The Normal Soaring Apparatus of 1894 @museum.de

If the Derwitz Glider was the world's first aircraft, the "Normal Soaring Apparatus", developed three years later, is regarded as the first aircraft type to be built in series. In 1894, Lilienthal was granted a patent for this monoplane. He immediately went into production and hoped to be able to fund additional flight experiments by selling the aircraft.

Lilienthal also hoped to create a broad aviation movement, since there was no shortage of enthusiasts. He sold several of his Normal Soaring Apparatuses throughout Europe and even in the States. The design allowed the gliders to be folded, which made them easier to transport. A model from nature had inspired that feature – the wings of a bat.

Lilienthal himself also took to the road with his plane. During the week, he tested his apparatuses on a specially raised mound near his home in the south of Berlin. But at the weekends, he boarded the train from Berlin to the Havelland – and took his plane along as luggage. Here, in Stölln, Lilienthal maintained a small repair workshop where he also housed his flying machines. That allowed him to carry out his flight exercises and gradually refine the design of the apparatuses.

In 1893, Lilienthal covered a distance of 250 metres or 273 yards with his Normal Soaring Apparatus. This was also the period when he achieved his first turning flight. In other words, he managed to turn around in the air and steer his craft back towards the slope. His report was decidedly enthusiastic:

"Slightly shifting the centre of gravity to one side immediately causes the wing to tilt slightly, with the lifting air pressure also tilting to that side and the direction of flight turning sideways. There is nothing easier than steering flying machines."

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Zitat nach Nitsch, Die Flugzeuge von Otto Lilienthal, Otto-Lilienthal-Museum 2016, S. 63.