| Type | Single seat secondary training glider |
| Dimensions | Length 5,255 m , height , span 12,6 m , wing area 18,12 m2 , aspect ratio 8,8, modified Gö 535 |
| Weights | Empty 140 kg, loaded , max. take off weight 230 kg |
| Performance | Max.. speed , max. gliding ratio 18 |
The RRG Falke of 1930 was a secondary training glider designed by Alexander Lippisch in Germany and intended to provide better performance than his earlier RRG Prüfling whilst being easier to fly because of its inherent stability. It was sold as plans for both club and commercial production and was built in Germany and abroad.
Secondary gliders were meant to be used by student pilots after an introduction to flight in primary gliders like Lippisch's Zögling. His first secondary glider, the 1926 RRG Prüfling, was disappointing, with a performance not much better than some contemporary primaries; lacking inherent stability its handling was not good either. After that design Lippisch had been working on aircraft which relied on wing sweep to provide stability in pitch, having no horizontal tail. The wing of the Storch IV was swept at about 17° and carried lobate ailerons which extended behind the rest of the trailing edge and were hinged at right angles to the fuselage line. He decided that his ideal secondary glider should use a similar wing but also have a conventional tail which enabled him to dispense with the wing tip fins and rudders of the Storch and to reduce the wing sweep to about 12°.
The inner part of the Falke's wing had constant chord but it became a little narrower outboard where the trailing edge sweep decreased. The ailerons increased the chord again to about its inboard value. It was a two spar structure with plywood covering from the forward spar around the leading edge, forming a D-shaped torsion box. Aft the wing, including the ailerons, was fabric covered. It was mounted high over the fuselage on two vertical underwing cabane struts, one on each side of the open cockpit to the forward wing strut and by a ply covered, triangular support pylon centrally behind it. On each side a V-pair of lift struts braced the two wing spars, at about 40% of the span, to the lower fuselage longeron.
The Falke's fuselage had a hexagonal cross section with deep vertical sides and was ply covered from the nose to the rear of the cockpit. On the underside this covering extended aft to the tail where the fuselage sides were again ply covered. The similarly covered fin, with an almost vertical leading edge was topped by the rudder's ply covered aerodynamic balance forward of the hinge. The rest of the rudder was fabric covered apart from its tip. The broad tailplane, mounted on top of the fuselage ahead of the fin to which it was braced with single strut on each side, had straight swept leading edges and square tips and carried elevators that were rectangular apart for a cut-out for rudder movement. The horizontal tail was fabric covered except at its leading edge. The glider landed on a long, rubber sprung skid reaching from the nose to well behind the cockpit, assisted by a faired tailskid]
The Falke first flew in 1930 and was sold through plans for construction by clubs and commercial manufacturers. RRG sold twelve quite quickly to the Wasserkuppe club. Alexander Schleicher and Edmund Schneider produced them in Germany and Slingsby built nine in England as the Slingsby Falcon before designing, in 1935, a two-seat version, the Slingsby Falcon III. This had a span of 17.69 m One Slingsby Falcon I was converted into a flying boat glider in 1941.
In 1931 the Falke RVa appeared, with an increased span and revised cabane struts. The later Super Falke had a yet larger span but by then the design was seriously outdated.
Secondary gliders were meant to be used by student pilots after an introduction to flight in primary gliders like Lippisch's Zögling. His first secondary glider, the 1926 RRG Prüfling, was disappointing, with a performance not much better than some contemporary primaries; lacking inherent stability its handling was not good either. After that design Lippisch had been working on aircraft which relied on wing sweep to provide stability in pitch, having no horizontal tail. The wing of the Storch IV was swept at about 17° and carried lobate ailerons which extended behind the rest of the trailing edge and were hinged at right angles to the fuselage line. He decided that his ideal secondary glider should use a similar wing but also have a conventional tail which enabled him to dispense with the wing tip fins and rudders of the Storch and to reduce the wing sweep to about 12°.
The inner part of the Falke's wing had constant chord but it became a little narrower outboard where the trailing edge sweep decreased. The ailerons increased the chord again to about its inboard value. It was a two spar structure with plywood covering from the forward spar around the leading edge, forming a D-shaped torsion box. Aft the wing, including the ailerons, was fabric covered. It was mounted high over the fuselage on two vertical underwing cabane struts, one on each side of the open cockpit to the forward wing strut and by a ply covered, triangular support pylon centrally behind it. On each side a V-pair of lift struts braced the two wing spars, at about 40% of the span, to the lower fuselage longeron.
