Scheibe SF-24 Motorspatz
German motor glider, 1960
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Scheibe SF-24 Motorspatz (English: Motor Sparrow) is a West German high-wing, single-seat motor glider that was designed by Egon Scheibe and produced by Scheibe Flugzeugbau.[1][2]
| SF-24 Motorspatz | |
|---|---|
| |
| General information | |
| Type | Motor glider |
| National origin | West Germany |
| Manufacturer | Scheibe Flugzeugbau |
| Designer | |
| Status | Production completed |
| Number built | 50 |
| History | |
| Introduction date | 1960 |
| First flight | 1960 |
| Developed from | Scheibe Spatz |
Derived from the unpowered Scheibe Spatz, the Motor Spatz was described in 1983 by Soaring Magazine as "one of the more primitive of the breed of self-launching sailplanes".
Design and development
The Motorspatz was an early attempt to create a self-launching glider. Scheibe accomplished this by mounting a Hirth engine in the nose of a mostly stock Spatz glider.[1][2]
The SF-24 is constructed with a welded steel tube fuselage that mounts the monowheel landing gear, with a small tail wheel for ground maneuvering. The wings and tail surfaces are built with wooden structures and covered in doped aircraft fabric covering. The wing has a 14.0 m (46 ft) span, employs an Mu 14% airfoil and mounts spoilers for glidepath control.[1][2][3]
The aircraft was not type certified and 50 were built.[1][2]
Operational history
In July 2011 there were two Motorspatz registered in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration, including one SF-24 in the Experimental - Exhibition category and one SF-24B in the Experimental - Research and Development category.[4]
Variants
Specifications (SF-24)
Data from Sailplane Directory and Soaring[1][2]
General characteristics
- Crew: one
- Wingspan: 14 m (45 ft 11 in)
- Wing area: 11.87 m2 (127.8 sq ft)
- Airfoil: Mu 14%
- Empty weight: 225 kg (496 lb)
- Gross weight: 345 kg (761 lb)
- Powerplant: 1 × Hirth
Performance
- Rate of sink: 1.0 m/s (200 ft/min) at 80 km/h (50 mph)
- Wing loading: 29.21 kg/m2 (5.98 lb/sq ft)
