The SZD-36 Cobra was a

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 produced 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 ...

from 1968.

Development

The SZD-36 was the penultimate iteration of the SZD-24 Foka, with improved construction techniques and materials and many detail changes over the Foka 5. The aircraft was designed especially for the 1970 World Gliding Championships at

Marfa, Texas Marfa is a city in the high desert of the Trans-Pecos in far West Texas, between the Davis Mountains and Big Bend National Park. It is the county seat of Presidio County, Texas, Presidio County, and its population as of the 2010 United States Cens ...

, where J. Wroblewski took 2nd and F. Kępka took 3rd places in the Standard Class behind a

Rolladen-Schneider LS1 The Rolladen-Schneider LS1 is a Standard Class single-seat glider manufactured in Germany by Rolladen-Schneider from 1968 to 1977. Development The LS-1 Standard Class design was the first aircraft type arising from the partnership between Wol ...

. The Cobra also proved popular with ordinary pilots resulting in a long production run of 290, of which 215 were exported. To compete in the Open class at Marfa in 1970, W. Okramus and M. Mikuszewski developed a 17m span version as the SZD-39 Cobra 17, which took 5th place flown by Edward Makula. Construction was predominantly of wood with plywood skinned semi-

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

fuselage, thick skinned built up wings, and fibreglass cockpit shell. With high g limits, high V_ne and effective speed limiting air-brakes on the upper surface of the wings, the SZD-36 Cobra is popular as an aerobatic machine. There have been cases of catastrophic structural failure due to incorrect wing attachment, caused ultimately by worn parts in the attachment assemblies.

Safety Concern

Following a fatal accident due to failure of the wing attachment mechanism in 2007 and another fatality with a glider with similar assembly mechanism, the British Gliding Association has issued a Safety Alert for owners of Cobra gliders.

Variants

;SZD-36 Cobra :Developed from the SZD-32A Foka 5, a 15m Standard Class sailplane developed for the 1970 World championships. 290 built ;SZD-39 Cobra 17 :A 17m span version of the Cobra developed for the 1970

World Gliding Championships The World Gliding Championships (WGC) is a gliding competition held every two years or so by the FAI Gliding Commission. The dates are not always exactly two years apart, often because the contests are sometimes held in the summer in the Southern ...

in the Open Class, first flown on 17 March 1970. Two were built.http://www.piotrp.de/SZYBOWCE/dszd39.htm
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Specifications (SZD-36 Cobra)

References

Citations

Bibliography

{{PZL aircraft 1960s Polish sailplanes SZD36 SZD aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1969