Hermann Goering Division Training Glider?

[norwest]

First off, is this a known model of German glider? I couldn't find anything similar. Secondly, I'm wondering if this might have been a training glider for pilots of the 1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division -- maybe even used by pilots who flew during the raid on Eben Emael?

--Kevin

 

[Wurger]

This is the enlarged and improved Lippisch RRG R Va "Falke" glider from 1931, less-known variant of the quite popular RRG "Falke" from 1930. The gliders were used as a secondary training one. It was produced under a licence in a couple of countires eg .... in the Great Britain as the Slingsby Falcon on sale until 1939. It is a civilian glider but not a military one. It was used by the Deutschen Luftsport-Verband (DLV) in the Weimar Republic, later the Nationalsozialistischer Fliegerkorps (NSFK) in 30'. By the end of 30' it became obsolete and I doubt it could be used by the 1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division for the attack on the Eben-Emael as it was a single-seater. The name "Hermann Göring" is the name given for many planes at that time because of the propaganda or as it was said, to honor the pilot and one of the lords of the Third Reich. IMHO it has nothing in common with any military unit. Regarding the training glider for Fallschirm-Panzer pilots ... most of the future Luftwaffe pilots started their training in the DLV/NSFK flying clubs. So being the young adepts of the flying they could get the training with the glider too. However the military schools used slightly different stuff for the training process. Judging by the markings on the glider the picture was taken at least in 1934 or later.

PS. RRG = Rhön-Rossitten Gesellschaft - Rhön-Rossitten Company.

BTW ... for the attack on the Eben-Emael Germans used the DFS 230 transport gliders.

 

[norwest]

Thanks Wurger, I appreciate your informative reply!

 

[Wurger]

My pleasure.

 

[Snautzer01]

If you are interested in gliders

eBay: Gliders

FFS A 41 Frankfurt/Oder, Grunau Baby "LC+.." AP Reppen 1944 Notice cart on wich the glider is placed.

ww2aircraft.net

eBay: DFS230 Cargo and attack glider

ww2aircraft.net

 

[fannum]

Wurger is correct, but this was a common practice long before the Third Reich, and continued, mostly in Germany, through the '60s before it fell into disuse. Those honored were invariably aviation oriented, mostly associated with soaring.
I've flown in sailplanes in Germany with pioneers Gunther Groenhoff and Heini Dittmar's names on them, and saw Rudy Opitz memorialized on another.

Rudolf Opitz was a champion glider pilot in 1940 employed as a test pilot by DFS in Darmstadt. He was appointed instructor on cargo gliders and flew a DFS-230 glider in the attack on the fort Eben-Emaël in Belgium. From 1941 onwards he was employed as a test pilot at the Lutwaffe test center at Rechlin near Berlin where he was involved in the development of the Messerschmidt Me 163, being ordered to fly in combat. Post war, he became a test pilot for Pratt & Whittney, including flying the B-17 with a turbine in the nose. When the Ho-IV high performance flying wing sailplane was turned over to Miss. State U. Aerophysics for evaluation, he personally rebuilt it and flew it in the US National Contest, then participated in some flight tests there.

While at Cranbrook, I was allowed to fly a Slingsby Tutor named "Prince Charlie" as he had soloed in that plane.
There are pix of that Grunau Baby "Otto Brauligam," (diplomat with the German Foreign Office before, during, and after National Socialism) being flown by a German club in pre-WWII Egypt.

 

[norwest]

There is one construction detail I was wondering about. All the photos I've seen of the RRG Falke have the wing struts attached in a 'V' shape, whereas the photo I posted at the top of the thread has parallel wing struts. Might it have been an early design choice that was later modified? I've attached a photo of the 'V' struts.

--Kevin

 

[fannum]

There is one construction detail I was wondering about. All the photos I've seen of the RRG Falke have the wing struts attached in a 'V' shape, whereas the photo I posted at the top of the thread has parallel wing struts. Might it have been an early design choice that was later modified? I've attached a photo of the 'V' struts.

--Kevin

I'm pretty sure that the parallel struts were only on the later models. the Falke RVa had increased span and revised cabane struts.

Both used twin main spars, thus the dual struts. All these designs used lobate ailerons which extended behind the rest of the trailing edge and were hinged at right angles to the fuselage line.

The improved Falke R Va used parallel main wing struts instead of the 'V' strutting of the earlier version. I'd been told that the divergent struts distributed the loads more safely than the older 'V' struts. The skid was sprung by two hard rubber rings and frequent hard landings may have been a problem ... perhaps a cause of failure.

The Falke was designed by Alexander Lippisch, and derived from his flying wing Storch IV. Lippisch emphasized aircraft which relied on wing sweep to provide stability in pitch.

Again, relying on what I've been told, while the Storch was a success, it was CG sensitive to pilot weight, and by reducing the sweep from 17 to 12 degrees, and adding tail feathers, the Falke became very popular. Hundreds were built from plans in many countries and at least four factories, including Slingsby which Anglicized it to Falcon, also producing a two place version.

 

[Wurger]

I agree. Contrary to the RRG Falke, the RRG RVa Falke had the kind of parallel struts for getting better of the wing stiffness due to the increased wingspan . Although the 5Va Falke was the later glider than the RRG Falke, the kind of the wing struts was already used for the RRG Prüfling with the rectangular wing in 1926.

RRG RVa Falke ...

the pic source: Oederaner Segelflieger

 

[Wurger]

the pic source: Reichsegelflugschule wasserkuppe Schwarzweiß-Stockfotos und -bilder - Alamy

 

[fannum]

Great pix Wurger, though we're spending a lot of effort on an arcane subject, even for a site devoted to the odd and obscure!

But ... a few observations.

o Though they appear parallel, the dual struts are not aligned either in top view or head on, and seem to be attached to existing hard points, related to cockpit loading and skid support bulkheads.
o Also note that the dual struts used X-bracing wires between them.
o The Falke had a 12.60 m (41 ft 4 in) span with V struts, while the Falke Va spanned 13.2 m (43 ft 4 in) with dual struts and the 1932 Super Falke stretched to 16.88 m (55 ft 4.6 in) span but went back to V struts. Hmmmmm! (See L'Aerophile photo.
o The Falke Va seems to have moved the spar attach point a couple bays outboard in the wing, but hard to tell without good 3 views, etc.
o I wouldn't make much of the dual struts on the Prufling, as they were quite common for dual spar aircraft of the day.

 

[Wurger]

Generally the way of the wing attaching was different for both of the gliders.

Falke

Falke Va

the pic source: the net.