Akaflieg Stuttgart FS-16

FS-16 Wippsterz
Role	Glider aircraft
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	Akaflieg Stuttgart
First flight	February 1937
Number built	1
|} The Akaflieg Stuttgart FS-16 Wippsterz was a glider aircraft that was designed and built in Germany from 1936. Only one example of the design was constructed. Development Akaflieg Stuttgart wanted to build a glider with reasonable performance that was safe and simple to fly, the result was the FS-16. The design employed a cantilever wing attached to the top of the fuselage; the rear portion of the fuselage was raised, similar to the Akaflieg Stuttgart F.1. The FS-16 as constructed had no vertical tail, but used pivoting panels on the wingtips for roll and yaw control. It had no tail-skid, using a single large skid under the front fuselage with a spur extending rearwards for support and stability on the ground. Flight characteristics with the rotating wing-tip panels were not as expected so a conventional vertical fin on an extended rear fuselage, and ailerons constructed from fabric-covered Duralumin on the outer wing traling edges, were added after initial flights. Specifications Data from http://www.uni-stuttgart.de/akaflieg/index.php?id=41&L=2 General characteristics Crew: 1 Length: 6.13 m (20 ft 1 in) Wingspan: 16 m (52 ft 6 in) Height: 1.12 m (3 ft 8 in) Wing area: 13.3 m^2 (143 ft^2) Aspect ratio: 19.2 Wing profile: NACA 2318 at root/NACA 2315 at 31% semi-span/NACA 4312 at tip Empty weight: 120 kg (265 lb) Gross weight: 200 kg (441 lb) Performance G limits: 8.8 Maximum glide ratio: 27 Similar aircraft Schleicher Rhönadler References http://www.uni-stuttgart.de/akaflieg/index.php?id=41&L=2