Aero A.18
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Aero A.18 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Aero Vodochody |
| Designed by | Antonin Vlasák Antonin Husnik |
| Maiden flight | March 1923 |
| Retired | 1939 (due to German invasion) |
| Status | 1 preserved at the Letecke Muzeum |
| Primary users | Czech Air Force Czech Aero Club |
| Produced | 1920s |
| Number built | 20 |
The Aero A.18 was a biplane fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in the 1920s. It was a development of the Ae.02 and Ae.04 fighters Aero had designed during World War I, but also borrowed from the more recent A.11 reconnaissance-bomber design.
The aircraft was designed by Antonin Vlasák and Antonin Husnik and first flew in March 1923. It was only one of three prototype fighters that Aero flew that year, but this one was selected for production over the A.19 and A.20 that competed with it. Twenty machines saw service with the Czech air force in the period between the wars.
The A.18B and A.18C were specially modified racing variants that competed in the Czech Aero Club's first two annual air races, in 1923 and 1924 respectively. Both aircraft won their races, and the A.18C is preserved at the Letecke Muzeum in Kbely along with a replica of a standard A.18 fighter.
[edit] Specifications (A.18)
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 5.90 m (19 ft 4 in)
- Wingspan: 7.60 m (25 ft 0 in)
- Height: 2.86 m (9 ft 5 in)
- Wing area: 15.9 m² (171 ft²)
- Empty weight: 637 kg (1,401 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 826 kg (1,817 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× BMW IIIa, 138 kW (185 hp)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 229 km/h (124 knots, 143 mph)
- Range: 400 km (220 nm, 250 mi)
- Service ceiling 9,000 m (30,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 9.8 m/s (1,930 ft)
Armament
- Guns: 2× .303 in (7.70 mm) Vickers machine guns
[edit] Operators
[edit] See also
Related development
- Ae.02
- Ae.04
Related lists
|
|||||
|
||||||||||||||
