Schempp-Hirth Standard Cirrus

Cirrus
Role Standard-class sailplane
National origin Germany
Manufacturer Schempp-Hirth
Designer Klaus Holighaus
First flight 02 / 20 / 1969
Number built ca. 838


The Standard Cirrus is a German Standard-class glider built by Schempp-Hirth. The Standard Cirrus was produced between 1969 and 1985.

Development

The Standard Cirrus was designed by Dipl. Ing. Klaus Holighaus and flew for the first time in March 1969. It is a Standard Class glider with a 15-metre span and no camber-changing flaps. The all-moving tailplane, a feature of many designs of that period due to its theoretically higher efficiency, caused less than desirable high-speed stability characteristics, and so modifications were made to the early design. Even so, the glider is still very sensitive in pitch.

Improvements were made with the Standard Cirrus 75. These included better air-brakes with an increased frontal area. By April 1977, when production by Schempp-Hirth ended, a total of 700 Standard Cirruses had been built, including 200 built under licence by Grob between 1972 and July 1975. A French firm, Lanaverre Industrie, had also built 38 Standard Cirruses under licence by 1979. VTC of Yugoslavia also licence-built Standard Cirruses, reaching approximately 100 by 1985.

All models of Cirrus have proved very popular in recent years in Club Class Competitions worldwide.

The Cirrus was superseded by the Discus in 1984.

Variants

Cirrus B

The Cirrus B is based on the Standard Cirrus 75 but with interchangeable wingtips giving a span of either 15m or 16m.

Cirrus K

The two Cirrus K have a reduced span (12.6m), larger ailerons, a cross tail with larger elevator, and a strengthened fuselage which make them suitable for aerobatics. This modification was initiated by Wilhelm Düerkop in the late 1980s.[1][2] Wolfgang Seitz took part in the 1995 World Glider Aerobatic Championships with a Cirrus K.[3]

G/81

The last Cirrus model was the G/81 built by VTC until 1985. This incorporated a longer fuselage and canopy, and a conventional tailplane and elevator with the wings of the Cirrus 75.

Specifications

Standard Cirrus glider

General characteristics

Performance

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
Related lists

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Schempp-Hirth Standard Cirrus.
  1. ↑ Swiss Glider Aerobatics Association's Cirrus K website (in German)
  2. ↑ List of planes and gliders of the "Toy Team" (in German)
  3. ↑ FAI pilot profile of Wolfgang Seitz
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