Blue skies and warm weather failed to deter 25 visitors from spending a sunny afternoon indoors at  the Flugwerft, the aerospace collection of the Deutsches Museum in Oberschleissheim, just outside Munich.



Organised by the IET's German LN, the group was shown round by Kurt Rathmann,  formerly of the Luftwaffe, who had served not just in Germany but also in the USA. The guided tour encompassed the history of aviation, from Ludwig Prandtl's collaboration with Frederick Lanchester, through to Dornier's Do-31 10-engine STOVL research aircraft, up to DA-1, Germany's first Eurofighter (which some members of the group had helped to design).



Several people braved the steep climb into the cockpit of the museum's latest exhibit, a newly-retired F-4 Phantom. Kurt assured everyone that the ejection seat was no longer live...After a brief pause for group photos, the afternoon was rounded off at a traditional Bavarian beer garden.

 

The IET wishes to thank Kurt Rathmann for the tour and Angela Gerstner of the Deutsches Museum for assisting with the organisation.



Photo courtesy of Julian H. Stacey. For more photos of the visit please visit Julian's website which also contains lots of useful information about things going on the Munich area.



This report was written by Andy Sinharay who also organised the visit for the IET LN. Thanks Andy!