THE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE 'SPRITE' SAILPLANE, 1969 - 1980

Abstract

This paper describes the work done to build the first British glass fiber sailplane. The design was for the Club type of sailplane and benefitted from the analytical work carried out in the course of the design of the Sigma sailplane. The design used the "high lift" wing section linked to an aspect ratio of 20. Wide use of computer programs took place and the design was optimized for cross country performance in weak thermal conditions achieved by superior thermalling performance. The significant points in the design philosophy, flight testing, and soaring experience are recorded. The development of the sailplane was successful in taking the initial design that fell short of its performance target and, by fine tuning, raising the flight performance to current levels for this class of sailplane.