| GW-3 and GW-4 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| The prototype GW-3 that was destroyed in 1992. | |
| Role | Glider |
| National origin | United States |
| Designer | Gene Whigham |
| First flight | 1965 |
| Status | No longer in production |
| Number built | three |
| Developed from | Whigham GW-2 |
The Whigham GW-3 is a family of American mid-wing, single-seat, FAI Open Class gliders that was designed and constructed by Gene Whigham, a retired flight test engineer for Convair. [1] [2] It first flew in 1965. [3]
The GW-3 was designed by Whigham as a glider that would be easy for a first time builder to complete and fly. As such the design emphasizes simplicity of construction to reduce building time. The GW-4 was a higher wing loading development. [1] [2]
The GW-3 and 4 both use a 54 ft (16.5 m) wing, with a NACA 43012A airfoil. The aircraft are all-metal, with the portion of the wing aft of the spar covered in doped aircraft fabric. The flaps and ailerons are sheet metal covered. The wing design is unusual as it uses a single spar and transmits its torsion and drag loads via a thick leading edge skin. This resulted in wings that weigh 100 lb (45 kg) each. The prototype GW-3 weighed 380 lb (172 kg) empty in total. [1] [2]
The prototype GW-3 was involved in an accident on 9 July 1992 when downdrafts were encountered in mountainous terrain. The aircraft was unable to return to the airport and crashed, resulting in serious injury to the pilot. It was removed from the Federal Aviation Administration registry on 13 September 1997 and listed as "destroyed". [4] [5]
Data from Sailplane Directory and Soaring [1] [2]
General characteristics
Performance
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