10.07.2008: Antares No. 50 delivered
Today Antares No. 50 was delivered to Mr. Nicholas Hackett. The aircraft will be stationed at the Husbands-Bosworth airfield in the UK.
Read more.
09.30.2008: "Maiden flight" in Terminal 1
In September 30. 2008, the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) presented the world’s first self-launch capable piloted aircraft with fuel-cell based propulsion. The event took place at Stuttgart airport, and it was attended by Günther H. Oettinger, prime minister for the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. The Antares DLR-H2 is scheduled to perform its first take off powered by fuel-cells before the end of this year. The aircraft, which has been developed by the DLR Institute for Technical Thermodynamics and Lange Aviation GmbH, is a flying test bed for fuel-cell technology.
Read more.
05.23.2008: Gerd Spiegelberg wins in Hockenheim
The 18m class of the 2008 international Hockenheim soaring competition was won by Mr. Gerd Spiegelberg flying his new Antares 18S. He decervedly won the title with a 299 points lead after winning two of the competition days and obtaining good results for the rest.
05.17.2008: Newsletter 1/2008 is available
The first 2008 Lange Aviation Newsletter is now available online. It can be downloaded here.
If you wish to recieve future issues of the newsletter, then please sign up here.
04.11.2008: Lange Aviation and DLR to build research aircraft
In the future, global air traffic will continue to rise, and as a result, so will fuel consumption and the ensuing emissions. Solutions for the reduction of pollutant emissions during flight and ground handling are therefore urgently needed. The utilisation of fuel cells will, according to the agenda of the German Federal ministry for Commerce and Technology, make a significant contribution to this.
Read more.
04.01.2008:Announcing the Antares 18P
Zweibrücken 04.01.08: Lange Aviation GmbH has the great pleasure to announce a further expansion of the Antares product range with a new 18m self sustainer, the Antares 18P.
With the new Antares 18P, Lange Aviation now offers a sailplane which combines the extreme soaring performance with high speed powered cross country capability.
Read more.
03.28.2007: 2007: A good year for Antares
While 2007 may not have been the nicest of years in Zweibrücken, it was certainly not a bad year for the Antares sailplanes and their owners.
Read more.
11.01.2007: Successful recapitalization
In the end of September 2007, Lange Faserverbundtechnik GmbH, as a part of an asset deal based recapitalization, bought all tangible and intangible assets of Lange Flugzeugbau GmbH. The company will, with co-operation from all knowledge bearers, continue the production of the Antares product range at the existing, highly modern production facilities in Zweibrücken.
Read more.
07.15.2007: Newsletter 2/2007 is available
The second 2007 Lange Flugzeugbau Newsletter is now available online. It can be downloaded here.
If you wish to recieve future issues of the newsletter, then please sign up here.
06.22.2007: Lange Flugzeugbau recieves Manufacturing Organisation Approval
On June 26 2007 Lange Flugzeugbau GmbH, through the German Aviation Authority (LBA), received an approval as Manufacturing Organization.
The approval comprises the manufacture and maintenance of our self launching sailplane, the Antares 20E, our electrical propulsion system, EA42, and our propeller, LF-P42.
As early as 2006 we received an approval as a EASA Design Organisation -Alternative Procedures to Design Organisation Approval (ADOA), as well as type certificates for the Antares 20E, EA42 and LF-P42.
The issued approvals means that the full spectrum of approvals required for our area of business, sailplanes and powered sailplanes, has been covered.
06.06.2007: Newsletter 1/2007 is available
The first 2007 Lange Flugzeugbau Newsletter is now available online. It can be downloaded here.
If you wish to recieve future issues of the newsletter, then please sign up here.
05.22.2007: "Leading the way" - Antares 18S in Sailplane & Gliding
Jochen Ewald's pilot report on the Antares 18S, as printed in Sailplane & Gliding 12/2006 has now been made available online. The complete article can be found here.
The article has been reproduced with permission from Sailplane & Gliding
05.21.2007: Updated travel advice
It is an annual thing: with the arrival of good flying weather, the number of gliderpilots who want to come and visit Lange Flugzeugbau and perform a test flight in an Antares rises dramatically.
In an effort to make the planning of such a trip easier, we have updated the locations page of our web-site to contain more detailed travel advice.
Interestingly, it can be concluded that the arrival of low fare airlines have made it faster and cheaper to make a factory visit from far away in Europe, than it is to come from a more intermediate location!
02.21.2007: Invitation to AERO Friedrichshafen 2007
AERO 2007 will take place from April 19 to 22 in Friedrichshafen, Germany. The AERO is the premier European tradeshow for general aviation industry, and it is organized every 2 years.
Lange Flugzeugbau will exhibit in Hall A1, Stand 140, and we would be happy to meet you there.
In addition to the Antares 20E, we will, for the first time, exhibit the Antares 18S with the new fuselage-vertical stabilizer transition. You are more than welcome to try out the Antares cockpit. We will, several times a day, demonstrate the simple engine controls of the Antares 20E. The demonstrations include running the engine (at very low power).
