"The Schulgleiter SG-38 Glider" Topic
2 Posts
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Tango01  | 14 Dec 2012 8:22 p.m. PST |
The SG 38 was designed to be a training glider for basic flight training by the Nationalsozialistisches Fliegerkorps (NSFK). The usual launch method was by bungee cord from a sloped hill. Because training was conducted solely by solo flight the aircraft had to be very easy to fly and also easy to repair.[1] The high-wing design uses a kingpost and cable bracing. The primary structure of the glider is of wood, with the wings, tail surfaces and inverted "V" kingpost all finished in doped aircraft fabric covering. The pilot sits on a simple seat in the open air, without a windshield. The basic configuration was similar to earlier gliders such as the Stamer Lippisch Zögling and the Grunau IX, but the SG 38 was an entirely new design. Improvements included enlarged tail surfaces for better stability, a separate skid mounted on shock-absorbing springs, and an updated seat for the pilot
The SG-38 played a critical role in pilot training for the Luftwaffe in the Second World War, as a simple, but robust, trainer for the rapid increase in the number of pilots needed by Germany. It was commonly flown by bungee launch on the slopes of the Wasserkuppe.
From wiki.
See report and tutorial here.
link Hope you enjoy! Amicalement
Armand |
 R Mark Davies | 15 Dec 2012 12:21 p.m. PST |
It was very similar to the 'Dagling' glider flown by British Air Cadets (aged 13-19) of the Air Training Corps from 1941 to 1948:
The Dagling was itself based on a pre-war German design. You'll note that these are single-seaters! Thus there was no 'dual' training prior to flying solo. They were initially launched by bungee-ropes, but vehicle-tow and even barrage balloon winches were later used to get them airborne. When I learned to fly gliders, my old instructor had first learned his trade as a cadet in one of those things, circa 1946; one terrified cadet would be strapped into the glider, while another would drive the tow-vehicle – in his case, a redundant Humber Scout Car. The technology hadn't really moved on that far when I first started gliding as a cadet in 1986. My first two flights were in a Kirby Cadet Mk II. In fact, this is me sitting in it on that day (the trailer was used to tow it to/from the hangar – someone had to sit inside it as ballast when being towed):
Then I had an aerobatic flight (yes, really) in a Slingsby Sedburgh:
When I started my glider pilot's training a few months later in 1987, the fleet had been dragged kicking and screaming out the 1940s with these amazing German-built machines – the Grob Viking (Quite a contrast!):
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