Taifun 17 E callsign D-KOKA owned by Reiner Strauch and Gerd Fisher

Questions for Reiner Strauch and Gerd Fischer, owners of the oldest flying Taifun:

1. How many years have you been involved in aviation and how did you build up your career?
Despite our difference in age, Gerd is 82 and Reiner will become 72 this year, did we follow the same training. Basic knowledge was acquired on the SG38 and further training in the Grunau Baby, MU 13 E, Kanich II, Spatz etc. to obtain the A,B,C tests, L1/L2. We have 55 - 65 flying years behind us. Gerd changed form gliding to PPL B and Reiner from gliding to PPL B and PPL A. We flew together in a RF 5, D-KONG, presently based in Italy.

2. Since when do you fly a Taifun, how did you get to know it and on which grounds did you choose this particular aircraft?
We bought the Taifun 17E, D-KOKA, from Hans-Werner Jung in 2000, which we transferred form Porta, to its present day base, Fliegenhorst Wunstdorf near Hannover. The Taifun is by its extraordinary total-concept an attractive motorglider. Pilots, with a background of powered flight, know what we are talking about.

3. With which special modifications, technical specialities and instruments is your Taifun equiped and why?
The workspace in our Taifun has been improved by the folowing:
- Installation of small side pockets in the knee area.
- Installation of special connectors for GPS etc.
- Gages for the indication of the temperature of 2 cylinderheads.
- Wingtips and rudder covered with signal-red tape.

4. Which technical improvements, including special instrumentation, would you like to see in your Taifun?
The D-KOKA still has the Limbach L 2000 engine. For further improvement do we like a variable prop and at least a hundred horse power engine, including a Transponder mode-S and a second com set.

Instrumentation of D-KOKA

5. Are there, according to your extensive experience over the years things that cause problems or need improvement?
Despite the fact us operating the oldest Taifun with the weakest engine, do we have up until now, no problems with our aircraft. Based on our limited power we are not able to fly into airports with a runway length less than 600 meters.

6. Which favourite destinations could you suggest to fellow pilots?
Places that come up in my mind in this moment are Borkum, Helgoland and Oehna. Long distance flights are not looked after anymore, because of our age, however exciting they may be.

7. What do we need to do to strengthen the bonds within the „Taifun-community“?
It would please us when the Taifun meetings within Germany could take place more often. We are able to meet at short telefone notice and nice weather with a few Taifun’s in Hildesheim.

8. What are the plans for the future with D-KOKA?
We have come to the point to let our flying ambitions come to an end and to focus on the sale of our D-KOKA, which is both technically and appearance in good order. The next yearly inspection is september 2011. Interested parties are always welcome to approach us. We are willing to part from our D-KOKA from €39.000 upwards, highest bidder.

9. At last a question about our Taifun website: do you often have a look at it? What do we need to improve it?
It should remain basically as it is. It would be helpful to have a page with aircraft and parts for sale/wanted.

With warm pilot-greetings
And always „happy landings“

Gerd and Reiner.

Reiner and Gerd with their D-KOKA during the Taifun meeting in Oehna in 2004

Translation: Michel Mulder (thanks!)