A Titan of the Thermals
The interwar period brought a profound shift in how the public viewed aviation. What had once seemed the exclusive domain of the wealthy or the eccentric was becoming accessible to ordinary people. Aircraft were increasingly seen as practical, appealing, and emblematic of technological progress. This era became a golden age for innovation across many aviation disciplines.
This period was a true heyday for gliders, particularly in Germany. The armistice that ended the First World War banned powered flight in the country but permitted gliding. Air-minded Germans seized the opportunity, and many key advances in glider design emerged during this period. One of the most influential contributors was Edmund Schneider (1901–1968), whose 1931 Grunau Baby would become a landmark design, shaping the development of training and recreational gliders for decades.
Despite its popularity, gliding remained an expensive pastime at a time when few could pursue it without financial sacrifice. Many early gliders were experimental, home-built creations that only marginally met airworthiness standards—or were designed solely for high-performance competition. Enthusiasts seeking a safe, affordable aircraft for basic flight training and leisure flying needed a different kind of machine.
Recognizing this gap, Schneider adapted one of his existing designs to create a safe, economical, easy-to-build glider with docile handling characteristics. The result was the Grunau Baby, a practical aircraft that could be constructed from plans, offered reliable performance, and became the standard training glider for soaring clubs across the world. It helped democratise the sport by striking an ideal balance between cost, safety, and capability.
A Revolution of Least Risk
Schneider’s workshop was located in Grunau—today Jeżów Sudecki, Poland—an area with ideal soaring conditions and a strong community of skilled glider pilots. This environment allowed him to refine his designs with the help of experienced test pilots.
The prototype Baby glider was a modification of Schneider’s existing ESG 31 sailplane, but with a new wing of smaller size and more refined design of elliptical plan form with large ailerons to give greater responsiveness. The Baby inherited the older glider’s deep and narrow fuselage of hexagonal cross section which had already been proven to work well. The Baby I was developed through the winter of 1930 and took to the air for the first time in 1931.
Wood formed the basis of the Baby’s construction. Its fuselage used a wooden frame with plywood sheeting, and the forward wing and tail surfaces were built similarly. This approach kept the aircraft strong, inexpensive, and easy to construct using local materials. The design proved so practical that the Baby was built under licence in at least 20 countries before and after the Second World War, both in factories and by skilled private builders.
A major revision followed in 1932. After a fatal crash involving another Schneider design, Schneider ordered structural improvements to the Baby, creating the Baby II. The addition of wing-mounted air brakes produced the Baby IIb, widely regarded as the definitive variant. More than 1,000 Babies had been built by the start of the Second World War, and wartime demand for basic flight trainers further accelerated production.
Zlín Z-24 Krajánek at Brno, Czech Republic in 2020.
Life After War and Enduring Influence
Unlike the armistice after the First World War, post-Second World War restrictions in Germany prohibited all aviation activity, including gliding. Schneider fled Poland and, after holding several non-aviation jobs in West Germany, sought opportunities abroad.
He initially considered India, but news of emerging gliding clubs and local glider-building efforts in Australia drew his attention. After making contact, he and his eldest son received financial support to travel there and assist fledgling manufacturers.
During the 1950s in Australia, Schneider further refined the Baby design, adding features such as a fully enclosed cockpit. These improvements produced the Baby III and, later, the Baby IV. He returned to Germany in 1960.
The Baby’s influence extended far beyond its immediate variants. It helped establish important design principles—particularly regarding fuselage aerodynamics. The Baby demonstrated how reducing the fuselage cross-section behind the wing significantly decreased turbulence generated by the cockpit area. Its straightforward construction also set standards for ease of assembly and enhanced safety, lessons embraced by later generations of sailplanes.
The Grunau Baby Family
The Grunau Baby family consists of four primary versions, along with numerous licensed and derivative designs.
Baby I
The initial version paired the ESG 31 fuselage with a newly designed wing. Approximately 80 were built.
Baby II, IIa, and IIb
- Baby II: Featured a 70-centimetre wingspan extension with an additional spar, and a larger, more streamlined fuselage.
- Baby IIa: Introduced enlarged ailerons, strengthened rear fuselage structure, and improvements around the cockpit.
- Baby IIb: Added further aileron enlargement and is widely considered the definitive Baby variant. It became the most produced and most influential version, forming the basis for many licensed builds worldwide.
Baby III
Developed in Australia after the Second World War, the Baby III had an extended fuselage, a fully enclosed cockpit, and a wheel added to the skid-style landing gear.
Baby IV
Also developed in Australia, the Baby IV refined the Baby III with further aerodynamic and structural improvements.
Notable Licensed and Derivative Builds
- Slingsby T.5 (UK): Approximately 15 Baby IIb aircraft were built by Slingsby in the mid-1930s; the model was also sold as a kit.
- CAP Alcatraz (Brazil): About 30 Baby IIb gliders were produced by Companhia Aeronáutica Paulista around 1941.
- AB Flygplan Se 102 (Sweden): Around 100 Baby IIb aircraft were built for the Swedish Air Force and flying clubs between 1941 and 1942.
- Post-war derivatives: The Baby IIb inspired several national designs, including the French Nord 1300, the British Elliott Baby EoN, Romania’s FIL-Reghin RG-1, and the Czech Zlín Z-24 Krajánek.
The Baby Today
Estimates of total worldwide Baby production vary, but most sources place the number between 5,000 and 6,000—an extraordinary figure for a glider. As a result, many Grunau Babies remain airworthy today, cherished by vintage soaring enthusiasts. Their numbers are sufficient to support regular international meets dedicated to the type.
Jeżów Sudecki continues to be a major centre of gliding activity and is home to The Glider Factory, the successor to Edmund Schneider’s pre-war operations.
Numerous examples are also preserved in museums worldwide. With several still flying, enthusiasts have a good chance of encountering a Baby in person at gliding fields and aviation heritage events.
Learning More
- Afterburner Aviation Magazine offers a detailed article on the Grunau Baby.
- The Czech Military Historical Institute provides information about the Baby in the Kbely Air Museum collection. Although the article is in Czech, online translation tools handle it reasonably well.
- The Glider Factory website includes historical information on Schneider’s company as well as details about its present-day activities.
Pickled Wings 