noel.wade wrote:

As for flapped performance: The reason I talk about speed is because
if you look at things like Idaflieg test data, the polar of say a
DG-300 and an ASW-20 are nearly identical at similar wing-loadings, at
about 55 knots and below. Above that the ASW-20 starts winning out by
a small margin to around 75 knots, and then above that the negative
flap settings seem to make a pretty noticeable difference in the polar
and the ASW-20 is the clear winner.

I typically cruise at 70-80 knots in Eastern Washington conditions, and
that's in a 50:1, 18 meter, 8.3 pound wing loading glider. With your
experience and Western Washington conditions, I think it will be a rare
day when you will want to cruise at even 70 knots in 15 meter glider,
flapped or not.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA
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