The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2 is an Open Class

glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of gliding ...

built by

Schempp-Hirth Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau GmbH is a glider manufacturer based in Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany. History Martin Schempp founded his own company in Göppingen in 1935, with the assistance of Wolf Hirth. The company was initially called "Sportflu ...

during the 1970s. The Nimbus-2 first flew in April 1971 and a total of over 240 examples of all subtypes have been built until the beginning of the 1980s. It replaced the

Schempp-Hirth Cirrus The Schempp-Hirth Cirrus is an Open Class glider built by Schempp-Hirth between 1967 and 1971 and by VTC until 1977. It was replaced by the Nimbus 2. Development The Cirrus was designed by Dipl.-Ing. Klaus Holighaus and was the first glass- ...

Design and development

Loosely based on the original Nimbus HS-3 prototype, the production version that eventually surfaced as the Nimbus-2 was a very different glider with many improvements over the problematic prototype. The wing was shortened to 20.3 metres and was built in four sections to make it easier to rig and transport. It received Schempp-Hirth air brakes fitted in the upper surfaces and a tail braking-parachute, plus camber-changing flaps. It had an all-flying T-tail similar to the

Standard Cirrus The Standard Cirrus is a German Standard-class glider built by Schempp-Hirth. The Standard Cirrus was produced between 1969 and 1985, when it was replaced by the Discus. Over 800 examples were built, making it one of the most successful earl ...

as well as the general layout of its fuselage. The Nimbus-2 was successful in competitions, twice winning the Open Class in

World Gliding Championships The World Gliding Championships (WGC) is a gliding competition held every two years or so by the FAI Gliding Commission. The dates are not always exactly two years apart, often because the contests are sometimes held in the summer in the Southern ...

: Göran Ax (Sweden) in 1972 and George Moffat (USA) in 1974. It was also popular with record-seekers. Bruce Lindsey Drake, David Napier Speight and Sholto Hamilton "Dick" Georgeson jointly set a World Goal and Free Distance record of 1,254 km in New Zealand in 1978, Doris Grove a feminine Out and Return record of 1,127 km in 1981, Yvonne Loader a feminine Height Gain record of 10212 m in 1988, and Joan Shaw a feminine Distance record of 951.43 km in 1990, all flying Nimbus-2. At its time several national and world records were held by Nimbus-2M's in the FAI motorglider category. In 1979 Klaus Holighaus, the glider's designer, completed the first 1,000 km triangle in Germany flying a Nimbus-2. The Nimbus-2 was succeeded by the

Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3 The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus 3 is a glider built by Schempp-Hirth. Design and development The Nimbus-3 uses carbon-fibre extensively and has a new wing profile A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some oth ...

Variants

;Nimbus-2 ;Nimbus-2B :With a fixed incidence horizontal tail to improve pitch control behaviour ;Nimbus-2C :Lighter variant with higher maximum certified flight mass, new trailing-edge combined airbrakes-flaps derived from the

Glasflügel 303 The Glasflügel 303 Mosquito is a composite 15 metre Class single-seat sailplane manufactured by Glasflügel between 1976 and 1980. Design and development Designed for the 15 metre racing class, the Mosquito married the Standard Class Horn ...

Mosquito in place of the upper surface air brakes, and carbon-fibre wings and tailplane. Several other improvements took place during the production run without changes to the type designation. ;Nimbus-2CS :Single example (serial number 192) with reduced fuselage weight, an increased span of 23.5 m, an enlarged rudder and several other modifications. ;Nimbus-2M :Self-launching version with a retractable engine. It is based on the Nimbus-2 (not 2b) but the wing is 15 cm further aft on the fuselage to make up for the C of G shift induced by the weight of the engine (7 built) ;Skopil Nimbus II-S :Motorglider conversion done by Arnold Skopil of

Aberdeen, Washington Aberdeen () is a city in Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. The population was 17,013 at the 2020 census. The city is the economic center of Grays Harbor County, bordering the cities of Hoquiam and Cosmopolis. Aberdeen is occasi ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

using a Nelson H-63 engine of . One converted.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page 131. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920

Specifications (Nimbus 2)

References

External links

Sailplane DirectorySchempp-Hirth homepage
{{Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2 1970s German sailplanes Motor gliders T-tail aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1971

Design and development

Variants

Specifications (Nimbus 2)

See also

References

Further reading

External links