ASK 18
Role	Club class sailplane
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	Schleicher
Designed by	Rudolf Kaiser
First flight	October 1974
Number built	56

The Schleicher ASK 18 is a single-seat sailplane that was built by the German manufacturer Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co. It was designed to be a sturdy aircraft for inexperienced solo pilots and so uses a simple and rugged construction and has docile handling characteristics.

It was designed by Rudolf Kaiser and was the last Schleicher glider to use the traditional construction method. It was built when aircraft of the same class, such as the Grob G-102 Astir, were made of glass-fibre. The fuselage was derived from the Ka 8 and use welded steel tube and spruce longerons. It is covered in fabric. The wings are from the Ka 6E but with 16-metre span. They have a single wooden spar. The rear part of the wing is fabric-covered and the ailerons are plywood-covered. The tailplane came from the K 10; the fin and tailplane are plywood-covered and the rudder and elevators are fabric covered. A Flettner trim tab is fitted to the elevator. Only the nose cone is glass-fibre. The main-wheel is fixed and has a brake. There is a tail-skid but no nose-skid. The Schempp-Hirth airbrakes extend above and below the wing. First flight was in October 1974.

A variation was the ASK 18B which had a span reduced to 15m; At the end of production in 1977 38 K18s were built, 9 K18Bs and one unknown variant from a kit. A further 8 K18-ARs were produced in Argentina.

[edit] Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: One
• Length: 6.00 m (19 ft 8 in)
• Wingspan: 16.00 m (52 ft 6 in)
• Height: 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
• Wing area: 13.0 m² (140 ft²)
• Aspect ratio: 19.7
• Wing profile: Root: NACA 633-618 Mid: NACA 633-614 (with Wortmann leading edge modification)
• Empty weight: 215 kg (473 lb)
• Gross weight: 335 kg (737 lb)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 200 km/h (125 mph)
• Maximum glide ratio: 34
• Rate of sink: 0.62 m/s (122 ft/min)

[edit] References

Gliders and Sailplanes of the World by Michael Hardy Ian Allen Ltd 1982 ISBN 0711011524

[edit] External links

• Sailplane directory

v • d • e Schleicher glider types Wooden construction Condor · Rhönadler · Rhönbussard Wooden construction (Rudolf Kaiser) Ka 1 Rhönlaus · Ka 2 Rhönschwalbe · Ka 4 Rhönlerche II · Ka 6 Rhönsegler · K 7 Rhönadler · K 8 · ASK 13 · ASK 14 · ASK 16 · ASK 18 GRP construction (Rudolf Kaiser) ASK 21 · ASK 23 GRP construction (Gerhard Waibel) ASW 12 · ASW 15 · ASW 17 · ASW 19 · ASW 20 · ASW 22 · ASW 24 · ASW 27 · ASW 28 GRP construction (Martin Heide) ASH 25 · ASH 26 · ASH 30 · ASH 31 GRP construction (Michael Greiner) ASG 29

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