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The Ente () was the world's first full-sized rocket-powered aircraft. It was designed by
Alexander Lippisch
Alexander Martin Lippisch (2 November 1894 – 11 February 1976) was a German aeronautical engineer, a pioneer of aerodynamics who made important contributions to the understanding of tailless aircraft, delta wings and the ground effect in aircra ...
as a 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 ...
and first flown under power on June 11, 1928, piloted by Fritz Stamer
Fritz is a common German language, German male name. The name originated as a German diminutive of Friedrich (given name), Friedrich or Frederick (given name), Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Fred ...
as part of the Opel-RAK rocket program led by Fritz von Opel and Max Valier.
During the late 1920s von Opel had made a variety of demonstrations involving rocket-powered vehicles for the Opel
Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Gr ...
company. He was assisted by the pyrotechnics
Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating fireworks, but also includes safety matches, oxygen candles, Pyrotechnic fastener, explosive bolts (and other fasteners), parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, q ...
manufacturer Friedrich Sander
Friedrich Wilhelm Sander (25 August 1885 in Kłodzko, Glatz (Kłodzko) – 15 September 1938) was a German pyrotechnics and rocket technology engineer as well as manufacturer remembered for his contributions to rocket-powered flight as key protagon ...
and the rocketry advocate Max Valier. In March 1928 the three men visited the Wasserkuppe
The Wasserkuppe (;) is the highest mountain in the Rhön Mountains, Rhön range and the tallest elevation in the Germany, German state of Hesse, standing at above sea level. It forms a prominent plateau within the Fulda district and is known as ...
, a mountain which had become the center of German gliding
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sports, air sport in which pilots fly glider aircraft, unpowered aircraft known as Glider (sailplane), gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmospher ...
to investigate the possibility of fitting rockets to an aircraft. There they encountered some of Lippisch's revolutionary gliders, which because of their tail-less designs seemed suitable for adapting to rocket propulsion. Lippisch was able to demonstrate how models of his aircraft would fly with small rockets installed in them. In June, von Opel, Sander, and Valier returned and bought one of his aircraft, the Ente, a canard design.
Two black powder
Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...
rockets were installed, to be electrically fired by a switch in the cockpit. A counterweight system was also devised and placed under the cockpit floor which would automatically adjust the aircraft's center of gravity
In physics, the center of mass of a distribution of mass in space (sometimes referred to as the barycenter or balance point) is the unique point at any given time where the weighted relative position of the distributed mass sums to zero. For ...
as the fuel of the rockets was consumed. The rockets were intended to be fired one after the other, to provide continuous thrust for as long as possible, and each had a burn time of around 30 seconds. Fritz Stamer, who had long been a test pilot
A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...
for Lippisch's designs was selected to fly the aircraft. After one false start, the aircraft took off and flew a 1,500 metre (4,900 ft) circuit of the Wasserkuppe's landing strip.
On the second flight, the team decided to try firing both rockets together for increased thrust over a shorter period. However, rather than burning properly one of the rockets exploded, punching holes in both wings and setting the aircraft alight. Stamer was nevertheless able to bring it down from a height of around 20 metres (65 ft) before hastily abandoning the Ente, which was burned beyond any hope of repair.
The Opel RAK.1 was developed as the successor to the "Ente", and was demonstrated successfully to the public in September 1929 with Fritz von Opel as pilot.
Specifications (RRG Raketen-Ente)
References
{{DFS aircraft 1920s German experimental aircraft Glider aircraft Rocket-powered aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1928 Canard aircraft Lippisch aircraft High-wing aircraft