We would be happy to inform you further about our products in personal dialog, and are looking forward to interesting conversations.
Further information about the AERO can be found at www.aero-friedrichshafen.com.
02.19.2007: Certification inspections for Antares 20E self-launchers
Having sucessfully certified the Antares 20E, the already finished aircraft are now brought up to certified condition, and are undergoing certification inspection.
02.08-10.2007: Antares 20E at the 2007 SSA Convention in Memphis, Tennessee
The 2007 SSA Convention in Memphis, Tennessee included the first public display of the Antares 20E on American soil.
12.05.2006: Newsletter 1/2006 is available
The first 2006 Lange Flugzeugbau Newsletter is now available online.
Using fully upgraded format and styling, the newsletter is aimed to provide up to date information and other news related to Lange Flugzeugbau and the Antares family of gliders.
If you wish to recieve future issues of the newsletter, then please sign up here.
Newsletter 1/2006 has already been distributed. It can also be downloaded here.
12.01.2006: "Antares Notes" -Flight review Antares 20E nr. 25
Most glider pilots pack away their toy for the winter, and dedicate their time to other things. Others spend large amounts of time, effort and economic resources to escape the winter by flying on the other side of equator.
Then there is Mr. John Williams, the proud (we hope) owner of Antares 20E factory number 25. He spent the ten first days of November collecting some 2250 OLC kilometers -in Scotland!
10.12.2006: Antares in YouTube
Lange Flugzeugbau was invited by the German international airshow, the ILA 2006, to participate with the Antares 20E in the daily flight display. The Antares was chosen in order to display to the public the advanced state of the art in modern sailplane design.
Our display pilot, Ola Røer Thorsen filmed the event, and has posted a nice movie on YouTube.
10.03.2006: Two new Pilot Reports for Antares 18S in gliding magazines Segelfliegen and Aerokurier
Segelfliegen
Jochen Ewald has tested the Antares 18S for Segelfliegen gliding magazine. He comes to the following conclusions:
“ ... The Antares 18S, manufactured with perfect craftmanship, now appears to be the most advanced design of all the gliders offered in the FAI 18-Metre Class. This class is becoming increasingly attractive not only for those pilots who enjoy competition flying, but also for other private and club pilots. Both the Antares 18S’s aerodynamics and its safety technology set new standards. At the same time it is an easy-to-fly glider. This enables competition pilots, through relaxed flying, to attain maximum performance also during long flights. It also serves to introduce the average club pilot to flying with flaps, offering him or her maximal performance in combination with comfort and fun flying. ...”
The complete report (in German) can be found here. English and French versions of the report will be posted as soon as they become available.
Aerokurier
Gerhardt Marzinzik tested the Antares 18S for Aerokurier. His enthusiasm for the Antares 18S is clearly reflected in the pilot report.
The complete report (in German) can be found here.
20.09.2006: Swiss Aero Revue ‚Ein Elektrosegelflugzeug im Steigflug’
An in depth article about the Antares 20E can be found in the Swiss Aero revue magazine. The article also contains an interview with Antares owners Markus and Rudi Engeler
“ The Antares 20E is concidered the most innovative sailplane currently available, and the reception by the aviation press was correspondingly positive. However, many experts did not fully believe that Axel lange would succeed with this uncompromising project. ...”
The complete article (in German) can be found here.
09.14.2006: First transfer of ownership of an Antares 20E to a US customer
Today, Mr. Bruce McNaughton recieved an Antares 20E with factory no. 32 on behalf of a syndicate of three pilots in Tucson, Arizona.
This is the first Antares to go to the USA. The Aircraft is now awaiting shipment together with 2 other Antares 20E heading in that direction.
After Mr. McNaughton had performed the check flight his comment concerning the long time of development was: “How difficult it is, to make things so easy!”
09.13.2006: Justin Wills - Test flight of Antares 18S
Former WGC-vice-champion Justin Wills has test flown the Antares 18S, and has been kind enough to write down his impressions of the aircraft.
We are happy to inform that Mr. Wills signed a contract of sales shortly after his flight. He will become owner of an Antares 18T next year.
Lange Flugzeugbau is very grateful for both the flight review and for the order.
08.24.2006: Sailplane & Gliding — Another view of Antares
WWendy MacPhedran, the partner of Antares 20E-customer John Williams, factory no. 25, has published an unusual but still very nice account of their visit to Lange Flugzeugbau in the british Sailplane & Gliding magazine.
Read more about how it is to visit Lange Flugzeugbau seen from the point of view of a gliderpilot´s non-flying partner.
