And a choice of the many emails received since the
Sagitta site was started:
Beste
Robert,
Mijn vader had het vast geweldig gevonden om te horen dat er nog steeds een
Sagitta in New Zealand vliegt!
Ik zal met alle plezier foto`s en informatie voor de site verzamelen; ik
weet natuurlijk niet hoeveel info jullie zelf al hebben, maar beter dubbel
dan niets. Er zijn foto`s, kranteknipsels en ik hoop ook technische
informatie te kunnen achterhalen, o.a. over de restauratie van de PH 266.
Misschien zijn er ook nog foto`s van de verscheping van de Sagitta naar New
Zealand.
Ook mijn moeder en zus vinden het nieuws over de site geweldig.
Wat een mooi eerbewijs aan mijn vaders werk, we waarderen dat enorm, en ik
vind het ook erg leuk om wat aan de site bij te kunnen dragen.
Vriendelijke groet, Inge Alsema
Hallo Robert,
het
is telkens weer 'n groot genoegen om te zien dat mensen - zoals jij - zo
veel belangstelling voor een specifiek (zweef)vliegtuig hebben dat er 'n
hele website aan wagen. En laat ik er meteen aan toevoegen: 'n pracht
website. Mijn complimenten...
Zelf ben ik ook zeer
ge-interesseerd in de Sagitta, zoveel dat ik al 'n paar keer op Hilversum
ben wezen kijken en besloten heb er een te bouwen voor m'n flight
simulator - bijgaande 'n plaatje. Zoals je ziet is 'ie nog lang niet af
maar dat gaat zeker komen...
Nogmaals hartelijk dank
voor je prachtige website, met vriendelijke
groeten,
Max Roodveldt
Huizen - Nederland
Dear Mr. Smits!
First, I hope, you excuse my bad english (I am from Austria, Europe).
Second: may I give you congratulations to your website. A few years ago,
I planned to build a Sagitta (1:2,5) -> 6 m wingspan.
But there were only few information i found in www. With your website,
this bad years are gone!
But now my problem: I want to draw a plan in 3view (fuselage), but I
need a good 3view to do this. Maybe you can help me? Two years ago I
wrote an email to Schipol-Museum, but I didnt get any answer.
Lixl Willi
Austria, Europe
Hi Robert,
Thanks for your email. I don't think that I have
any photographs anymore. Never compiled a photo album. But I do have slides
dating back to the sixties. I haven’t looked at them since I left for Africa
in 1967, and upon return in 1989 I have been too busy on the farm to pay
much attention to them. Don’t even own a projector now. I’ll try to borrow
one and have a look through them. Unfortunately slides don’t last forever
and they may have faded. I’ll have a look shortly, and I will certainly let
you know if I find anything useful for your website collection of historical
photographs.
Regards, Eric van Notten.
To Robert Smits, its great to see my fathers
plane on such a beautiful website as this one! Maybe we ( family) can add
some information(?).We have photographs and
newspaper writings and original drawings.
A nice detail; the color blue in which
much planes where painted had also became the color of many piece of
furniture in our house those days. Again, a beautiful site, which brings back memories, thank you... Greetings
Erica Alsema
Hi. I visit your site regularly and am astonished about
what information there is about the glider of my uncle Piet.
Essential information I have none , you'll have to wait for input from my
nieces.
Lonneke Alsema
Beste Robert,
Bedankt voor je e-mail. Het geeft mij grote voldoening dat ik met foto's kan
bijdragen aan jouw interessante Sagitta website, en wil in de toekomst met
veel plezier uitkijken naar nieuwe toevoegingen. Veel succes gewenst, Len
Bosman
Dear Robert. No we sold the wreck to
somebody else, he got Ted Ashwell of Masterton who repaired gliders. They
decided to import a new wing from Holland. We considered it, but I believe
there were only 14 made altogether. DO was number seven. Eric's CW was
number three. We thought it unlikely a new wing may not closely match up
with the old one. Presumidly they were made with the wings rigged together.
Because the cracks that had opened in the blocks between the spars and the
clamp that Temple Martin made would not line up correctly with the new wing.
My partner Bill Williams wanted to upgrade to fibre glass, so we sold it as
was. I found I didn't get enough flying with my own glider as I was busy
instruting for the club. My wife flew it almost as much as me. We were short
of instructors and tow pilots, as were most clubs at that time. I enjoyed
aerobatics in it, even doing barrel rolls. Not recomended unless you are
really experienced on powered aircraft. The Tiger was a good aircrat to
learn on. I flew Halifax four engined bombers during the war, so was not
lacking in experience. I even got that upside down during fighter
affiliation exercises with a Hurricane.
I stalled it at the top of an evasive climb at the start of a downward turn,
and she flipped right over, had to recover with the second half of a loop. I
found gliders much nicer, less G forces.
Have you measured from the tail to each wing tip, using different points to
measure from. for example the center of fuselage in front of the fin to the
rear edge of the wing at the pod on the wing tip. If it is hard to rig, must
mean there is stress on the aircraft when rigged. Is it only one pin hard to
put in. The main pins or the trailing edge pins.
It seems that it has been flying for some time like that so should be safe.
But you should be able to get it easy to rig, and get rid of that stress.
You ask if I am of Dutch descent. My Grand father came out to New Zealand in
1877. Formed the deaf school at Sumner now called van Asch college. My
father was born in England in1867, so it is a long way back. When I became
too deaf to instruct in 1978, I decided to drop gliding completely, and went
sailing. I didn't want to fly ocasionally and become a menace in the air. My
deafness was war damage, broke an ear drum when descending from 20,000 ft in
a monsoon in India. Gerry van Asch.
Sunday, 13. February 2005
19:35 Host: h24-207-57-80.dlt.dccnet.com
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