This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(December 2012) |
DG-500 | |
---|---|
Glaser-Dirks DG-505 | |
Role | Two Seater Class sailplane |
National origin | Germany |
Manufacturer | Glaser-Dirks |
First flight | 19 March 1987 |
The Glaser-Dirks DG-500, and later the DG-505, is a two-seat glider of glass-reinforced plastic and carbon fiber reinforced plastic construction, manufactured in the DG Flugzeugbau GmbH in Bruchsal, Germany. It first flew in 1987.
The glider is a trainer with an 18-metre wingspan or a high-performance glider with 20 or 22 m span. There are also trailing edge flaps with the exception of the Trainer and Orion variants. The 20m version also has winglets. The fuselage has a single wheel main landing gear which retracts into the lower fuselage.
The DG-500/18 is mainly intended for flight training, and is fully aerobatic with +7/-5 g rating. There is also a motorglider version, the DG-500M. [1] The DG-500/22 can carry up to 160 kg of water ballast which is not possible on the trainer version. Since 2004, the latest version of the DG-500 has been built as the "DG-505 Orion" in Slovenia.
The DG-500 once held the all-time altitude record for manned gliders, at 15,460 m (50,720 ft), set on 29 August 2006 by Steve Fossett and Einar Enevoldson, breaking the previous record by 1,713 ft (522 m). [2] It was a standard DG-500M but the engine had been removed and replaced with liquid oxygen tanks. Additional instruments were installed powered by non-rechargeable batteries. The canopy had double-wall glazing and there was a drogue parachute for an emergency descent from high altitude. Pressure suits were worn. [3] The glider is on display at the Seattle Museum of Flight. [4] A new altitude record of 52,172 ft (15,902 m) [5] was set by the Windward Performance Perlan II on September 3, 2017.
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1988-89, [6] [7]
General characteristics
Performance
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
The Schempp-Hirth Discus is a Standard Class glider designed by Schempp-Hirth. It was produced in Germany between 1984 and 1995 but has continued in production in the Czech Republic. It replaced the Standard Cirrus. It was designed by Klaus Holighaus.
The Schempp-Hirth Duo Discus is a high-performance two-seat glider primarily designed for fast cross-country flying, including gliding competitions. Often, it is used for advanced training.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-200 is a 15 metre class glider built by Glaser-Dirks. It first flew in 1977. Wingtip extensions to 17 metres were offered in 1978. Later enhancements included a single-piece canopy, a carbon-fibre wing spar and a change in the wing profile. A total of 192 DG-200 were built.
The Rolladen-Schneider LS4 is a Standard Class single seat glider manufactured by Rolladen-Schneider Flugzeugbau GmbH between 1980 and 2003.
The Schempp-Hirth Janus is a high performance two-seat glider that was built by Schempp-Hirth GmbH. It was the first high-performance two-seater.
The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2 is an Open Class glider built by Schempp-Hirth during the 1970s. The Nimbus-2 first flew in April 1971 and a total of over 240 examples of all subtypes have been built until the beginning of the 1980s. It replaced the Schempp-Hirth Cirrus.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-100 is the first sailplane manufactured by Glaser-Dirks. It is a standard class glider designed by Wilhelm Dirks in 1974 and developed from the Akaflieg Darmstadt D-38.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-300 is a Standard Class single-seat high-performance glider built of glass-reinforced plastic. The DG-300 was designed by Wilhelm Dirks and manufactured by Glaser-Dirks Flugzeugbau's Slovenian partner company Elan (company). A total of 511 of all versions were built since production started in 1983. Representative contemporary types from competing manufacturers are the Rolladen-Schneider LS4 and the Schempp-Hirth Discus.
The Rolladen-Schneider LS10 is an 18 metre sailplane designed in Germany by Rolladen-Schneider. A prototype flew in 2003.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-400 is a single-seat self-launching motorglider that was produced by Glaser-Dirks between 1981 and 1992. It was the first self-launching motorglider with retractable engine and propeller to be produced in large numbers.
The DG Flugzeugbau DG-800 series is a family of 15 metre and 18 metre single-seat gliders and motor gliders produced by Glaser-Dirks since 1993 and by DG Flugzeugbau GmbH after 1997. It is the successor to the DG-400 and the DG-600 models.
The DG Flugzeugbau DG-1000 is a glider of the Two Seater Class built by DG Flugzeugbau. It has a retractable engine and propeller. It first flew in July 2000 at Speyer in Germany. There are four models, with 18- and 20-metre wings of HQK-51 profile. The latest DG-1001 variant replaced the DG-505 in production.
The H-101 Salto ('Loop') is an aerobatic glider of glass composite construction, developed in Germany in the 1970s. Based on the Standard Libelle H-201, it was designed by Ursula Hänle, widow of Eugen Hänle, former Director of Glasflügel. It was first produced by Start + Flug GmbH Saulgau.
The Antonov A-13 was a Soviet aerobatic sailplane flown in the 1950s and 1960s. It was a small, single-seat, all-metal aircraft developed from the A-11 which could optionally be fitted with that aircraft's longer-span wings. It was a mid-wing monoplane with a tadpole-like fuselage and a V-tail.
The SZD-59 Acro is a single-seat glass composite glider for aerobatics and cross-country flying by PZL Allstar of Bielsko-Biala, Poland.
The Standard Austria was a single-seat aerobatic glider that was originally designed and built in Austria from 1959 but production was moved in 1962 to Schempp-Hirth in Germany.
The Scheibe Bergfalke is a German glider designed by Egon Scheibe as a post-World War II development of the Akaflieg München Mü13 produced before and during the war.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-600 is a glider manufactured by Glaser-Dirks as a successor to the DG-202 and DG-400 series of gliders where carbon fiber reinforced plastics was used.
The Radab Windex is a family of Swedish high-wing, single-seat aerobatic gliders and motor gliders that was designed by Sven Olof Ridder and produced initially by Radab and later by WindexAir AB as a kit for amateur construction.
The Aviastroitel AC-5M is a Russian mid-wing, single-seat, T-tailed motor glider and unmanned aerial vehicle that is produced by Aviastroitel, now Glider Air Craft.