Two glider pilots, aged 83 and 81, flew more than 600 kilometres (373 miles) from Lasham Gliding Society in a single flight without using an engine, in what one of them called proof that gliding "is a wonderful sport for everyone."

Clive Thomas, 83, of Four Marks, and syndicate partner Martin Hollowell, 81, of Woking, took off from Lasham on August 1 into a clear blue sky, with no cumulus clouds to guide them to the rising air that keeps a glider aloft.

"On August 1, the sky was clear blue when we left Lasham," Clive said. "With no cumulus to guide us, we have to use our experience to search for areas that might produce lift and sense where the lift is by feel, before confirming the rising air by reference to the instruments."

Martin had planned a route of about 596km but as conditions held, the pair pushed on even further, the first time either had flown that distance in the UK, although Clive has previously completed 600km flights in Australia.

The flight was not part of any competition or club event. "The flight was possible because a number of factors came together," Clive said. "The glider was free, the weather forecast looked right and nothing stood in our way."

By the end of the day, with the cumulus "dying" and the pair nearing Oxford on the way home, doubts set in. "We were thinking, 'Oh, are we going to get back or not?'" Clive said. "But we did, and that's the main thing."

The glider is fitted with a small engine as a safety measure, but the pair completed the entire flight without using it. "It's there like a lifebelt," Clive said. "We do everything as a pure glide."

Clive, who has been a member of Lasham Gliding Society for more than 40 years and was an instructor until retiring at 70, has held all three of the sport's Diamond Badges for height, distance and a pre-declared 300km task for much of his flying career.

He had long hoped to complete a 750km flight but says that, at his age, a flight of around 10 hours is "probably beyond me now."