The firm Glasflügel ( German : glass wings ) was founded by Eugen Hänle in 1962 and was located in Schlattstall , south of Kirchheim unter Teck . It was the first firm to manufacture a glass-fibre sailplane in large numbers. It was also responsible for a large number of innovations in sailplane design and technology: quick assembly systems for wings and tailplane, automatic control connections, trailing edge airbrake - flap combinations, hinged instrument panels, the parallelogram control stick and automatic trimming are some innovations introduced by Glasflügel and later adopted by other manufacturers. Some of these are standard features in nearly all gliders produced today.
6-497: Glasflügel encountered financial difficulties in the 1970s which led to a co-operation with the firm Schempp-Hirth starting from May 1975. The death of Eugen Hänle in a flight accident on September 21 of the same year further aggravated the company's position, and after further changes in ownership in 1979, it was finally dissolved in 1982. The following glider types were manufactured by Glasflügel: The projected Glasflügel 701 and 704 side-by-side two-seaters did not materialise due to
12-466: A new designer: Klaus Holighaus who had just graduated from Darmstadt Technical University, where he was a member of its Akaflieg . Holighaus was also an excellent pilot and became a regular member of the German gliding team. Additional technical expertise was recruited in 1970 and Holighaus became Chief Executive in 1972. From 1977 Holighaus was the sole owner of the business. After Holighaus's death in
18-542: A rival to the ubiquitous Grunau Baby , but real success came with the Göppingen Gö 3 Minimoa the same year. During World War II , the company built DFS Habicht training gliders, as well as tailplane assemblies for the Messerschmitt Bf 109 . The company also built a research aircraft, the Göppingen Gö 9 to investigate Claude Dornier 's rear-mounted " pusher " propeller plans. With its cruciform tail, this aircraft
24-464: The assistance of Wolf Hirth . The company was initially called "Sportflugzeugbau Göppingen Martin Schempp". In 1938, Wolf Hirth, mainly responsible for the design work, officially became a partner in the company, which then became "Sportflugzeugbau Schempp-Hirth". The company relocated to Kirchheim unter Teck the same year. The company's first product was the Göppingen Gö 1 Wolf glider, conceived as
30-760: The demise of the company. The British company Slingsby Aviation built the Kestrel under license as the Slingsby T-59 . Slingsby later developed the Slingsby Vega , a family of 15-metre span gliders heavily influenced by its previous experience with Glasflügel designs. Related lists Schempp-Hirth Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau GmbH is a glider manufacturer based in Kirchheim unter Teck , Germany . Martin Schempp founded his own company in Göppingen in 1935, with
36-400: Was to be a stepping-stone towards the revolutionary Dornier Do 335 Pfeil . After the war, forbidden by the allied occupation from building aircraft, the company manufactured beds, wheelbarrows, radio cabinets, and other furniture. In 1951, the prohibitions were lifted and the company returned to sailplane building. Wolf Hirth died in 1959 but it was not until 1964 that Martin Schempp found
#940059