New Glider Popularizes Sport (Dec, 1931)
New Glider Popularizes Sport
A DAY of gliders for every one is heralded in the introduction of a new low cost glider by Hans Richter, famous German air man. The new model which he has just designed and tested can be sold for less than fifty dollars and is light enough to be carried easily. No fuselage is used; instead the flier is merely strapped into the framework as shown in the photo below. Unfortunately, this type is barred in this country by the Dept. of Commerce at the present time.
Related posts:
- Air Mattress Dons Wings To Become Emergency Glider (Apr, 1936)
- AUTO WHEEL LAUNCHES GLIDER (Feb, 1934)
- Soviet Engineers Building 80-foot “Glider” Boat (Nov, 1937)
- Berlin to New York in less than One Hour! (Nov, 1931) (Nov, 1931) (Nov, 1931)
- “Airborne” Chickens Roost in Glider Nose (Sep, 1948)
Obviously, the “low cost” does not include the cost orthopedic surgery . . . .
Why would the Department of Commerce have any say about what type of glider you owned? Do they mean importing it is illegal?
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was formed in 1926 as part of the Department of Commerce, hence the reference.
Hua. I guess I never thought about what dept. the FAA would fall under. Thanks.
It wasn’t called the FAA back then: it was just called the Aeronautics Branch, and aircraft accident reports of the day are listed under the Department of Commerce (which has confused more than a few students). The FAA went through numerous name changes and didn’t get its current name until 1967, when accident investigation was split off into the NTSB.
I suspect the reason it was founded under commerce was because of commercial aviation. I’m surprised J. Edgar Hoover didn’t try to appropriate the investigation of air accidents, especially after the 1933 Chesterton air bombing.
It looks hardly more advanced that those used by Lilienthal and Chanute in the 1890s! A diffrent German design became more popular as it let the pilot sit down and use a stick comtrol. The design was license-built in England also.