The Falke's fuselage had a hexagonal cross section with deep vertical sides and was ply covered from the nose to the rear of the cockpit. On the underside this covering extended aft to the tail where the fuselage sides were again ply covered. The similarly covered fin, with an almost vertical leading edge was topped by the rudder's ply covered aerodynamic balance forward of the hinge. The rest of the rudder was fabric covered apart from its tip. The broad tailplane, mounted on top of the fuselage ahead of the fin to which it was braced with single strut on each side, had straight swept leading edges and square tips and carried elevators that were rectangular apart for a cut-out for rudder movement. The horizontal tail was fabric covered except at its leading edge. The glider landed on a long, rubber sprung skid reaching from the nose to well behind the cockpit, assisted by a faired tailskid]
The Falke first flew in 1930 and was sold through plans for construction by clubs and commercial manufacturers. RRG sold twelve quite quickly to the Wasserkuppe club. Alexander Schleicher and Edmund Schneider produced them in Germany and Slingsby built nine in England as the Slingsby Falcon before designing, in 1935, a two-seat version, the Slingsby Falcon III. This had a span of 17.69 m One Slingsby Falcon I was converted into a flying boat glider in 1941.
In 1931 the Falke RVa appeared, with an increased span and revised cabane struts. The later Super Falke had a yet larger span but by then the design was seriously outdated.
Variants
Falke original aircraft, built in 1930.
Falke RVa increased span and revised cabane struts, built in 1931.
Super Falke 16.88 m span.
Slingsby Falcon licence built in the UK from 1931. Remained on sale until 1939.
Slingsby Falcon II rounded tips, simplified rigging and all-ply skin. One only, 1935.
Slingsby Falcon III two seat version, flown 1935. Remained on sale until 1939.
Falke original aircraft, built in 1930.
Falke RVa increased span and revised cabane struts, built in 1931.
Super Falke 16.88 m span.
Slingsby Falcon licence built in the UK from 1931. Remained on sale until 1939.
Slingsby Falcon II rounded tips, simplified rigging and all-ply skin. One only, 1935.
Slingsby Falcon III two seat version, flown 1935. Remained on sale until 1939.
Glider "Falke" of the R.R.G.
By Senior Vocational Instructor Ismer.
The intensive construction activity of the junior flying groups, especially in the last year, shows that the flight training of our youth has also reached a truly
enormous scale, and the number of mountains and hills on which flying takes place is greater than many might think.
The clubs have primarily focused on the general registration of young people and strived for training on a broad
foundation. Therefore, the focus was almost exclusively on gliding instruction on training aircraft of the R.R.G. "Zögling" type, the Grünau standard
E.S.G. 29, and the Schleicher "Anfänger." Many groups already have a good core of trained young pilots. However, the original training aircraft soon proved inadequate for the pursuit of greater flight performance. For this purpose, the R.R.G. "Prüfling" was used for a long time. Although it generally proved its worth, the steadily progressing development of aircraft inevitably led to a significant gap in the category of training gliders, especially since it is not practical to use high-performance gliders for club training purposes.
Now, in the latter half of last year, the R.R.G. has eliminated this deficiency by creating a high-quality training glider for B and C pilots.
The new aircraft is primarily characterized by its swept-wing, angled design. The R.R.G. was able to draw on the experience gained in the meantime with tailless aircraft and inherently stable wings, which gave the aircraft exceptionally favorable elevator characteristics. The ailerons attached to the trailing edge of the wing guarantee reliable control in the lateral axis.
The swept-wing design made it possible to position the pilot further back in the fuselage. This gave him a better view of the aircraft itself, significantly easing his ability to observe its attitude. Furthermore, the rearward seat position provides him with extremely effective protection in case of fractures.
The aircraft's flight characteristics are exceptionally good. A captivating speed, combined with a favorable glide angle and excellent hovering ability, characterize this successful design. The "Falke" glides even in winds as low as 6 m/s on the Wasserkuppe and is exceptionally stable in all flight attitudes. The controls are ideally tuned, making turns much easier.
