The »German Research Institute for Gliding« (DFS) at Darmstadt Airport was a pioneer in aeronautical engineering. It emerged in 1933 from the »Rhön-Rossitten-Gesellschaft« (R.R.G.), which was founded in 1924 to promote the gliding movement; in 1937 it was renamed the »German Research Institute for Gliding«, and in November 1941 it was renamed the »Ernst Udet Research Institute«.

Important research and experiments in aerotow/ mistletoe drag, instruments, weather and glider construction (flying wing, cargo glider, V1 rockets) with almost 800 employees in 1938 (Peter Riedel, Heini Dittmar; test pilots such as Erich Klöckner, Hermann Zitter, Hanna Reitsch; designers such as Hans Jacobs, Fritz Stamer, Alexander Lippisch) form the basis of the aircraft industry to this day.

(Eckstein 2021)