The IS-2 Mucha (''Instytut Szybownictwa'' – gliding institute) was a single-seat
training
Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or Physical fitness, fitness that relate to specific practicality, useful Competence (human resources), competencies. Training has specific goals of improving on ...
glider
Glider may refer to:
Aircraft and transport Aircraft
* Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight
** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...
designed and built in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
starting in 1947.
Development
The IS-2 Mucha (''Mucha'' – Fly) was designed to provide an intermediate solo trainer for the revived Polish gliding movement after World War II, along with the
IS-1 Sęp
The IS-1 Sęp was a single-seat high-performance glider designed and built in Poland from 1947. It was the first post-war Polish glider.
Development
The IS-1 Sęp (Vulture) was designed in Instytut Szybownictwa (Gliding Institute) as part o ...
advanced soaring and competition aircraft,
IS-3 ABC primary trainer and
IS-A Salamandra basic trainer. The Mucha and its developments gave the majority of Polish pilots the experience they required to get the best out of their gliders.
Construction was all-wood with
plywood
Plywood is a material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured ...
skinning for loaded areas and
fabric
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
covering for lightly loaded areas such as control surfaces and the wings aft of the main
spar
SPAR, originally DESPAR, styled as DE SPAR, is a Dutch multinational that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, by Adriaan van Well, ...
s. The undercarriage consisted of a semi-recessed mainwheel and small skids under the nose and tail. The cockpit, covered by a built-up plexi-glas canopy was directly forward of the wing leading edge. Control surfaces were of standard wood and fabric construction with the ailerons fitted with external mass balances.
The first flight of the first prototype, (SP-561), took place at Bielsko on 24 April 1948, piloted by Ing. Peter Mynarskiego. Only relatively minor problems required rectification with changes to the instruments, airbrake actuation mechanism, improvements in cockpit sealing to reduce draughts and softer front skid damping rubber. Despite its training role the IS-2 had a reasonable performance and held two world records, as well as giving pilots a glider capable of FAI Diamond badge flights, and gain experience of cloud flying. Record flights included:-
*Andrzej Ziemiański (1953r.) - Straight distance, 615 km.
*Jan Gawęckiego (1957) – Straight distance, 637 km.
*Rudolf Kopernok – Out and return, 500 km (Katowice -Leszno-Katowice).
Production of the IS-2 started with the IS-2 Mucha bis of which 20 were built, and continued with the IS-2 Mucha ter, of which 116 were built. Later variants with much improved features include the SZD-12 Mucha 100 and the SZD-22 Mucha Standard, as well as the SZD-7 Osa which incorporated an experimental laminar flow wing with a 'Mucha ter' fuselage for research purposes.
Variants
* IS-2 Mucha – the prototype Mucha (regn. no. SP-561)
* IS-2 Mucha-bis – the first production model starting with SP-887, first flown on 21 May 1949, 20 built.
* IS-2 Mucha-ter – the second production model starting with SP-1046, first flown on 10 July 1950, 116 built.
* SZD-7 Osa - The SZD-7 Osa was based on the IS-2 Mucha, with a
laminar flow
In fluid dynamics, laminar flow is characterized by fluid particles following smooth paths in layers, with each layer moving smoothly past the adjacent layers with little or no mixing. At low velocities, the fluid tends to flow without lateral mi ...
aerofoil section developed by
T. Tadeus Kosti. Little information on laminar flow aerofoils was available but Kosti was able to design the aerofoil for the SZD-7 Osa to achieve laminar flow to at least 18% chord. As well as the laminar flow wings the 'Osa' introduced the SZD plate style airbrakes, which were installed aft of the mainspar. The first flight of the 'Osa' took place at
Bielsko
Bielsko (german: Bielitz, cs, Bílsko) was until 1950 an independent town situated in Cieszyn Silesia, Poland. In 1951 it was joined with Biała Krakowska to form the new town of Bielsko-Biała. Bielsko constitutes the western part of that tow ...
airfield piloted by
Adam Zientek.
Specifications (IS-2 Mucha)
See also
References
*Taylor, J. H. (ed) (1989) ''Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation''. Studio Editions: London. p. 29
*Simons, Martin. Sailplanes 1945-1965 2nd revised edition. EQIP Werbung und Verlag G.m.b.H.. Königswinter. 2006.
External links
*http://www.piotrp.de/SZYBOWCE/pis2.htm
*http://www.piotrp.de/SZYBOWCE/pszd7.htm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Is-2 Mucha
Glider aircraft
1940s Polish sailplanes
Aircraft first flown in 1948