This a twin motorcycle engined homebuilt aircraft called DOWA 81, designed and built by Dr Wagner. It has never flown. It was built in secrecy at his home, but he was imprisoned by the StaSi before it could be used to flee East Germany in 1981. Dr Wagner and his family were imprisoned and he and his wife and three kids were later "bought" free by West Germany. The aircraft is deemed airworthy and would have flown. Dr Wagner successfully designed and flew several small aircraft in West (or reunited) Germany.
@@hansw5067if you have only two motorcycles to take their 250 cbcm engines and wheels, your aircraft has to be very efficient in aerodynamics, therefore it clearly looks like a glider.. And it isn‘t clear that the engines would have had enough energy for a powerful climb. (search for „wagner fluchtflugzeug“)
@@hansw5067 I wondered this same thing and I’m an experienced powered airplane and glider pilot. The propellers are easy to miss…they are mounted behind the wing, just aft of the landing gear/engines (we call this a “pusher” configuration).
Heard of the Colditz Cock? POWs in a WW2 German prison were building a glider for some of them to escape with but was liberated by US troops in April 1945.
Please attempt to not post stupidity. Of course it would have solved the one problem with the family that built it. But they were caught and arrested. Random circumstance has nothing to do with whether a brilliant idea is good or workable.
Surely not. You are the heart of democracy with free elections. Our politicians tell us so as they send out tax dollars to you saying we are defending democracy. I truly hope they aren't lying to us😅
This was a glider, as it was intended to take off from a track built along the ridge of a roof. The wooden-framed, cloth- covered aircraft was intended to rest upon a wheeled dolly which would be accelerated to flying speed by a rope tied to a cement-filled bathtub. The rope went up from the falling bathtub, via a pulley mounted on the end of the track, and back to the dolly. The glider was only intended to carry its crew of two across a nearby river, and to alight on its ventral skid (hinged, and sprung with a tennis ball) in a meadow just across the river. The Colditz Allied Escape Committee vetoed the use of the glider. Its design has twice been proved sound: two full-size gliders have been built and flown. Search "Colditz Cock documentary" on RUclips for details of these flights.
This a twin motorcycle engined homebuilt aircraft called DOWA 81, designed and built by Dr Wagner. It has never flown. It was built in secrecy at his home, but he was imprisoned by the StaSi before it could be used to flee East Germany in 1981. Dr Wagner and his family were imprisoned and he and his wife and three kids were later "bought" free by West Germany. The aircraft is deemed airworthy and would have flown. Dr Wagner successfully designed and flew several small aircraft in West (or reunited) Germany.
It looks like a glider. Were those engines only used to launch the plane?
@@hansw5067if you have only two motorcycles to take their 250 cbcm engines and wheels, your aircraft has to be very efficient in aerodynamics, therefore it clearly looks like a glider.. And it isn‘t clear that the engines would have had enough energy for a powerful climb. (search for „wagner fluchtflugzeug“)
A glider type aircraft can fly adequately with small engines.
@@hansw5067 I wondered this same thing and I’m an experienced powered airplane and glider pilot. The propellers are easy to miss…they are mounted behind the wing, just aft of the landing gear/engines (we call this a “pusher” configuration).
@@johnsteiner682 Thank You. I had to look this clip again and than I saw one of the propellers clearly.
The commentary and history kept me gripped right until the end.
gripping
The loud music covered up the narration...
I know, It's one of those where you learn more from the comment section.
😂🤣😅
People desire to be free, and will take extreme measures to obtain their freedom
What a wonderful concept & remarkable that West Germany ransomed the family!
This aircraft should be in the House at checkpoint Charlie museum in Berlin that documents all the escape attempts...
A real "Flight of the Phoenix" Shame it never got the chance to fly.
German engineering at its best. :) Truly remarkable.
I recall a similar escape from East Germany, by hot-air balloon, in the early Seventies. An entire family, as I recall.
Have seen this plane in Munich at the airport museum.
It's amazing what people will do to escape an oppressive Soviet/socialist regime.
And it‘s even more impressive how an uneducated people accepts everything while becoming one again… ☺️
Not really. What is amazing is that over half of the USA wants to turn America socialist/communist.
How quickly we forget the lessons of the past.
Meanwhile the American democrat is voting for the same. Too damned stupid to know better.
Heard of the Colditz Cock? POWs in a WW2 German prison were building a glider for some of them to escape with but was liberated by US troops in April 1945.
Those are the exhaust pipes in front of the wheels
Not the motorman with camera. I would like to see engines. I have flown with Trabant motor.
What happened at 1:01?
Sie werden mit uns kommen!
A technological marvel that didn't solved the prolem: scaping east Germany. Same as the space shuttle that didn't lowered space flight cost.
About as safe as the Space Shuttle.
@@mitseraffej5812 Not really comparable situations.
Please attempt to not post stupidity. Of course it would have solved the one problem with the family that built it. But they were caught and arrested. Random circumstance has nothing to do with whether a brilliant idea is good or workable.
Нам как раз на украину надо такие..сбегать в европу из страны! Границы у нас закрыты.
Surely not. You are the heart of democracy with free elections. Our politicians tell us so as they send out tax dollars to you saying we are defending democracy. I truly hope they aren't lying to us😅
Possibly they got the idea from the British POWs who built a plane to escape from Colditz....
This was a glider, as it was intended to take off from a track built along the ridge of a roof. The wooden-framed, cloth- covered aircraft was intended to rest upon a wheeled dolly which would be accelerated to flying speed by a rope tied to a cement-filled bathtub. The rope went up from the falling bathtub, via a pulley mounted on the end of the track, and back to the dolly. The glider was only intended to carry its crew of two across a nearby river, and to alight on its ventral skid (hinged, and sprung with a tennis ball) in a meadow just across the river.
The Colditz Allied Escape Committee vetoed the use of the glider.
Its design has twice been proved sound: two full-size gliders have been built and flown.
Search "Colditz Cock documentary" on RUclips for details of these flights.
THAT is a truly remarkable story. "I have the book."
I wonder if that was the inspiration for the Hogan's Heroes episode "The Flight of the Valkyrie"
@@romad357 Ah...I think the "Hogan's Heroes" episodes are all up on RUclips. I shall watch the episode if I can - thanks for mentioning it.
How lame don't tell us about it...useing click bait is bad...I won't be back
Just think, someone went to all this trouble to build a plane to escape Communism. 50 years on we cant get enough of it!
AI
Nope.
"No Intelligence" in your case
@@kapitan517 why is the video all fuzzy? Has there been an explosion of AI pictures recently?
@@kapitan517 So true.
American college kids: "but communism is awesome!"
Capitalists build walls to keep people out. Communists build walls to keep people in.
All Americans "We are so stupid that any form of Government not American is Communism!"😆
You meant to say, "most democraps"