Самолеты (сортировка по:)
Страна Конструктор Название Год Фото Текст

Hansa-Brandenburg W.33 / W.34 / W.37

Страна: Германия

Год: 1918

Hansa-Brandenburg - W.29 - 1918 - Германия<– –>Hansa-Brandenburg - W.35 - 1919 - Германия


В.Обухович, А.Никифоров Самолеты Первой Мировой войны


Летом 1918 г. появился увеличенный вариант W 33, оснащенный двигателем Майбах Mb.IV (245 л. с).
   До окончания войны было произведено 190 машин двух вариантов. После войны самолеты выпускались в Норвегии, Финляндии, Дании, Японии. Всего было построено 482 самолета.


O.Thetford, P.Gray German Aircraft of the First World War (Putnam)


Brandenburg W 33
   Twenty-six W 33s had been delivered by the end of the war and were mostly in use at the North Sea air stations, augmenting the W 29, of which the W 33 was a larger and more powerful variant. Although spanning over 50 ft., it was remarkably clean, as may be seen from the illustration. This depicts a machine brought over to the Isle of Grain for evaluation after the Armistice, and the R.A.F. roundels may just be discerned below the wings. Engine, 245 h.p. Maybach Mb IV. Span, 15.85 m. (52 ft. 0 in.). Length, 11.10 m. (36 ft. 5 1/8 in.). Height, 3.37 m. (11 ft. 0 5/8 in.). Area, 44 sq.m. (475 sq.ft.). Weights: Empty, 1,420 kg. (3,124 lb.). Loaded, 2,050 kg. (4,510 lb.). Speed, 173 km.hr. (108.125 m.p.h.). Climb, 1,000 m. (3,280 ft.) in 5.4 min. Armament, one Parabellum and two Spandau machine-guns. One aircraft, No. 2543, fitted with cannon. Naval Nos. 2538-2563.


W.Green, G.Swanborough The Complete Book of Fighters


BRANDENBURG W 34 Germany

   Continuing the line of two-seat patrol fighter monoplanes initiated with the W 29, the W 34 was the final WWI development of the series of float seaplanes designed for the Hansa- und Brandenburgische Flugzeug-Werke by Ernst Heinkel and Hans Klemm. Essentially a scaled-up W 33 intended for the 300 hp Basse und Selve BuS IVa six-cylinder water-cooled engine, only one prototype of the W 34 had been completed by the end of the War. Additional examples powered by the 300 hp Fiat A 12bis engine were built after the termination of hostilities.

Max speed, 109 mph (175 km/h).
Empty weight, 3,382 lb (1 534 kg).
Loaded weight, 5,004 lb (2 270 kg).
Span, 55 ft 5 1/2 in (16,60 m).
Length, 36 ft 5 in (11,10 m).
Wing area, 527.45 sq ft (49.0 m2).


J.Herris Development of German Warplanes in WWI (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 1)


Brandenburg W33

   Just as the Brandenburg W19 was an enlarged, more powerful development of the W12 for longer range and endurance and greater payload, the W33 was an enlarged, more powerful W29 for more range and pay load. A large aircraft, it was aerodynamically clean and strongly built, and had similar speed and maneuverability as the smaller W29, which it joined on operations in the late summer of 1918.
   The W29 and W33 enjoyed long, successful post-war careers in Denmark, Norway, Finland, and other countries needing reliable floatplanes in a demanding environment.


