A Rhein-West-Rug RW-3 Multoplan, one of the first powered German aircraft built following the end of the Second World War, has gone on show in the Quax-Flieger hangar at Paderborn. The aeroplane was designed by former 4./JG 3 'Udet' Focke-Wulf Fw 190 pilot Hanno Fischer in Monchengladbach during the mid-1950s to test his aerodynamic theories. With a high-aspect ratio wing and power coming from a Porsche 670/0 engine turning a pusher propeller located in a vertical slot between the fin and rudder, the retractable-undercarriage, dual-control machine first flew in prototype form during 1956. A total of 22 examples were built by Rhein Flugzeugbau at Krefeld-Uerdingen between 1958-61, fitted with the more powerful 75hp Porsche 670/4. Rhein Flugzeugbau also offered the option of fitting wingtip extensions to increase the span from 34ft 9in to 50ft 6in, enabling the RW-3 to be flown as a power-assisted glider. The now 96-year-old Hanno Fischer recently decided that the second prototype Multoplan, D-EKUM, should go on show with the Quax-Flieger. During the spring of 2017, Fischer - who made his maiden solo flight in an SG 38 glider in 1938 - was flying one of only a couple of still-airworthy RW-3s when it suffered engine failure. He executed a perfect forced landing in a grain field, both designer and aeroplane remaining intact.
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