DFS Rhönsperber
| Rhönsperber | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Rhönsperber replica, built 1997 | |
| Role | Single seat competition glider |
| National origin | Germany |
| Manufacturer | Flugzeubau Schweyer |
| Designer | Hans Jacobs |
| First flight | 1935 |
| Number built | c.100 |
The DFS Rhönsperber, otherwise known as the Schweyer Rhönsperber or Jacobs Rhönsperber (in English Rhön Sparrowhawk) was a single seat competition glider designed in Germany by Hans Jacobs and first flown in 1935. For several years it was regarded as the best German sailplane and about one hundred were built.
In 1935, Hans Jacobs was asked by Alexander Lippisch to become chief designer of sailplanes at DFS (Deutsche Forschungsanstalt Für Segelflug) at Darmstadt, after the closure the RRG (Rhön-Rossitten Gesellschaft) at the Wasserkuppe in 1933. The Rhönsperber was not unlike his earlier Rhönbussard, but was enlarged all round, with a repositioned wing and an enclosed cockpit. With a greater aspect ratio, its performance was better. For a few years after its first flight in 1935, the Rhönsperber was held to be the best German competition sailplane.
The Rhönbussard had its wing over the cockpit, limiting the pilot's view, but on the Rhönsperber it was lowered to mid fuselage. It is an entirely wood and fabric aircraft with a wing built around a single spar. Forward of the spar the wing is plywood covered around the leading edge, forming a torsion-resisting D-box. Aft of the spar, the covering is fabric. Each wing has two sections, a parallel-chord centre section and a double straight tapered outer panel, ending with semi-elliptical tips. The only dihedral, 5°, is on the centre section, forming the gull wing. Airbrakes are centrally placed on the upper centre section surface and fabric-covered ailerons fill the trailing edges of the outer panels.
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