Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight

Through the late 1960s and much of the 1970s, one aircraft stood apart as the world's highest performance multiseat sailplane: the Schweizer SGS 2-32. Many world soaring records were set in 2-32s in both men's and women's categories, including a distance run of 505 miles. In the early 1960s, it was apparent that European manufacturers were beginning to cut into SAC's position as the premier builder of high-performance sailplanes. The European companies could build quality aircraft at 50 percent of the labor costs of the U.S. manufacturer and deliver them to U.S. shores at a price that Schweizer couldn't match. In order to compete, Schweizer had to produce a superior aircraft.

When the 1,000th Schweizer sailplane (a 2-32) was built, SAC held 57 percent of the sailplane business in the United States. But this was not to last. The all-metal SAC planes last indefinitely, and by the mid 1970s, they had nearly saturated the market. Sleek new European fiberglass sailplanes had lower prices and carried a certain cachet that domestic sailplanes did not. SAC eventually ceased production of their sailplane line. When manufacture of the model ended in 1976, a total of only 87 had been delivered. Nevertheless, the 2-32 had already earned a permanent place in soaring history, and remarkably, a 2-32 in good condition today can fetch as much as $50,000. The model is still a popular choice for commercial soaring rides, and if you go to a local soaring center to take a ride, you may find yourself in a Schweizer 2-32.