Our recent picture of the "back to front" Cornelius Mallard (Flight International 10-16 September) raised a few questions such as "did it ever fly?" The answer is yes. Nineteen times in fact in the hands of brave Col Alexander Papana, a Romanian aerobatic champion. Stranger still, the forward-swept, variable incidence winged craft was later adapted into an unpowered fuel-carrying glider called the XFG-1. At least two of the 2,900 litres (764 USgal) gliding fuel tanks were built for towing tests but the programme was cancelled.
Source: Flight International