Schleicher K7


The Schleicher K7 Rhönadler, aka Ka-7 or K-7, is a West German high-wing, two-seat, glider that was designed by Rudolf Kaiser and produced by Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co.
Often referred to as the Ka-7 or K-7, the US Federal Aviation Administration type certificate officially designates it as the K7.

Design and development

The K7 was intended as a two-place trainer with good performance, a rare combination in trainers of its time.
The K7 is constructed with a welded steel tube fuselage, covered in doped aircraft fabric covering. The wing is a wooden structure with a doped fabric covering and employs a Goettingen 533 airfoil at the wing root, transitioning to a Goettingen 533 section at the wing tip. The wing features powerful dive brakes. The landing gear is a fixed monowheel. The earlier Ka-2 variant has a plywood monocoque fuselage.
After 550 had been built, the K7 was superseded in production by the Schleicher ASK 13.
The K7 can be converted into a K7/13 with a conversion kit to lower the wing to the mid-wing position and installation of a one-piece canopy, rendering the aircraft similar to the ASK-13.

Operational history

A K7 was flown to a new world multi-place glider speed record for flight around a triangle of in 1964 in South Africa.
being taught how to operate the Ka-7 in 2010.
A K7 was assigned to 2 Wing AAFC and used to train Australian Air Force Cadets 228 Squadron at Bundaberg from 2007 to 2014.

Variants

;Ka-2
;K7
;K7/13

Specifications (K7)