Intended to exploit a growing understanding of thermal soaring, it was small and manoeuvrable, with a 12 m span; silk-covered for lightness, it weighed less (empty) than its pilots.
The structure also followed Akaflieg's previous use of wooden frames and stress-bearing plywood skin on the fuselage and leading edges of flying surfaces, with fabric covering elsewhere, but with greater attention to precision, the removal of unneeded material and metering of adhesives.
The whole of the trailing edge was occupied by camber-changing flaperons, attached to selected ribs rather than to a subsidiary spar as usual, another weight-saving measure.
The horizontal tail was straight-tapered, with the tailplane fixed to the top of the fuselage and carrying elevators with a central cut-out for rudder movement.
The tall, straight-edged rudder was an all-moving one, but of an unusual design, divided vertically into two sections, with the front part carrying the rear surface.
[2] After its 1935 accident and rebuild, the Windspiel was a little heavier, but the only major alteration was the separation of the full-span flaperons into inboard flaps and outboard ailerons.
[2] On 16 June 1934[Notes 1] the Windspiel, piloted by Hans Fischer, set a new world glider straight-line distance record of 240 km (149 mi) with a flight from Griesheim, Darmstadt to Thonneheim, Montmédy in France.
[4] On 9 June 1935 Fischer demonstrated the manoeuvrability of the Windspiel at an aircraft display day organised by the Aero Club de Portugal at the Amadora airfield near Lisbon.