Alexander Martin Lippisch

	ALEXANDER MARTIN LIPPISCH Pioneer German Aerodynamicist
	Born 2 November 1894 at Munich, Germany. Received his Engineering Doctorate from Heidelberg University in Physical Sciences. Subsequent to service in the German Army in World War I, he began theoretical studies which led to his first successful tailless design, a glider, in 1921. With the flight of his rocket-powered glider in 1928 he had assembled all the elements of aerodynamic theory to confirm the feasibility of tailless, delta wing, high-speed aircraft; in 1934 he proposed such a design. In 1940, working with the Messerschmitt Company, he successfully demonstrated the ME-163 rocket-powered interceptor at speeds in excess of 342 miles per hour, a world record. In 1941 this aircraft achieved 623 miles per hour. Manned rocket-powered flight had become a part of aero history. After World War II, Alexander Lippisch came to the United States where he continued study and experimentation for the United States Air Force. His final experiments addressed ground-effects phenomena. Died 1976.
	Elected to the International Aerospace Hall of Fame 1985