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Dieter Strasilla

Dieter Strasilla (born 26 July 1943 in Troppau, present-day Opava, Czech Republic) is a German flying pioneer and chemist. He is considered the Father of the Paraglider, due to his patented Skywing system. Together with his brother, Udo Strasilla, he was the first person to fly from the Jungfraujoch to Lauterbrunnen, a descent of 2676m, with his self-designed paraglider.

Family History

The book, “From the flight of birds to the flight of man” was published in 1940 in Troppau by the publisher Strasilla and Sons. After the war and evacuation, the family arrived in Berchtesgaden. It was there that Strasilla had his first contact with parachutes; his mother was a seamstress and sewed pyjamas out of “parachute silk” to earn money for the family. The two Strasilla brothers, Dieter and Udo, left Berchtesgaden to study in the USA. Udo studied electrical engineering, obtained a doctoral degree, and worked for many years at NASA in satellite research. He is currently a professor at San Jose State University. Dieter dedicated himself to chemistry, also earning a doctorate, and worked for many years in Switzerland. As early as their study years in the USA, the two tinkered around, trying to design a new sports device. By the early 70s, with the help of modified paragliders, they had already developed a sailing system, with which one could sail on land, water and snow. Their patented “Skywing” system that followed made flying possible as well. In an interview with the DHV (German Hang Gliding Association) with Charlie Jöst the brothers revealed some of the little-known details of the work that had gone into their designs.

Youth

Already as a child, Strasilla was fascinated by flying and the play with the wind that happens in sailing and so he built model airplanes. At 17, he was invited by the Rotary Club and the Student Council to go to Texas, USA. In his free time he wanted to learn skydiving, but unfortunately as a minor at the time he was unable to obtain authorization. He was forced to stay on the ground and so began to spend his time with diverse experimenting. In 1965 he learned gliding in Freiburg. He developed various flat-chutes, with which one cannot only travel against the wind, but can also fly.

Employment

Professionally, Strasilla worked in research and design on various projects at Ciba-Geigy (later on Novartis) from 1977 to ?: NMR sequence analysis of co-polmers, paper sizing agents, flame-retardant polymers, polymers for hair cosmetics, UV-hardening glues, electronic materials and slow-release hormone plasters such as Nitroderm and Nicotinell plasters.

Patents

Between 1972 and 1995, Strasilla worked in research and design on various projects in Freiburg and Basel and registered numerous patents in a number of countries. Five of those were in sailing and flying technology.

Skywing Development

In his free time, Strasilla developed various flat-chutes, with which one cannot only travel against the wind, but can also fly with. He skied the track on the Monte Rosa upwards with a modified parachute. Along with his brother, he was the first person to descend from the Jungfraujoch (3471m) to Lauterbrunnen (795m) with the patented flat-chute. The first paraglider, an 11-celler made out of hot-air balloon material, can be viewed at the Flugwerft Schleißheim (a branch of the German Museum) in Oberschleißheim.

Weblinks (in German)

·	Literature by and about Dieter Strasilla in the catalogue of the Deutschen National Bibliothek (German National Library).

·	Interview with Dr. Dieter Strasilla at the DHV annual convention in November 2009.

·	Interview with brothers Udo and Dieter Strasilla.

·	Strasilla with Christian Neureuther in Männermagazin 1977.

·	Andrea Kuhn in action with Strasilla’s Skywing.

·	Youtube Film “Andrea.”

·	Der Spiegel No. 14, 29 March 1976.

Categories: Paraglider pilot, German, Born 1943, Male, Inventor