View Full Version : Berlin wall glider
Krystal n chips
10th Nov 2019, 06:43
Watching a programme about the Wall last night and was intrigued to learn one of the more innovative crossings was in a glider.
Now the programme showed a more contemporary type for obvious reasons, but I am curious if anybody knows the actual type that made this crossing please?
Getting a retrieve crew could have been a shade problematic if he'd made a field landing......
washoutt
10th Nov 2019, 08:03
Also, how would a glider be put at a sufficient altitude to cross the wall?
Reminds me of the Pieniążek "Kukułka" - a homebuilt made using parts from a number of crashed gliders and the engine from a dead piper cub:
http://www.muzeumlotnictwa.pl/katalog/foto_tytul/145.jpg
It was built to escape from Poland. It's quite a story (see The Story (http://www.muzeumlotnictwa.pl/zbiory_sz.php?ido=145&w=a)). I stumbled across it in the Kracow aviation museum.
PDR
chevvron
10th Nov 2019, 10:06
Heard of someone using a microlight to cross the wall but not a glider.
There was a report that three men in 1989 used a hang glider to escape.
However, the glider was never found and the story is not believed by many people.
BDAttitude
10th Nov 2019, 10:34
Watching a programme about the Wall last night and was intrigued to learn one of the more innovative crossings was in a glider.
Now the programme showed a more contemporary type for obvious reasons, but I am curious if anybody knows the actual type that made this crossing please?
Getting a retrieve crew could have been a shade problematic if he'd made a field landing......
In the 70ies there were so plenty of them that the GDR prohibited sport flying for some time until they had installed the resources to snoop on the aviators and guard the airfields:
(Fixed Link) (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bstu.de%2Finformationen-zur-stasi%2Fthemen%2Fbeitrag%2Fmisstrauen-ueber-den-wolken%2F%23c6378)
However articles in the press seldomly mention the plane used. Here is one from 1979 I found.
SZD-30 "Pirat" (https://books.google.de/books?id=uPevDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48&dq=wolfgang+seiler+%22szd+30%22&source=bl&ots=XDqUJSyXo_&sig=ACfU3U2U2MOjERyGq2IueWVE8B-H3lA4gQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiQqLenpN_lAhWCLFAKHXLZBZUQ6AEwCnoECAkQAQ#v=onepag e&q=wolfgang%20seiler%20%22szd%2030%22&f=false). This type is considered to be the Ka6 of the soviet zone.
Some more aviation related stuff:
Ikarus VOX II (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.welt.de%2Fwelt_print%2Farticle3802967%2F In-elf-Minuten-und-zwei-Sekunden-ueber-die-Mauer-fliegen.html)
The venerable AN2 of course (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sz-photo.de%2F%3F16607724099100603390%26EVENT%3DPOPUP%26WINDOW% 3DWGWINe4704873e01b6fac8cb1c19fdf7143a9%26AJXUID%3D0.5027174 275605921%26MEDIANUMBER%3D00332798%26MEDIAITEMS%3D3cd4db94dd 5be400454edee041112831ae1fc3d2%26OMG%3Dcc46490a9545%26PAGING _SCOPE_4%3D30%26MEDIAGROUP_SCOPE%3D2)
DIY hot air balloon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_German_balloon_escape)
Engineer abducting a SU-7M. (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fde.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSuchoi_Su-7) Not being trained on type, he decides on ejecting instead of trying to land.
Flight by highjacking (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LOT_Polish_Airlines_Flight_165_hijacking)
This guy was imprisoned before he could try his "experimental" (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.faz.net%2Faktuell%2Fpolitik%2F25-jahre-deutsche-einheit%2Fer-wollte-mit-selbstgebautem-flugzeug-aus-der-ddr-fliehen-13253937.html%3FprintPagedArticle%3Dtrue%23pageIndex_2)
Nautically there are also have been a lot of intresting things going on.
Duchess_Driver
10th Nov 2019, 10:49
Not necessarily Berlin, but east to west in a Balloon IIRC.
HarryMann
10th Nov 2019, 18:26
Presumably got the idea from the Colditz Cock the escape glider the British designed and built in the attic. of Stalag xx.
Procrastinus
10th Nov 2019, 19:16
And Bezak in a Zlin from East to West
NutLoose
11th Nov 2019, 01:09
Not necessarily Berlin, but east to west in a Balloon IIRC.
Correct, made into a film staring John Hurt
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082810/
Krystal n chips
11th Nov 2019, 06:50
In the 70ies there were so plenty of them that the GDR prohibited sport flying for some time until they had installed the resources to snoop on the aviators and guard the airfields:
(Fixed Link) (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bstu.de%2Finformationen-zur-stasi%2Fthemen%2Fbeitrag%2Fmisstrauen-ueber-den-wolken%2F%23c6378)
However articles in the press seldomly mention the plane used. Here is one from 1979 I found.
SZD-30 "Pirat" (https://books.google.de/books?id=uPevDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48&dq=wolfgang+seiler+%22szd+30%22&source=bl&ots=XDqUJSyXo_&sig=ACfU3U2U2MOjERyGq2IueWVE8B-H3lA4gQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiQqLenpN_lAhWCLFAKHXLZBZUQ6AEwCnoECAkQAQ#v=onepag e&q=wolfgang%20seiler%20%22szd%2030%22&f=false). This type is considered to be the Ka6 of the soviet zone.
Some more aviation related stuff:
Ikarus VOX II (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.welt.de%2Fwelt_print%2Farticle3802967%2F In-elf-Minuten-und-zwei-Sekunden-ueber-die-Mauer-fliegen.html)
The venerable AN2 of course (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sz-photo.de%2F%3F16607724099100603390%26EVENT%3DPOPUP%26WINDOW% 3DWGWINe4704873e01b6fac8cb1c19fdf7143a9%26AJXUID%3D0.5027174 275605921%26MEDIANUMBER%3D00332798%26MEDIAITEMS%3D3cd4db94dd 5be400454edee041112831ae1fc3d2%26OMG%3Dcc46490a9545%26PAGING _SCOPE_4%3D30%26MEDIAGROUP_SCOPE%3D2)
DIY hot air balloon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_German_balloon_escape)
Engineer abducting a SU-7M. (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fde.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSuchoi_Su-7) Not being trained on type, he decides on ejecting instead of trying to land.
Flight by highjacking (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LOT_Polish_Airlines_Flight_165_hijacking)
This guy was imprisoned before he could try his "experimental" (https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.faz.net%2Faktuell%2Fpolitik%2F25-jahre-deutsche-einheit%2Fer-wollte-mit-selbstgebautem-flugzeug-aus-der-ddr-fliehen-13253937.html%3FprintPagedArticle%3Dtrue%23pageIndex_2)
Nautically there are also have been a lot of intresting things going on.
Thanks for all the replies :ok:
However, it's the quote above I found of particular interest.
I flew a Pirat, once !......and a contributor on here offered some "helpful advice " as I floated past the launch point It would be fair to say my preference would be a Ka6E or Ka6CR. Sorry about the digression.
I have to say this piece in the programme did attract my interest due to my involvement with gliding because so many factors had to be in his favour on the day. It wasn't exactly a cross- country flight where you can land in a field when the lift stops working.
The rest of the programme was equally interesting....and sobering viewing