The History and Development of High Performance Sailplanes

The experiences of sailplane designers throughout the twentieth century compared with parallel application of similar technologies in mainstream aircraft design.

Gliding and soaring have held a mutual relationship with mainstream aviation developments ever since the experiments of Sir George Cayley in 1852, through to the birth of modern aviation in the 1900’s and to the present day.

This lecture will discuss the experiences of sailplane designers throughout the twentieth century, in pursuit of higher aerodynamic performance, and compare these with parallel application of similar technologies in mainstream aircraft design. Howard and Afandi will draw on well known aerospace design philosophies, and show examples of how they have been equally applied to the design of sailplanes, including the benefits and lessons learnt.

The lecture will also demonstrate how the continuing technological developments have enabled sailplane pilots to continue to expand their wide soaring horizons.

The speakers will conclude with a forward look at how sailplanes might be developed into the future using both evolutionary and disruptive technology.

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