The Fieseler F2 Tiger was a German single-seat aerobatic
biplane which was flown to victory in the 1934
World Aerobatics Competition (WAC) by its designer/builder
Gerhard Fieseler.
Design and development
Gerhard Fieseler started his own company in 1930 in the former Segelflugzeugbau company at Kassel, Germany. Fieseler was a
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
German
fighter ace with almost 20 kills to his credit, and became a world class competition aerobatic pilot. To compete in International competitions Fieseler designed and built the Fieseler F2 Tiger single-seat biplane, powered by a
Walter Pollux II air-cooled 9-cylinder radial.
The 1934
World Aerobatics Competition, held in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, was the first of its kind, and, despite the deaths of two pilots and a few crashes, the competition continued and Fieseler won, although he went over the time limit due to a loose
harness, beating his nearest competitor,
Michel Detroyat of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
(who flew an
M.S.225), by 23 points (645.2 to 622.9). Fieseler retired from the sport with his victory.
The F2 Tiger itself would form the basis for later aircraft, including the
Fieseler F5. It was built by Fieseler's own aircraft company,
Fieseler Flugzeugbau (later,
Gerhard Fieseler Werke). The F2 served as both an important forerunner of later German aircraft which would go on to fight for the
Third Reich
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
in
WWII
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and as a famous piece of inter-war aircraft design, as well as being the winning aircraft of the first WAC.
Specifications
See also
*
List of aircraft of the WW2 Luftwaffe
This list covers aircraft of the German Luftwaffe during the Second World War from 1939 to 1945. Numerical designations are largely within the RLM designation system.
The Luftwaffe officially existed from 1933–1945 but training had started in ...
*
Aerobatics
{{RLM aircraft designations
Biplanes
Single-engined tractor aircraft
1930s German sport aircraft
F002
Aerobatic aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1932