The Rhönlerche II was first flown 7 December 1953.[4] Its design goals were to produce a simple, inexpensive and robust two-seat trainer for school and club use. The design was a success and several hundred were constructed.[1][2]
The Rhönlerche II is constructed with a welded steel tube fuselage and a wooden wing and tail surfaces, all finished in doped aircraft fabric covering. The 13.0 m (42.7 ft) span wing is supported by single lift struts and employs a Goettingen 533 airfoil. The aircraft's landing gear is a fixed monowheel, with a nose skid.[1][2][5]
The Ka-4 was widely used by clubs and schools in West Germany and also by Canadian military gliding clubs stationed in West Germany, including the Lahr Gliding Club at CFB Lahr. One of these aircraft was later shipped to Canada and operated by the Cold Lake Gliding Club at CFB Cold Lake and in July 2011 was owned by the Gravelbourg Gliding And Soaring Club, Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan.[2][6]
Data fromSailplane Directory, Soaring and Type Certificate 7G6,[1][2][3]The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs du Monde,[10]and manufacturer[11]
^Shenstone, B.S.; K.G. Wilkinson; Peter Brooks (1958). The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs dans Le Monde (in English, French, and German) (1st ed.). Zurich: Organisation Scientifique et Technique Internationale du Vol a Voile (OSTIV) and Schweizer Aero-Revue. pp. 9–13.
^Segelflugzeugbau, Alexander Schleicher (22 April 2016). "Ka 4 Rhönlerche II - ASSegelflug". alexander-schleicher.de. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
References
Shenstone, B.S.; K.G. Wilkinson; Peter Brooks (1958). The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs dans Le Monde (in English, French, and German) (1st ed.). Zurich: Organisation Scientifique et Technique Internationale du Vol a Voile (OSTIV) and Schweizer Aero-Revue. pp. 9–13.
Said, Bob (November 1983). "1983 Sailplane Directory". Soaring Magazine. Soaring Society of America. USPS 499-920.