The Davis-Costin Condor was a conventional all-wood, tandem-seat

sailplane A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding (also called soaring). This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplan ...

built in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in the 1950s. Only one was constructed; it was later rebuilt with a longer fuselage and other detailed alterations as the Condor 2.

Design and development

The Condor was an all-wood glider, seating two in tandem. The wing was built around two spars and the planform was unusual in that the chord of the straight tapered inboard section increased outwards. The outer wing sections, where the

ailerons An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

were mounted, were conventionally tapered. No flaps or airbrakes were fitted. The wings joined a raised

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

centre section and were braced by pairs of parallel

lift strut In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of struts, which act in ...

s from about one third span to the bottom of the fuselage. Its fuselage was flat sided with angled panels above and below. The straight edged

tailplane A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabilizer, is a small lift (force), lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters ...

and

elevators An elevator (American English) or lift (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive tracti ...

were set well forward on top of the fuselage. There was no fixed

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. F ...

, just a generous and slightly angular

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

. The front seat was just ahead of the wing

leading edge The leading edge is the part of the wing that first contacts the air;Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. alternatively it is the foremost edge of an airfoil sectio ...

and the rear one near mid-chord. A skid from the nose ended under the wing with a small monowheel; a little tailwheel was fixed below the rudder hinge. The first flight was made in 1953. No Certificate of Airworthiness was issued. Later, P. Davis rebuilt the aircraft with several alterations. The fuselage was lengthened by 8 in (203 mm), chiefly by moving the cockpit further forward, at the cost of a 7 lb (3.2 kg) increase in weight. The trailing edge of the rudder was curved outwards and a very small dorsal fillet added. Minor undercarriage changes were also made. Named Condor 2, the rebuilt aircraft first flew on 13 August 1960. It was written off less than a year later on 25 June 1961 when it crashed at Chesford Head, near Winchester in Hampshire.

Specifications

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite book , title= British Gliders and Sailplanes , last=Ellison, first=Norman, year=1971 , publisher=A & C Black , location=London , isbn=978-0-7136-1189-2 , page=105 The Times, Monday, 26 Jun 1961; pg. 10

External links

Gōttingen 426 airfoil NACA 64-110 airfoil
1950s British sailplanes Aircraft first flown in 1953