The aircraft was used for practice and training flights during the April course in the Rhön region and was flown flawlessly by the B-pilots even without prior familiarization flights. This can be considered proof of its ease of handling. The powered aircraft pilots found no difference in handling characteristics compared to their powerful aircraft and were delighted with the aircraft, which was immediately usable for them as well.
The aircraft is quite robust. The relatively short fuselage with its curved spars is exceptionally strong and can withstand considerable impacts. Likewise, the wing and tail assembly are extremely stable, making the aircraft ideally suited for club training and highly recommended. However, the construction of the wing requires more attention compared to standard aircraft. Due to the kink and the decreasing angle of attack towards the outside, some preparation is essential for wing assembly. If one wishes to avoid constructing a special jig, a number of trestles of uniform height can be used instead, which must be permanently fixed to the workshop floor. By gluing pieces of wood to these trestles, the necessary spar height, as indicated in the drawings, can be achieved. Similarly, a reference line perpendicular to the aircraft's longitudinal axis should be established for the wing's sweep angle, from which the position of the two spars can be precisely marked. The entire structure of this auxiliary device must naturally be so robust that its accuracy cannot be affected by work on the wing itself. This slight increase in work should, in any case, be more than compensated for by the enjoyment of its outstanding qualities.
By Senior Vocational Instructor Ismer.
The intensive construction activity of the junior flying groups, especially in the last year, shows that the flight training of our youth has also reached a truly
enormous scale, and the number of mountains and hills on which flying takes place is greater than many might think.
The clubs have primarily focused on the general registration of young people and strived for training on a broad
foundation. Therefore, the focus was almost exclusively on gliding instruction on training aircraft of the R.R.G. "Zögling" type, the Grünau standard
E.S.G. 29, and the Schleicher "Anfänger." Many groups already have a good core of trained young pilots. However, the original training aircraft soon proved inadequate for the pursuit of greater flight performance. For this purpose, the R.R.G. "Prüfling" was used for a long time. Although it generally proved its worth, the steadily progressing development of aircraft inevitably led to a significant gap in the category of training gliders, especially since it is not practical to use high-performance gliders for club training purposes.
Now, in the latter half of last year, the R.R.G. has eliminated this deficiency by creating a high-quality training glider for B and C pilots.
The new aircraft is primarily characterized by its swept-wing, angled design. The R.R.G. was able to draw on the experience gained in the meantime with tailless aircraft and inherently stable wings, which gave the aircraft exceptionally favorable elevator characteristics. The ailerons attached to the trailing edge of the wing guarantee reliable control in the lateral axis.
The swept-wing design made it possible to position the pilot further back in the fuselage. This gave him a better view of the aircraft itself, significantly easing his ability to observe its attitude. Furthermore, the rearward seat position provides him with extremely effective protection in case of fractures.
The aircraft's flight characteristics are exceptionally good. A captivating speed, combined with a favorable glide angle and excellent hovering ability, characterize this successful design. The "Falke" glides even in winds as low as 6 m/s on the Wasserkuppe and is exceptionally stable in all flight attitudes. The controls are ideally tuned, making turns much easier.
The aircraft was used for practice and training flights during the April course in the Rhön region and was flown flawlessly by the B-pilots even without prior familiarization flights. This can be considered proof of its ease of handling. The powered aircraft pilots found no difference in handling characteristics compared to their powerful aircraft and were delighted with the aircraft, which was immediately usable for them as well.
The aircraft is quite robust. The relatively short fuselage with its curved spars is exceptionally strong and can withstand considerable impacts. Likewise, the wing and tail assembly are extremely stable, making the aircraft ideally suited for club training and highly recommended. However, the construction of the wing requires more attention compared to standard aircraft. Due to the kink and the decreasing angle of attack towards the outside, some preparation is essential for wing assembly. If one wishes to avoid constructing a special jig, a number of trestles of uniform height can be used instead, which must be permanently fixed to the workshop floor. By gluing pieces of wood to these trestles, the necessary spar height, as indicated in the drawings, can be achieved. Similarly, a reference line perpendicular to the aircraft's longitudinal axis should be established for the wing's sweep angle, from which the position of the two spars can be precisely marked. The entire structure of this auxiliary device must naturally be so robust that its accuracy cannot be affected by work on the wing itself. This slight increase in work should, in any case, be more than compensated for by the enjoyment of its outstanding qualities.
