The Glaser-Dirks DG-202 Glider

Whilst the DG-200 sailplane was well-received and quite popular there was enough adverse feedback from owners regarding particular deficiencies that Glaser-Dirks began redesign work to correct these almost straightaway.  The result of this work emerged in 1980 and the redesign was so extensive that the company gave the new model a new designation, the DG-202. Judged even by today's standards this was a particularly graceful aircraft and remains highly sought-after today.

Photograph of the DG202/17 'KCW' (now SOLD) at the Scottish Gliding Centre's airfield at Portmoak.

The most obvious outward change from the original DG-200 design was to the canopy^** which became a 1-piece unit hinged at the nose, supported by a gas strut, and locked down by a catch in the centre of the rear frame. The original large canopy size was retained along with the outstanding visibility in flight seen here on the left, but the new 1-piece canopy made entry and exit much easier and dispensed with the much-complained-about frame member which in the earlier model had crossed the pilot's field of view. See Glaser-Dirks' original prospectus (in German) for the DG-202 or my english translation^*.

Other major changes included the all-important elevator linkage which was now self-connecting and changes to the wing profile to improve the high-speed flying characteristics. These changes reportedly also improved the low-speed weak thermalling characteristics and the aircraft could now be flown in slow, tight turns using as much as 8^o or even 12^o of flap. The undercarriage was improved with the addition of suspension and there was a substantial rearrangement of the instrument binnacle and controls to suit a wider range of pilot sizes. The trimmer was redesigned to be a spring trim mechanism with a toothed quadrant operated by a trigger on the stick and the wheelbrake, which had previously occupied this position, was moved to the overtravel of the airbrake lever. Because of the large canopy the space available for controls on the low side bulkheads is somewhat less than average and these changes made for a much less cluttered layout.

The DG-202 was still available in the original 15-metre and 17-metre (DG-202/17) GRP versions, the latter with removeable 15-metre wingtips as before but the 13.1-metre acroracer version was dropped. Instead, a new model was introduced - the DG-202/17C, available only as a 15/17 metre option - using the relatively new carbon-fibre reinforced plastic technology for the wing-spars with a significant reduction of about 60lb in the unladen weight. The carbon-fibre model was about 15% more expensive than the glass-fibre model and, presumably because of this, was the less popular. Its lower unballasted weight could be expected to give slightly better climbing performance in weak conditions but overall the only real difference for the extra cost was ease of rigging. The aircraft first flew in 1980 and entered manufacture later that year. The strength and lightness of the carbon-fibre wings permitted a large increase of weight elsewhere and the company embarked on a motorised version of the DG-202 which appeared in 1981 as the highly-acclaimed DG-400, probably the most successful self-launching glider ever produced.

The carbon-fibre DG-202/17C prototype was reviewed (prior to LBA approval) by the Aerokurier in August 1980 and a you can view a reproduction of the original report or read my attempt at an english translation^*.

Apart from the fairly routine optional and mandatory airworthiness modifications, DG-Flugzeugbau have taken the fairly unusual (my opinion) step of designing several safety-related upgrade modifications as retrofits to the DG-200/DG-202. As a company DG-Flugzeugbau, and especially its current managing director Karl-Friedrich Weber, is particularly safety-orientated. DG-recommended modifications include the following:

• Nose hook for aerotowing (the DG-202 as standard has only a belly hook).
• Roeger-style Hook to improve canopy release in a bale-out situation. (Similar to mandatory requirements for current models and recommended by the FAA).
• Piggott-Hook to prevent airbrakes opening accidentally.
• Noah emergency assisted exit system.

In addition to these there are a few approved modifications which can be made to improve some aspects of the controls:

• It is not unknown for the main gear to unlock during particularly rough landings. A modification can be made to the undercarriage lever to provide a detent in towards the left bulkhead in the down (forwards) position which gives a positive lock and almost completely removes this (very annoying) problem.
• The trim trigger control on the stick can sometimes be difficult to set in exactly the desired position. The trim position indicator on the left bulkhead can be modified to provide a tab which can then be operated at the same time as the trigger to make trimming easier and more positive (similar to later DG models).

Technical notes are available on DG-Flugzeugbau's website here. Or use the direct link here.

Some notes on l'hotellier connectors as used for the aileron and airbrake linkages.
The LBA has issued airworthiness directives regarding these connectors.

You can see a list of various documents here and a list of the aircrafts' known registrations here.

^* English Translations have been done by myself and since my German language skills are not great there are likely to be some errors. If you see any or if you can think of a better English rendition of any phrases please with your suggestions. Many thanks.

^** A few later builds of the DG-200 produced in 1979 were also equipped as standard with the new canopy.

Bob Adamson

footnote
I owned and flew a DG-202 15/17, registration G-CKCW, for 10 years selling it in April 2012.

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