Schempp-Hirth Ventus-2

German single seat glider, 1994

The Schempp Hirth Ventus 2 is a sailplane produced by Schempp Hirth since 1994. It replaced the highly successful Schempp Hirth Ventus.

The Ventus 2a and 2b are 15 metre sailplanes. The 'a' version has a narrow fuselage and the wider fuselage version is called the 2b. Winglets are used with these models. The 18 metre span Ventus 2c was introduced in 1995 and was almost an entirely different aircraft with a different fuselage and wings, but it has the option of shorter tips with winglets to fly as a 15 metre sailplane. From 2003 the Schempp Hirth Discus 2 fuselage was used for all versions, which now have the designations 2ax, 2bx and 2cx. Flight tests in 1996 showed that the 15 metre version had a glide angle of 46:1 but only after considerable work on sealing gaps and by using turbulators. The narrow fuselage Ventus 2a has been highly successful in competitions with consecutive World Championship wins from 1995 to 2003. A narrow fuselage version with an 18 metre span, the Ventus 2cxa has also been built. Some Ventus 2c and 2cx are fitted with small Solo 2350 sustaining engines (turbos) and are designated with a T suffix, while some are self launching with a more powerful Solo 2625 and have the suffix 'M'. The 2cT climbs at up to 0.9 m/s (177 ft/min) and the 2cM at over 3 m/s (590 ft/min). Ranges for the powered versions in saw tooth operation are and respectively. The 2cxa has been designed to take a jet engine. A small number of Ventus 2 were fitted with the front electric sustainer. Production of the 2a and 2b has reached 168 aircraft, while the 2c, 2cT, and 2CM have reached 459. A replacement model, the Ventus 3, first flew on 29 January 2016 and serial production started in April 2016.