The article is reproduced with permission of Sailplane & Gliding
08.02.2006: New Pictures of Antares 18S
Today we have recieved some new pictures of the Antares 18S shot by Jochen Ewald. He flew our newest glider on Tuesday, 18th March 2006 in his function as freelancing reporter for magazines like “Segelfliegen” and “Sailplane and Gliding”. The article in the “Segelfliegen” will be published in the Sep/Oct-Issue while “Sailplane & Gliding” is going to publish a test article of Antares 18S in the winter.
07.21.2006: New Homepage installed
Since today our new homepage has been activated. We think the new design will give you more detailed information about our Antares glider family and our company. There are some new features added, too. E.g. you can subscribe to an email-Newsletter, planned to be established in the next months.
07.14.2006: EASA Type Certification Antares 20E
Today Lange Flugzeugbau received the EASA type certification for the Antares 20E. (EASA TCDS No. A.092).
This is the first time in the world that an aircraft with an electrical propulsion system receives a type certificate. Many months of constructive cooperation between LBA (German Aviation Authorities), authorized by the EASA, and the engineers of Lange Flugzeugbau have been required to certify the completely new Antares 20E with its many novel subsystems according to the JAR22 standards for gliders and motorgliders. In order to achieve this, a number of paragraphs had to be expanded further to allow for the certification of electrical propulsion systems.
The newly created EASA has taken over from the respective EU national aviation authorities most responsibilities in aviation relevant issues, like certification and air safety. A type certificate issued by EASA means that the aircraft is certified in all EU nations.
Lange Flugzeugbau now aims for the certification of the Antares 18S. This goal should be achieved substantially faster, since most of the Antares 18S components are identical with the Antares 20E, and since no propulsion system needs to be certified.
07.08-07.09.2006: Presenting the Antares 18S in Switzerland
The newly finished Antares 18S no. 2 started doing its duty as a sales model on two glider-airfields in Switzerland this weekend (Birrfeld and Schänis).
Interested pilots enthusiastically test flew the aircraft at both airfields. Typical, but still nice to hear, comments directly after landing were: “I’ve never flown anything better!”, “Simply phenomenal!”, “ The agility of the Antares 18S makes it perfect for the Alps”.
We are especially pleased with the fact that many Swiss gliding clubs show so much interrest in aquiring the Antares 18S as a club aircraft. This confirms our development goal of creating an aircraft for pilots with high requirements without putting high requirements on the pilot.
07.07.2006: Antares 18S factory number 2 finished
Our new development aircraft / sales model, Antares 18S factory number 2 was finished and successfully flown today.
This aircraft will in the coming months undergo certification flying, and is available for interrested costumers.
Thus: contact us, and make an appointment for a test flight.
06.27.2006: Noise measurements according to Chapter X for certification
As a part of the certification of the Antares 20E, noise measurements according to chapter X were today made of the Antares 20E.
Following the rules of chapter X no noise emission could be measured since the Antares 20E was too silent.
(BTW: The picture was not made during the noise measurements, it just happens to look good.)
06.23.2006: LBA control flying the Antares 20E
Employees of the LBA (Luftfahrtbundesamt / German Aviation Authority) performed control flights with the Antares 20E today. This marks the end of the certification procedure. All Pilots summarized excellent handling and very simple propulsion controls.
LBA could, as expected, find no issues with the Antares 20E, which means that only a noise measurement stands between the Antares 20E and certification.
05.28.2006: Successful first flight of the Antares 18S
After some long days waiting for flyable weather at our home airport Zweibrücken our latest Product Antares 18S made its successful maiden flight Sunday, May 28th, 2006 in best VFR conditions.
» Read more
05.04.2006: Status update 18S
The wings, stabilisers and fuselages of 18m Antares nr. 1 and 2 are out of the molds, and are currently being equipped with controls and internal structures.
Parts of nr. 1 get finished this time. We are planning the first flight of Antares 18S in week 20.
We expect to be able to field the Antares 18S at the 2006 World championship in Sweden (www.wgc2006.se). We invite you to ask for the possibility of a test flight.
» For further information: product description Antares 18S/T
Today we received EASA-certification for our electrical propulsion system EA42 (EASA TCDS No. E.015) and our Propeller LF-P 42 (EASA TCDS No. P.015). The certification covers utilization in powered gliders and VLA’s.
Both propulsion components were developed especially for our self launching high performance sailplane, the Antares 20E.» Read more on the propulsion system
Lange Flugzeugbau GmbH has today received EASA approval as an organisation for aircraft development with alternative procedures. (List of EASA certified organisations with alternative procedures)
The approval has the reference nr, AP193, and covers sailplanes, powered sailplanes, engines and propellers for powered sailplanes acording to EASA Part 21 CS 22.
Congratulations! We congratulate Mr. Sepp Holzapfel for winning the Open Class DMSt 2005 in His Antares 20E. An Antares flight report by Mr. Holzapfel can be found here (German only).
01.01.2006: Movies
One of our engineers / test pilots, Ola Roer Thorsen, made video recordings during Flight testing of the Antares 20E.
The nicest recordings can be found as streaming video.