Slingsby Falcon III
{{Short description|British two-seat training glider, 1935}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
| {{Infobox Aircraft Begin
| name=T.4 Falcon 3 | image=File:Hermione Hoare in Falcon III glider, probably at Dunstable, c. 1938 (5796124274).jpg | caption= }}{{Infobox Aircraft Type | type=Primary Training Glider | national origin=United Kingdom | manufacturer=Slingsby Sailplanes | designer=Fred Slingsby | first flight=1935 | introduced= | retired= | status= | primary user= | number built= 9 | developed from= Slingsby Falcon 2 | variants with their own articles= }} |
The Slingsby T.4 Falcon 3 was a two-seat training glider produced from 1935, by Fred Slingsby in Kirbymoorside, Yorkshire.
Design and development
Espin Hardwick persuaded Fred Slingsby to build a two-seat version of the Falcon. Slingsby enlarged the fuselage to accept side by side seating for pupil and instructor, and enlarged the aircraft to cope with the increased weight. The increased span wings were attached to a rectangular centre-section which was supported by six struts. To increase the field of vision the centre section had celluloid panels and the wing root fairing strips were made from a clear plastic, both of these vision aids tended to have short lives, and were usually replaced with doped fabric or plywood as appropriate.
History
After successful flight tests with only minor modifications, the Falcon 3 was put into production. Eight more were built, but didn't see as much use as trainers as they should have, due to the short-sighted prevailing opinion that trainee pilots gained more from having to master gliders with poor flying characteristics. Production halted by 1938 and most of the Falcon 3's were impressed for use by the Air Training Corps
Operators
UK
- Air Training Corps
Specifications
{{Aircraft specs
|prime units? = imp
|crew=Two
|length m=6.74
|length ft=22
|length in=1
|span m=17.69
|span ft=58
|wing area sqm=27.4
|wing area sqft=294.8
|aspect ratio=11.1
|airfoil =Göttingen 535
|empty weight kg=227
|empty weight lb=500
|gross weight kg=408
|gross weight lb=899
}}
See also
{{aircontent
|see also=
- Slingsby Falcon 2
|related=
|similar aircraft=
- Slingsby T.21 Sedbergh
|sequence=
- T.1, T.2, T.3 etc.
|lists=
}}
References
{{Commons category}}
- Ellison, N.H. British Gliders and Sailplanes 1922-1970. A & C Black, 1971
- Simons, M. Slingsby Sailplanes. Airlife Publishing, 1996 - {{ISBN|1-85310-732-8}}
{{reflist}}