Gribovski G-11

Infobox Aircraft
name = G-11 (Г-11)
type = Military glider
manufacturer =


caption =
designer = Vladimir Gribovski
first flight = 1 September 1941
introduced = 1941
retired =
status =
primary user = USSR
more users =
produced = 1941-1948
number built = 500-600
unit cost =
variants with their own articles = The Gribovski G-11 (Г-11) was a Soviet light troop/cargo military glider of World War II.

History

The Soviet Union was the world's pioneer in designing transport gliders - the first design, Grokhovski G-63 was built in 1932. However, no transport gliders were produced in series before the World War II. Shortly after the German attack in 1941, the Soviet headquarters realized a need of transport gliders and ordered to develop several designs. Vladimir Gribovski agreed to design a light glider in two months and the tests of a prototype started on September 1, 1941. It was initially designated G-29 or Gr-29. It appeared a successful design and was accepted for a production, under a subsequent designation G-11 (for Gribowski, 11-men including pilot).

G-11s were produced from late 1941 until mid-1942 in two factories: 138 were built in Shumerlya (factory no. 471) and 170 in Kozlovka village (factory no. 494), 308 in total. The production started again in 1944 in Riazan. From October 1944 there were also produced G-11U gliders with twin controls, fit for training. G-11 remained in production until 1948. There are no data as for a total production number, it is estimated in books at around 500-600.

In summer 1942 there was tested a variant with an auxiliary engine M-11, mounted over a fuselage, designated G-11M, then G-30, but it did not enter production.

Combat History

G-11s, along with Antonov A-7 constituted a majority of Soviet transport gliders. They were mainly used from mid-1942 for supplying Soviet partisans with provisions, weapons, equipment and trained men. They were towed mainly by SB or DB-3 bombers. Most intensive use was from March to November 1943 in Belarus, in Polotsk-Begoml-Lepel area, on the Kalinin Front. Several hundreds of Soviet gliders (of all types) were used in night supply flights then. After landing, gliders were destroyed and pilots were sometimes taken back by aircraft. In April 1943 there occurred the only event of taking off from a short provisional partisan airfield, when a famous glider and test pilot Sergey Anokhin evacuated two wounded partisan commanders (it was hauled by SB bomber piloted by Yuriy Zhelutov, on a 10-m short rope).

Gliders were also used to supply partisans in some areas in 1944 and to transport sabotage groups behind enemy lines. G-11 gliders were also used in at least one small scale airborne operation, the Dnepr crossing, carrying anti-tank guns and mortars.

Less typical action was an air bridge from Moscow to Stalingrad area in November 1942, in order to quickly deliver antifreeze cooling liquid for tanks, during the battle of Stalingrad.

G-11 was a successful design of a light glider. It had more capacity, than the other type Antonov A-7, and its transport compartment was better fit for cargo, although light guns could only be carried in parts due to small hatches.

Description

High-wing, all-wooden construction, plywood covered transport glider. Fuselage rectangular in cross-section. Single-seat pilot's cab in front, with a canopy opening upwards. Behind it, a transport compartment, not separated from a cab, 3.24 m long, 1.25-1.36 m width. There were two doors in opposite fuselage sides, dimensions 1.2 x 0.7 m. Later series had only one hatch on a left side, 1.4 m width. Troops sat on folding benches along sides. There were two small rectangular windows in each side. Wings were three-part, fitted with flaps for landing. Landing gear was fixed, but it could be folded by the pilot in order to shorten landing, then the glider land on a skid under a fuselage.

Operators

;USSR
*Soviet Air Force

pecifications

aircraft specifications
plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=neither
ref=
crew=one, pilot
capacity=11 troops (including pilot) or cargo
payload main=1,200 kg
payload alt=2,640 lb
length main= 9.8 m
length alt=32 ft 2 in
span main= 18 m
span alt= 59 ft 1/2 in
height main= 2.7 m
height alt=8 ft 10 in
area main= 30 m²
area alt= 322.8 ft²
airfoil=
empty weight main= 1,200 kg
empty weight alt= 2,640 lb
loaded weight main= 2,400 kg
loaded weight alt= 5,280 lb
useful load main=
useful load alt=
max takeoff weight main=
max takeoff weight alt=
more general=

max speed main=280 km/h (towing)
max speed alt= 150 kts, 173 mph
cruise speed main= 146 km/h
cruise speed alt= 78 kts, 90 mph
stall speed main=
stall speed alt=
never exceed speed main=
never exceed speed alt=
range main=
range alt=
ceiling main=
ceiling alt=
climb rate main=
climb rate alt=
loading main= 83 kg/m²
loading alt=16.97 lb/ft²
thrust/weight=
power/mass main=
power/mass alt=
more performance=
* Minimum sink rate : 2.2 m/s (443 ft/min)
* Best glide ratio: 5.2
armament=
avionics=

References

* [http://www.airwar.ru/enc/glider/g29.html Г-29 (Г-11)] at [http://www.airwar.ru Ugolok Neba] ru icon
* [http://mkmagazin.almanacwhf.ru/avia/g_11.htm Plan and description] ru icon

ee also

aircontent
related=

similar aircraft=
*Antonov A-7
*DFS 230
*Waco CG-3
*Kokusai Ku-8

sequence=

lists=

see also=