The Schreder Airmate HP-11 is an American

mid-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing config ...

V-tail The V-tail or ''vee-tail'' (sometimes called a butterfly tail or Rudlicki's V-tailGudmundsson S. (2013). "General Aviation Aircraft Design: Applied Methods and Procedures" (Reprint). Butterworth-Heinemann. p. 489. , 9780123973290) of an aircraf ...

ed, single seat glider designed by

Richard Schreder Richard E. Schreder (25 September 1915 – 2 August 2002) was an United States, American naval aviator and sailplane developer, responsible for design and development of the HP/RS-series kit sailplanes marketed from 1962 until about 1982. Sch ...

.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory,

Soaring Magazine ''SOARING'' is a magazine published monthly as a membership benefit of the Soaring Society of America. It was first published in 1937. The headquarters is in Hobbs, New Mexico. The magazine's article topics include safety issues and accounts of i ...

'', page 19. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920 Airmate was the name of Schreder's design company.

Design and development

The HP-11 (''HP'' stands for ''high performance'') was designed to compete in the

FAI Open Class Competition classes in gliding, as in other sports, mainly exist to ensure fairness in competition. However the classes have not been targeted at fostering technological development as in other sports. Instead classes have arisen because of: * t ...

in the 1962 US Nationals and represented the designer's continued pursuit of the perfect competition sailplane. The HP-11 is an all-metal design, with a wing that features a 26:1 aspect ratio, a wingspan and a

NACA The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency that was founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its ...

65 (3)-618

airfoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is a streamlined body that is capable of generating significantly more Lift (force), lift than Drag (physics), drag. Wings, sails and propeller blades are examples of airfoils. Foil (fl ...

, the same airfoil that had been used on the HP-8 and HP-10. A total of 42 HP-11s were built from kits and plans before production was ended in favour of the Schreder HP-14.

Operational history

Flying the HP-11 in the 1962 US Nationals, Schreder came in third in the competition and had the longest flight, . Schreder also flew it to third place in the Open Class at the 1963

World Gliding Championships The World Gliding Championships (WGC) is a gliding competitions, gliding competition held roughly every two years by the FAI Gliding Commission. The dates are not always exactly two years apart, often because the contests are always held in the sum ...

held at Junín, Buenos Aires Province,

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. At that event Schreder flew a flight. In April 2011 there were 28 HP-11s registered with the US

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

and three with

Transport Canada Transport Canada () is the Ministry (government department), department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, Policy, policies and Public services, services of road, rail, marine and air Transport in Canada, tra ...

Variants

;HP-11 :Initial model, with fixed monowheel landing gear. ;HP-11A :Improved model for amateur construction from plans or kits, with a retractable monowheel landing gear. ;

Bowlus BZ-1 The Bowlus BZ-1 is an American single seat FAI 15 Meter Class, V-tailed glider that was designed and built by Michael Bowlus.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page 7. Soaring Society of America November 1983. USPS 49 ...

:Version designed by Michael Bowlus with the front fuselage from a

North American F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...

drop tank In aviation, a drop tank (external tank, wing tank or belly tank) is used to describe auxiliary fuel tanks externally carried by aircraft. A drop tank is expendable and often capable of being jettisoned. External tanks are commonplace on modern ...

, the tail from an

HP-18 The HP-18 is a Richard Schreder-designed metal Racing Class sailplane that was offered as a kit for homebuilding during the 1970s and 1980s. Design and development The HP-18 is a flapped (15-meter) sailplane featuring a V-tail and 90-degre ...

and the wings from an HP-11. The wingspan was reduced to . ; Kohler Alpha :Version with a newly designed fuselage and HP-11 wings.

Aircraft on display

National Soaring Museum The National Soaring Museum (NSM) is an aviation museum whose stated aim is to preserve the history of motorless flight. It is located in Big Flats Town, New York, on top of Harris Hill near Elmira. The NSM is the Soaring Society of America's ...

- HP-11A *

US Southwest Soaring Museum The US Southwest Soaring Museum is an aviation museum, located at 918 E US Route 66, in Moriarty, New Mexico, United States that focuses on the history of gliding in the western United States. The museum is an affiliate member of the Soaring Soci ...

- HP-11 *

Chico Air Museum The Chico Air Museum is a nonprofit aviation museum located at the Chico Municipal Airport in Chico, California. Its mission statement is to "collect, preserve, document and display aircraft, and aviation and space artifacts. The museum’s prima ...

- HP-11A

Specifications

References

External links

Photo of an HP-11A
{{Schreder Sailplanes Schreder aircraft 1960s United States sailplanes Aircraft first flown in 1962 V-tail aircraft Shoulder-wing aircraft