The Schleicher ASW 17 is a single-seat Open Class

sailplane A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding (also called soaring). This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplan ...

that was built by the German manufacturer

Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co is a major manufacturer of sailplanes located in Poppenhausen, near Fulda in Germany. It is also the oldest sailplane manufacturer in the world. History The company was founded in 1927 by Alexander Schleicher u ...

and first flew in 1971. It replaced the ASW 12, and was replaced in 1981 by the ASW 22.

Design and development

The ASW 17 was designed by Gerhard Waibel, supposedly as a development of the

Schleicher ASW 12 The ASW 12, initially known as the AS 12, is a single-seat Sailplane of glass composite construction. The wing is shoulder mounted and it has a T-tail. It is essentially a developed production version of the Akaflieg Darmstadt D-36. History ...

, but was an entirely new design. The wing is in four sections. The camber-changing flaps are connected to the ailerons. It has

Schempp-Hirth Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau GmbH is a glider manufacturer based in Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany. History Martin Schempp founded his own company in Göppingen in 1935, with the assistance of Wolf Hirth. The company was initially called "Sportfl ...

airbrakes plus an optional tail parachute. It first flew on 17 July 1971 and 55 were built before production stopped in 1976. The ASW17 was succeeded by the ASW22.

Variants

In addition to the regular ASW 17, there is an ASW 17S which was a 21-metre span version built in 1973 but this was later reduced to 20m. The ASW 17X was also a single aircraft that was built in 1976 with 19-metre span. One other was modified to 23 metres after production.

Competition history

ASW 17s came second in the World Gliding Championships in 1972, third in 1974. George Lee won in 1976 and in 1978 in an ASW 17. Hans-Werner Grosse broke several world records in his ASW 17 including: the record goal flight at 1,231 km in 1974, the triangular distance record 1,063 km in 1977 and then again at 1,306.9 km, and the 1,250 km speed triangle at 133.24 km/h in 1980.

Karl Striedeck Karl H. Striedieck II (born April 7, 1937 in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is a world record setting glider pilot, a member of the U.S. Soaring Hall of Fame, and an active Holocaust denier. He was an early pioneer of ridge soaring in the Ridge-and-valley Ap ...

broke another record by a flight of 1,634.7 km out and return in 1977 in an ASW 17.

Specifications (ASW 17)

References

* ''Gliders and Sailplanes of the World'' by Michael Hardy – Ian Allan Ltd 1982 * ''Sailplanes 1965–2000'' by Martin Simons – Eqip

External links