Register #385 | New gliders & a radial engine Kitfox

The Schleicher AS 33 is a new type of glider to be seen in Australia and no less than three have been registered during the period covered in this issue. The AS 33 is a single seat, mid-wing, sailplane of composite construction with a T-tail and is a development of the ASG 29 but with a totally new wing design of 18m span and 10sqm area. The span can be reduced to 15m using a different set of outer wings. The main wheel and tail wheel are retractable with the main wheel having a disc brake and the water ballast tanks in the inner and outer wings are controlled by independently switchable electrical valves. Three models are available, the AS 33, which is a pure glider; the AS 33Me, an electric self-launcher; and the AS 33Es, which is fitted with a SOLO 2350 air cooled two-cylinder two stroke engine with a self-starter. All three of the new aircraft, GBB, VNL and YZJ, are the AS 33Es model. 

David Damery’s Avionic Diana 3 sailplane ZMN is another development of an older and trusted design. The Diana is a single seat, 15m class glider with a mid-wing and T-tail unit. It was originally designed by Bogumil Beres at PZL-Bielsko, however they went out of business before the new type could go into production and the design rights were taken over by a new entity Diana Sailplanes and the SZD-56 Diana, as it was called, became the Diana 2. Thirteen years after the first Diana 2 flew, the Diana 3 18m was introduced using a new fuselage from Two new glider models, a radial engine Kitfox and a classic 1965 Australian designed ag aircraft are all included in this issue’s New Allocations Czech manufacturer KKB mated to a larger and re-designed wing by Diana Sailplanes with a retractable main landing gear and fixed tail wheel. The aircraft also features an unusual side-stick control system in order to accommodate the pilot in a very narrow cockpit. In October 2016, Polish company Avionic took over the design rights for the glider and introduced some minor changes to improve performance and pilot comfort. David’s aircraft is a Diana 3 KKB 18KEFES model, having an 18m wingspan and an electric sustaining engine mounted in the nose.