J.Herris German Seaplane Fighters of WWI (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 2)


Brandenburg W33, W34, & W37

   Just as the W19 was a larger, more powerful development of the W12 biplane for greater range and endurance, the Brandenburg W33 was a larger, more powerful development of the W29 monoplane. The larger size of the W33 enabled it to carry more fuel for a longer range and greater endurance, and its greater power made it as fast. The first three W33s were powered by the 260 hp Maybach Mb.IVa, but the 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa and 275-300 hp Basse & Selve BuS.IVa were also used.
   The Brandenburg W29 went into operational service in April/May 1918 and had an immediate impact on the fighting over the North Sea. The larger W33 followed in the late summer.
   Although only seven W33 aircraft were delivered during the war, they were ordered in three classes; the C3MG, armed with three machine guns, the C2MG HFT with a fixed gun, a flexible gun, and wireless (radio) equipment, and a CK class with two fixed machine guns and a flexible Becker 20mm cannon instead of a Parabellum machine gun for the observer.
   Like the earlier W12, W19, and W29, the W33 aircraft were used primarily from North Sea air stations where they performed armed reconnaissance missions and opposed the British flying boats that were performing anti-submarine patrols. The W33 was ordered in very limited numbers and may have been an interim step to the enlarged W34. Three W34 floatplanes in the C3MG class were also ordered and delivered but were too late to serve operationally before the armistice. Drawings show the W34 had an enlarged gun ring capable of mounting a 20mm Becker cannon. Work on the similar but even larger W37 was halted post armistice and these three aircraft were not completed. However, eleven W37 aircraft, powered by the 260 hp Maybach Mb.IV, were built in Germany post-war and shipped to Sweden for assembly as the Caspar S.I, and others were built in Sweden by the Heinkel company.
   Along with the smaller W29, the W33 enjoyed a long and successful postwar career in Norway and Finland. The W33 was produced under license in Finland from 1922-1925, 120 aircraft being built. The 220 hp Benz Bz.IV was not available so 300 hp Fiat A-12bis engines were purchased from France. The first 57 aircraft built had provision for a fixed Vickers gun for the pilot, but these were not fitted to aircraft in service. The observer had a pair of Lewis guns on a flexible gun ring. Known as the IVL A.22 in Finnish service, the type served until 1936. License production of the W33 was also undertaken in Norway, 24 aircraft being delivered during 1920-1929 and serving until 1935. Most Norwegian W33s used the 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa engine.
  
Brandenburg W33, W34, & W37 Production Orders
Order Date Type Marine Nos. Qty Category Engine
24 Apr. 1918 W33 2538-2540 3 C3MG 260 hp Mercedes D.Iva
24 Apr. 1918 W33 2541 1 C2MG HFT 260 hp Maybach Mb.Iva
24 Apr. 1918 W33 2542 1 C3MG 275-300 hp BuS.Iva
24 Apr. 1918 W33 2543 1 CK 275-300 hp BuS.Iva
24 Apr. 1918 W33 2726 1 C3MG 260 hp Mercedes D.Iva
29 Aug. 1918 W34 2727-2729 3 C3MG 275-300 hp BuS.Iva
24 Aug. 1918 W37 2723-2725 3 CHFT 220 hp Benz Bz.IV


C.Owers Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI Vol.3: Monoplane Seaplanes (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 19)


Type W.33

   The W.33 was the most successful of the Brandenburg monoplane fighting floatplanes in terms of numbers built and length of service, and this was post-war. A larger version of the successful W.29, only 26 were in service by the end of the war. The usual power plant was the 260-hp Maybach Mb IVb, however three, MNs 2541-2543, were equipped with the 245-hp Maybach Mb IVa. The Typenschau gives the batch 2544-2563 as W.33 monoplanes; however, research by P.M. Grosz confirms these as W.19 biplanes.
   Italy received MN 2541 post-war as reparations. Post-war the W.33 was built in and served with the air services of Norway, Finland, and Latvia.(24)

(24)Nowarra, H.J., Marine Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War, Harleyford Publications, UK, 1966, incorrectly identifies the Finnish and Latvian Brandenburgs as the Type W.34.


