wing leading has a side opening, single piece, blown perspex canopy. On the first two variants this was short, with an abrupt forward profile but on the Šohaj 3 it was lengthened to the nose, with a much smoother contour. At the rear these canopies merge into the fuselage forward of and over the wing. The fixed tail surfaces have straight leading edges and are ply covered, with rounded, fabric covered control surfaces. The tailplane is mounted just above the fuselage, sufficiently far forward for the elevators to be ahead of the deep rudder, which is protected by a tail bumper. There is an elevator trim tab to adjust for different pilot weights The Šohaj 1 lands on a simple, rubber sprung skid but the later models have a fixed, semi-recessed monowheel just behind the skid which now ends under mid-wing. Operational history At least 286 Šohajs were built, with Šohaj 3 production extending in the later 1950s. One took part in the weather disrupted World Gliding Championships held at Camphill in Derbyshire, UK in 1954 with a Belgian pilot but was damaged in an outfield landing and scored no points. Variants Z-25 ŠohajInitial version. Skid undercarriage. First flew 1947. Zlin Z-25 Šohaj LG-125 (Z-125) Šohaj 2 Monowheel undercarriage, otherwise similar to Šohaj 2. 126 produced. VT-425 (Z-425) Šohaj 3 Monowheel, Fowler flaps, increased span and revised nose and canopy. heavier than Šohaj 1. 160 produced. First flown 1955. Specifications (VT-425 Šohaj 3) See also References 1940s Czechoslovakian sailplanes Z-25 Sohaj Shoulder-wing aircraft Glider aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1947