The Erla 5 (originally, Erla Me 5) was a light, single-seat sport aircraft built in small numbers in Germany in the early 1930s.The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft 1983, p.1615.Grey & Bridgman 1935, p.171L'avion de sport et de tourisme D.K.W. Erla Me 5 a (Allemagne) 1933, p.277 A trainer version was demonstrated on long-distance flights in 1939,Seifert 2011, p.106–12 but failed to attract orders.Seifert 2011, p.112
Design The Erla 5 was designed by Franz Mehr.Seifert 2011, p.28 It was a low-wing, cantilever monoplane of conventional configuration. It had fixed, tailskid undercarriage, and a conventional tail. Power was supplied by a piston engine in the nose driving a tractor propeller. The pilot sat in an open cockpit. The wings were detachable and the aircraft was designed to be towed by road.Seifert 2011, p.36 Construction was of wood throughout, and covered in plywood except for the fabric-covered control surfaces. It was capable of aerobatics.
Contemporary publications referred to it as a ("people's aircraft" in German).Seifert 2011, p.31–33 The price in 1935 was 3,875 ReichsmarksGrey & Bridgman 1935, p.172 (about €20,150 in 2024Kaufkraftäquivalente historischer Beträge in deutschen Währungen 2025).
Operational history The Erla 5 prototype first flew on 18 July 1932.Seifert 2011, p.31
Between 1 April and 20 May 1939, Friedrich Aufermann made a three-continent flight in an Erla 5, from Europe to Asia, Africa, and back again, covering around .Seifert 2011, p.110 On 2 August, Heinz Gabler set a class distance record in an Erla 5, flying from Friedrichshafen to Vännäs, .Seifert 2011, p.111
As of 2020, one Erla 5 was still preserved in flying condition, a privately owned example in Switzerland, registered HB-SEX.Die HB-SEX fliegt wieder 2020
Variants Erla Me 5 Erla Me 5a Erla Me 5b Erla Me 5c Erla 5D
Specifications (variant)
Notes References
Bibliography