Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau GmbH is one of the major
manufacturers of
sailplanes, or
gliders, today. It holds an estimated 30% of the
world market in sailplanes, but at every major glider
event about 50% of the contestants
fly Schempp-Hirth. This is mainly attributable to the excellent performance of their gliders. At the latest
US Standard Class Nationals (held from
May 15, 2001 to
May 24, 2001) three out of the top four
contestants won their ranking flying a Schempp-Hirth
Discus 2a or
2b.
At the moment Schempp-Hirth annually produces about 100 gliders with a staff of 100 people. More than 50% of the gliders it produces are
exported to other
European countries,
Australia,
New Zealand,
South Africa, and the
USA.
History
Schempp-Hirth started out in 1935, manufacturing gliders in the building
yard of the company
Martin Schempp set up in
Göppingen,
Germany. In 1938 the company was relocated to
Kirchheim unter Teck, where the company grew out to a
staff of about 300 workers at the start of the
war. During the
pre-war period the company produced, among others, the
single-seater GOe-1 'Wolf' and the famous
GOe-3 'Minimoa', designed by
Wolf Hirth, and the
two-seater GOe-4 designed by
Wolfgang Hütter.
During the war the company was forced to produce
components for, among others, the
Messerschmitt ME-109, the backbone of the
German fighter command and the main
foe of the English
Spitfires. The company also kept up work in its own
field of expertise and designed a few
sailplanes in this period.
In the years following the war, up until 1955, Schempp-Hirth kept itself alive with the
manufacture of a number of different
products, including
suitcases,
leg prostheses,
furniture and
military jet mockups. When the manufacture of
gliders was once again permitted in
Germany, the company quickly picked up the pace again, building the
glider Matteson M-1, as well as aircraft like the
Binder Aviatic Emerald and
Smaragd, and parts for the
Klemm Kl-107 and the
Dornier Do-27 and
Do-28. This, together with the manufacture of the glider
Standard Austria, was what kept the 50 men working at Schempp-Hirth occupied until 1965. In that year Schempp-Hirth tried to regain a foothold in the world market of gliders again, producing the
SHK, which enabled
Rolf Kunz to win third place at the
World Championships held in
South Cerney,
England.
In the following
period the
changeover from "
wood" to "
fiberglass" took place in the glider world, at Schempp-Hirth led by
Klaus Holighaus. In January 1967 his first fiberglass glider, the
Cirrus, had its
maiden flight. Followed two years later by the maiden flight of the
Nimbus-1. In 1970,
George Moffat won the World Championship held in
Marfa,
Texas,
USA.
From here on in, Schempp-Hirth continued to produce some of the most beautiful and
high-performance gliders in the world. Their gliders have often been featured high up on the
rankings at
championships and
competitions the world over.
One other
aircraft built by Schempp-Hirth deserves mention here, the
Janus. This glider first flew in 1974, and was the first
two-seater built using fiberglass. Going through a number of enhancements, and a number of designations ranging from Janus to Janus CT, this glider was
in production for more that two
decades, until 1996. A very sophisticated
design that includes
flaps, the Janus is a
demanding, but
rewarding glider to
fly. It is also very beautiful with its
forward sweeping wings and
sleek design. Its excellent
performance also makes it very suited for
instruction cross-country flights.
Sources:
http://www.schempp-hirth.com - with some frustrating help from Babel Fish
http://www.bizzcontact.com/en/who.jsp?action=viewProfile&l=&u=&p=3266
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