The N.V. Vliegtuigbouw 013 Sagitta ( en, Arrow) is a Dutch

mid-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...

, single-seat Standard Class

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 ...

Soaring Magazine ''SOARING'' is a magazine published monthly as a membership benefit of the Soaring Society of America. It was first published in 1937. The headquarters is in Hobbs, New Mexico. The magazine's article topics include safety issues and accounts of in ...

'', page 96,

Soaring Society of America The Soaring Society of America (SSA) was founded at the instigation of Warren E. Eaton to promote the sport of soaring in the USA and internationally. The first meeting was held in New York City in the McGraw–Hill Building on February 20, 193 ...

November 1983. USPS 499-920 The aircraft is reported by different sources under a variety of different names and designations. Sources label it the ''Alsema Sagitta'', ''Vliegtuigbouw Sagitta'', ''N.V. Vliegtuigbouw 013 Sagitta'', ''Dutch Sagitta'', ''N.V. Vliegtuigbouw Sagitta 013'' and ''N.V. Vliegtuigbouw Sagitta-013''. The US type certificate erroneously lists it as the ''N.V. VLIEGTUIGBOUW Segitta (

sic The Latin adverb ''sic'' (; "thus", "just as"; in full: , "thus was it written") inserted after a quoted word or passage indicates that the quoted matter has been transcribed or translated exactly as found in the source text, complete with any e ...

) 013'' and catalogs it in their database under ''Vilegtuigbouw (sic), N.V., 013''.

Design and development

The Sagitta was designed by Alsema between 1957-61 specifically for the then-new FAI Standard Class. Like other early standard class gliders it was quickly surpassed in performance by newer

fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

aircraft. The Sagitta has a wooden structure. The

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraf ...

is covered with plywood, the wings and tail surfaces with plywood and doped aircraft fabric covering. The span wing features top and bottom air brakes and employs

NACA The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...

63-618 airfoil at the

wing root The wing root is the part of the wing on a fixed-wing aircraft or winged-spaceship that is closest to the fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, o ...

, and a NACA 4412 section at the

wing tip A wing tip (or wingtip) is the part of the wing that is most distant from the fuselage of a fixed-wing aircraft. Because the wing tip shape influences the size and drag of the wingtip vortices, tip design has produced a diversity of sha ...

. The controls are automatically connected on assembly. The

bubble canopy A bubble canopy is an aircraft canopy constructed without bracing, for the purpose of providing a wider unobstructed field of view to the pilot, often providing 360° all-round visibility. The designs of bubble canopies can drastically vary; s ...

slides aft for cockpit access and can be locked open in several positions in flight. The landing gear is a fixed monowheel. In the Netherlands the aircraft was

certified Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

for cloud flying and

aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glide ...

, but its US certification does not include these authorizations. The type received its US type certificate on 2 August 1965. Twenty Sagittas were built.

Operational history

In July 2011 six Sagittas were still registered with the US

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

Variants

;Sagitta: Prototype first flown on 4 July 1960. ;Sagitta 2:

FAI Standard Class Competition classes in gliding, as in other sports, mainly exist to ensure fairness in competition. However the classes have not been targeted at fostering technological development as in other sports. Instead classes have arisen because of: * t ...

model with wingspan. ;Super Sagitta :

FAI Open Class Competition classes in gliding, as in other sports, mainly exist to ensure fairness in competition. However the classes have not been targeted at fostering technological development as in other sports. Instead classes have arisen because of: * ...

model with wingspanRogers, Bennett: ''1974 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page709. Soaring Society of America, August 1974. USPS 499-920

Aircraft on display

* Aviodrome,

Lelystad Airport Lelystad Airport is an airport south southeast of the city of Lelystad in Flevoland, Netherlands. It is the biggest general aviation airport in the Netherlands. The first flights were in 1971 and it became an official airport in 1973. Schipho ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Specifications (Sagitta)

Notes

References

* *

External links

{{commons category, N.V. Vliegtuigbouw
Sagitta photos
1960s Dutch sailplanes Glider aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1960