David meets Goliath

Recent trends towards further wingspan increases in open class can hardly be overlooked. But is span really the answer to performance increases and when does it become a hindrance rather than a benefit? The experiment to enter a 21 m wingspan ASH 31 Mi in a competition dominated by gliders with 26 to 31 m wingspan has confirmed that more wing span does not always translate into better results.



We would like to thank Hans Juergen for accepting this challenge at the German Nationals at Mengen and are pleased to publish his report.

Download the report:   

Hans Juergen has compared his barograph trace of day seven with the two ASW 22 BLE pilots Michael Sommer and Tassilo Bode. Click on the trace to enlarge graphic!





----- ASH 31 Mi
----- ASW 22 BLE
----- ASW 22 BLE



Photos: Peter F. Selinger