slighly lower speed rating then the Drift Air the glider is best suited for pilots that want a glider that provides reliability on launch, agile handing with its 2D steering and TCT +handle system same as found on the Drift Air. Consider this glider if you are looking for something to give you a fantastic playful experience or an easy cruiser for XC.

The Solo is the newest glider to the beginner-intermediate classification. Gliders that should be compared with it would be the Dudek Universal 1.1 and the Dudek Synthesis 2. The Solo brings the latest technology of easy launching gliders to the beginner market with light steering controls, launch characteristics that ensure the glider does not overshoot the pilot during pull-up and increased aspect ratio. A smaller glider giving the same or even more lift than a Universal 5-7 square meters larger in size, the Solo gives XC pilots the ability to have a beginner glider with improved fuel efficiency and better headwind penetration. Ideal for XC pilots that need to fly long distance. The “Sharknose” as present with the XX range and the Dudek Warp, will improve safety in rough air conditions. A 50/50 speed integration has been chosen for the Solo meaning it will have 50% of it top speed built into max trimmer and 50% built into the Speedbar. This is an important considers for a XC pilot that would like a 70/30 split as present with the Universal 1.1 and Warp.

Following in the footsteps of the Nucleon, Nucleon WRC and Nucleon XX, the Nucleon 4 is the upgrade that intermediate sport pilots have been waiting for. It’s a fun playful glider that improves on some of the elements of its predecessors. Most notably, the Nucleon XX was a product designed for the intermediate sport pilot but the wing came with a fast take-off run and did not like being overloaded at all. The Nucleon 4 incorporates some of the advancements the brand has made to mitigate these factors with much improved launch characteristics and improved handling of the wing loading when getting to the maximum indicated load as per Dudek’s indications.

The best description to describe the Nucleon 4 is to call it “the Sporty glider that is XC ready”. The big reason for this is the fact that the glider comes with 2D steering but also includes an additional set of TST toggles mounted close to the riser attachment points. This is the first glider to incorporate it. What does this mean?  The glider might have a sporty 5.60 Aspect Ratio which is less specialized than the Dudek Hadron and Warp with 6.00 aspect ratios, however, with the TST toggles the pilot can comfortably perform direction stability and input via these toggles as their operational height is below shoulder level. Our tests flights showed that the Nucleon 4 is incredibly stable at all speeds and does not oscillate but in the case of a pilot flying in rough, turbulent air, oscillation could be a consequence as with any glider model and in this case the glider is equipped with the TST to make the flight easy to accomplish. Importantly, Tip Steering systems are not counter to Reflex Ability which means pilots can make direction inputs while flying at fast speed settings via the TST system. This would not be safe via the brake controls as these controls affects the reflex of the glider.

The out-of-ground-affect speed is a cool 26 KTS but the speed slows down to a slight walking speed once inside Ground Affect with plenty of flare ability.

Closed Trim speed is 26KTS, Open Trims Speed is 32 KTS and Speed bar maximum Speed is 39KTS as observed with a wing loading of within 10kgs of maximum weight on a size 22.

The climb rate will be affected by the engine size thus there is no accurate indication that can be given on this, but the WINGMAN can indicate that it’s a few Feet Per Second less than the Dudek Warp of similar wing loading, engine size and pilot.

The Nucleon is an excellent, and perhaps best choice for a pilot doing a step-up from the Dudek Solo, mostly wanting to do Sport and Playful flying with the occasional XC. In comparison with the Hadron 3 of similar weight category, the Nucleon will be a little bigger in size, would be a little slower and would use slightly more fuel. The question every pilot would have to ask when making this consideration would be, is XC flying my primary goal or is it Sport flying with XC as my secondary goal.

One of the best all time Dudek gliders.

The Dudek Universal revolutionized PPG when it came on the scene and it has since been revamped rather than replaced. The glider design is a dual-purpose PG and PPG glider that allows for some great characteristics that one will struggle to find with an alternative beginner glider.

Most notably the Dudek Universal, now the Universal 1.1, boasts an enormous trim range with most of its speed built into the trimmers. This essentially will allow a beginner pilot to fly slow when training but as his experience progresses he can access larger speed ranges that can be considered essential for Cross Country flying. 

Special Colors: Change the colors of your glider to make your own and unique design for only an additional 15% added to your price.