__NOTOC__
The ''Harakka'' ("
European magpie
The Eurasian magpie or common magpie (''Pica pica'') is a resident breeding bird throughout the northern part of the Eurasian continent. It is one of several birds in the crow family (corvids) designated magpies, and belongs to the Holarctic r ...
") was a
primary glider
Primary gliders are a category of aircraft that enjoyed worldwide popularity during the 1920s and 1930s as people strove for simple and inexpensive ways to learn to fly.Schweizer, Paul A: ''Wings Like Eagles, The Story of Soaring in the United Sta ...
produced for pilot training in Finland in the 1940s. Its design was typical of this class of aircraft, a "keel" with a pilot's seat suspended beneath a high, strut-braced monoplane wing, and carrying a conventional empennage at the end of an open framework.
["Harakka I (H-12)"] First flown in February 1945, the type was built from plans by Finnish gliding clubs and soon replaced earlier primary gliders such as the
Grunau 9,
["Grunau 9 ja PIK-7 Harakka, kerhon 1940-50-lukujen alkeiskoulukoneet"] becoming a standard piece of equipment in the clubs.
[Hardy 1982, p.74]
In 1946, Raimo Häkkinen and Juhani Heinonen from
Polyteknikkojen Ilmailukerho redesigned the Harakka to strengthen it.
["PIK-sarjan lentokoneet"] This improved version became known as the Harakka II or PIK-7.
["PIK-sarjan lentokoneet"][Taylor 1989, p.726]["Harakka II (H-57)"] In 1948, a single example of a more radically redesigned version designated Harakka III flew.
["Harakka III/PIK-7 (H-34)"] This had the framework that supported the tail replaced by a single boom.
Examples of the Harakka I and Harakka II are preserved at the
Suomen ilmailumuseo["Aircraft on display" ic/nowiki>] and the
Karhulan ilmailukerho Aviation Museum
Karhulan Ilmailukerhon Aviation Museum is a museum specialized in aircraft, located at Kymi Airfield in Kotka, Finland. The museum opened in 1992. A new 600 m2 display hall was opened in 1995.
The museum is run by the ''Karhulan Ilmailukerho'' ...
,
with the sole Harakka III also preserved at the latter museum.
Variants
* Harakka I - initial version
* Harakka II - strengthened version (several dozen built)
* Harakka III - version with redesigned tail (1 built)
Specifications (Harakka II)
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{PIK aircraft
1940s Finnish sailplanes
PIK aircraft
Glider aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1945
High-wing aircraft