| Blaicher B-38 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| B-38 in flight | |
| Role | High performance, single seat, experimental sailplane |
| National origin | Poland |
| Manufacturer | ZASPL |
| Designer | Michal Blaicher |
| First flight | Late 1938 or early 1939 |
| Number built | 1 |
The Blaicher B-38 was a Polish, single seat sailplane completed in 1938. Notable for its use of long span Fowler flaps, its development was ended by the German invasion of Poland in September 1939.
Following the WOS-37, his development of the Czerwiński CW 5 bis, Michal Blaicher turned to a new design incorporating Fowler flaps. Construction began in the ZASPL workshops but moved when ZASPL became LWL, controlled by PWS, delaying its completion. [1] Its first flight was made either late in 1938 [1] or in the spring of 1939 at Lwów-Skiłnów, [2] flown by Zbigniew Źabski. After some modifications it was ready for official testing in August 1939 but was destroyed in the German invasion the following month. [1] [2]
The all-wood B-38 had a cantilever gull wing built around two spars and covered with stress-relieving plywood. The mass balanced ailerons were assisted by Flettner tab and, inboard of them, Fowler flaps filled the remaining 2/3 of the span. [1]
The glider's fuselage was a ply-covered, semi-monocoque structure of oval cross-section. Its single seat cockpit, which included blind flying instrumentation, was enclosed and had a long dorsal fairing behind it. At the rear the cantilever tailplane was mounted above the fuselage on the fin; like the ailerons the elevators were tab assisted. Fixed empennage surfaces were ply-covered and the control surfaces fabric-covered. [1] [2]
A detachable, two-wheeled trolley was used for take-off and a sprung skid for landings. [1]
Data from J, Cynk (1971), [1] except where noted. Performance from samolotypolskie [2]
General characteristics
Performance
Related lists
The Bréguet Br 900 Louisette was a short-span, single-seat competition sailplane built in France in the 1940s. It set some French gliding records but was unsuccessful at the international level. Only six production aircraft were built.
The IIL IS-7 was a two-seat, sailplane designed by Iosif Șilimon and built in Romania in the late 1950s. Only one prototype was built.
The IIL IS-8 was a two-seat sailplane designed by Iosif Șilimon and built in Romania in 1960. They served with Romanian gliding clubs.
The IIL IS-11 was an aerobatic, single seat glider, designed and built in Romania in 1959. It was built in small numbers.
The one-off, experimental Czerwiński CW IV was a Polish high performance glider and the nation's first two-seater. It set several national records and influenced later Polish designs.
The Czerwiński CW 5bis was a Polish high performance sailplane, produced and developed between 1933 and 1935. It set several national records, competed at both national and international level and remained a Polish gliding club mainstay until the outbreak of World War II.
The Czerwiński and Jaworski CWJ was a basic training glider designed and flown in Poland in 1931. Between eighty and one hundred examples of it and an improved variant, the CWJ-bis Skaut, were built.
The ITS-II was a Polish intermediate training glider. Only about five were built as it was soon outclassed by newer Polish aircraft but some were used until 1935. ITS-IIs were used in early training courses on air towing and another gave the first demonstration of glider aerobatics in Poland. It was also used to set one national record.
The Blaicher B.1 was a Polish glider first flown in 1934. It was intended to fill an intermediate trainer role, but offered no advance on existing aircraft and only the prototype was completed.
The Czerwiński CW 7 was a Polish aerobatic glider first flown in 1934. Despite a structural weakness that prevented inverted flight, a small batch of CW 7s were used by several aeroclubs until the start of World War II.
The Czerwiński CW 8 was a mid-1930s Polish open-frame basic training glider. Its design was advanced and its price low, but its stalling characteristics were too dangerous for beginners, so the thirty-plus examples completed were rapidly withdrawn from use. Two were subsequently modified, one with greater span and the other with a small engine.
The ITS-IVB was a 1930s Polish two seat research sailplane designed to gather meteorological and airframe stress data. The sole example remained in service up to outbreak of World War II.
The Tarczyński and Stępniewki TS-1/34 Promyk was a Polish short span, high performance sailplane from the mid-1930s and was the first Polish sailplane equipped with flaps. Its construction was delayed by a financial crisis and its development terminated by World War II.
The PWS-101 was a high performance Polish glider first flown in 1937. One made the longest distance glider flight in Europe in 1938, gathering prizes for aircraft and pilot.
The PWS-102 Rekin was a progressive development of the PWS-101, intended for cross-country flights. The prototype flew in an international contest in 1939 and the first of a projected production series was flown before the start of World War II.
The PWS-103 was a high performance, Polish 15 m span sailplane developed from the longer-span PWS-102 just before World War II.
The Warsztaty Szybowcowe Sroka, or Kocjan Sroka after its designer, was a Polish intermediate training glider. About sixty were built between 1934 and 1939.
The Warsztaty Szybowcowe Mewa was a Polish, high performance, two seat sailplane flown in 1936 and built in small numbers.
The Warsztaty Szybowcowe SG-7 was a Polish high performance, single seat sailplane. Two prototypes flew in 1937 but, outperformed by their contemporaries, no more were built.
The single-seat Kocjan Komar (Gnat) intermediate trainer, designed in 1932, was the leading and most produced sailplane in pre-war Poland. Production was resumed after World War II as the IS-B Komar and it remained in use until 1965.
