Schleicher ASW 12
Encyclopedia : S : SC : SCH : Schleicher ASW 12
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| Type designation | ASW 12 |
| Competition class | Open |
| Production run | 1966-1970 |
| Number built | 14 |
| Crew | 1 |
| Length | 7.35 |
| Height | 1.50 |
| Wingspan | 18.30 m |
| Wing area | 13.0 m² |
| Aspect ratio | 25.8 |
| Wing profile: | Wortmann FX 62-K-131 modified and FX 60-126 |
| Empty mass | 324 kg |
| Water ballast | - |
| Maximum mass | 430 kg |
| Maximum wing loading | 31.5 kg/m² |
| Maximum speed | 200 km/h |
| Stall speed | 68 km/h |
| Minimum sink rate | ca. 0.57 m/s |
| Best glide ratio | ca. 46 |
The ASW-12 is a single-seat Sailplane of glass composite construction. The wing is mid-set and it has a T-tail. It is essentially a developed production version of the Akaflieg Darmstadt D-36.
History
In 1965 Gerhard Waibel left the Technical University of Darmstadt to enter Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co as a designer. His first project for his new employer was the ASW-12. This sailplane achieved numerous records and victories in national and international competitions. The exploits of Hans Werner Grosse in as ASW-12 are legendary, e.g. the 1461 km flight of April 25, 1972 from Lübeck to Biarritz which stood for thirty years as the absolute World Free Distance Record.Construction
The fuselage of the ASW-12 was extremely slender for its time. It has a retractable landing gear and a two-piece canopy, of greater depth than was the case with the D-36. Each individual fuselage was manufactured - as with the D-36 - in two halves laid-up on positive molds. The construction material was a double sandwich of glass-fibre reinforced composite over balsa wood. This is an unusual and expensive procedure for serial production.The wing planform is double-tapered. The profile is a modified Wortmann FX 62-K-131 at the wing root and a Wortmann FX 60-126 at the tip. The wings were built in the usual fashion in negative molds, and are also of fiberglass/balsa wood sandwich construction. Water ballasting is not available.
As landing aid the ASW-12 possesses only a parachute brake, an unreliable system that lacks modulation. A number of ASW-12 were retroffited with a second chute to increase the odds of successful landings.
Sources
[Sailplane Directory]
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