The Lilienthal glider project
Lilienthal's biplane glider in flight
The aircraft travelled up to 100 metres – from the dunes to the ocean.
Flow test in the wind tunnel
The Lilienthal construction must be proven in flow tests inside the DNW wind tunnel in the Netherlands, Marknesse. In the lower left corner of the image is the angle of alignment of the front of the glider with the wind. The CP scale on the right side describes the air resistance.One hundred and twenty-five years of human flight. Otto Lilienthal was a pioneer of aeronautics. He was the first to recognise and document that a curved wing can generate more lift than a flat one – possibly even over twice as much. Researchers at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) reconstructed his 'normal glider' in accordance with the original plans. The DLR Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology investigated the aerodynamic properties of the first series-produced aircraft in a wind tunnel and was able to confirm Lilienthal as the forefather of modern aeronautics.
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Jens WucherpfennigCorporate Communications, Göttingen and HanoverGerman Aerospace Center (DLR)
Public Affairs and Communications
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Video: Replicas of gliders constructed by Otto Lilienthal and the Wright brothers flew together at Kitty Hawk
For the first time, replicas of two of the most influential aircraft from the early days of aviation have flown together. Between 14 and 16 December 2019, Otto Lilienthal's 'Big Biplane' from 1895 and the Wright glider from 1902 were together during a demonstration at Kitty Hawk in the USA.
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Video of the first flight of the replica of Otto Lilienthal’s biplane glider
Now, for the first time, there is video footage of flights performed by a historically accurate replica of the world's first biplane glider, which was designed by Otto Lilienthal. Markus Raffel, who works at DLR in Göttingen, made the flights in California in late July 2019.
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Lilienthal's biplane glider passed its flow test in the wind tunnel
<span>A replica of the world’s first series aircraft passed its test in the German-Dutch wind tunnel DNW-LLF, where scientists from DLR have now demonstrated the aerodynamic quality of the design by the aviation pioneer Otto Lilienthal.</span>
