Scheibe L-Spatz 55

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The Scheibe "Spatz" (German: "Sparrow") is a German glider of wood and fabric construction that was built in 1952 until 1962. Later versions were known as the L-Spatz, the letter L standing for "Leistung", which is German for "performance".

Scheibe Flugzeugbau built the Spatz A in 1952. Two years later in 1954 the first L-Spatz 55 was airborne. Three hundred L-Spatz 55s were built in Germany, 155 were produced in France under the name A.60 Fauconnet, and 16 produced under in Italy named MS-30 L Passero. This model was discontinued in 1962.

It is a single-seater glider with a cruising (max L/D) speed of 45 mph. It has an empty weight of 157 kg and a maximum take-off weight of 269 kg. The wings and tail were constructed using fabric-covered wood, whereas the fuselage consisted of steel tubing covered with fabric.

The L-Spatz 55 has good climbing performance due to light construction. The glide angle is 29:1, which was reasonable for pre-1960 performance. The longest known cross-country flight was more than 600 km from Burg Feuerstein, Germany to France.

Many gliding clubs operated the L-Spatz 55, well known for its easy handling. Recovery from a spin in the L-Spatz 55 is easy.

Variants

* Spatz
* L-Spatz
** L-Spatz 55
** L-Spatz III

pecifications

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span ft=49
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wing area sqm=11.7
wing area sqft=126
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aspect ratio= 19
wing profile= Mu 14%
empty weight kg=157
empty weight lb=346
gross weight kg=269
gross weight lb=592
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sink rate ms= 0.67
sink rate ftmin= 132

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References

* [http://www.sailplanedirectory.com/PlaneDetails.cfm?planeID=217 L-Spatz on sailplanedirectory.com]