Brandenburg W.33 Production
Marine Nummers Class Engine Notes
2538-2540 C3MG Mb.IVa 2538 CK
2541 C2MGHFT Mb.IVa Originally BuS IVa engine intended. To Italy 15.09.20.
2542 C3MG Mb.IVa Originally BuS IVa engine intended.
2543 CK Mb.IVa Also 1MG1MK Si C3MG. Originally BuS IVa engine intended.
2726 C3MG Mb.IVa


Brandenburg W.33 Specifications
Source Typenschau Gray & Thetford PMG Data MN 2543 Brandenburg 3-View MN 2543 NAF W.33 Jane’s AWA NAF W.33 Norsk Flyhistorisk Tiosskrift No.2/1996
Dimensions in m
Span 15.85 15.85 15.85 15.850 15.6 15.6* 15.6
Chord (max.) 3.25 3.250
Length 11.10 11.10 11.10 ca. 11.100 11 11.0 11.0
Height 3.37 3.37 3.370 3.3 3.3 3.3
Wing Area, m2 44.60 44 44.0 44 43.5
Empty Wt., kg 1,470 1,420 1,420 1,420 1,430 1,380 1,430
Loaded Wt., kg 2,100 2,050 2,050 2,050 2,051 1,990 2,050
Performance
Speed in km/hr 170 173 173 173 167 160 160
Time to 1000 m 5.4 min 5.4 min 5.4 min 6 min 10 min 7 min
Time to 2000 m 12.8 min 12.8 min
Time to 3000 m 22.3 min 22.3 min 33 min 35 min
Ceiling, m 4,400 4,200 4,000
Engine 260-hp Maybach 245-hp Maybach Mb.IV 245-hp Mb.IVa 240-hp Maybach 200-hp Mercedes 220-hp Benz 260-hp Mercedes
* The Army's Make II had a wingspan of 15.85 m while the Navy's seaplanes had a span of 15.6 m.


The W.33 in Norway

   The Norwegian Marinens Flyvaben (Royal Norwegian Naval Air Force) learned on the quiet that a licence arrangement to build the Brandenburg W.33 could be arranged at a reasonable price. Through the British legation in Oslo sanction for this action was obtained and a representative carrying 5,000 Norwegian crowns in cash was sent to Hamburg and Berlin. Johan Hover recalled that there
   was no Hansa Br-burg (sic) works in 1920, when I went to “an office” in Hamburg. It had been closed by (the) Peace Treaty. I don't remember any names, but there was no Mr. Heinkel, whom I met in 1927 in Rostock. I collected a complete set of drawings for the Hansa Br-burg W33 seaplane and some information and descriptions re the building lizence (sic) for the Norwegian Dept, for Defence. The Dept, could thus place orders for the “W.33” with any aircraft factory desired - chiefly the Marinens Flyvebaatfabrik. The British Embassy’s concurrence was in order.(25)
   The matter was settled in a short time and there were even some funds left over. Drawings, technical specifications, and the like were sent to Norway as diplomatic mail. Production of four seaplanes started immediately at the Marinens Flyvebatfabrikk (Naval Aircraft Factory) as the funds had been voted for the 1920-21 financial year. This was based on a 1913 plan that had still not been approved by the Defence Department. In all the Factory produced 24 of the Brandenburg seaplanes for the Navy and one for the Army.
   At Hamburg it had been learned that many semi-finished parts were available there and in the neighbourhood. These were considered scrap and so were accordingly low in price. The Norwegian representatives on the spot were able to purchase enough parts to fill several railway cars. These were transported to Norway where they were incorporated into the Norwegian aircraft.
   The plywood required for the Brandenburgs was not available in Norway and the local lumber firms would not take on the production of the small amounts required by the aircraft production program. Unlike the Finns, the opportunity to develop an aircraft plywood industry was lost. The factory had to gather plywood from four or five countries.
   The first year's production comprised F.52 to F.58, that is F.52, F.54, F.56, and F.58, the Navy using even numbers, the Army odd numbers. Water-cooled Benz engines of 220/260-hp that had been acquired cheaply in Sweden were installed. All subsequent aircraft from 1923 on were equipped with 260-hp Mercedes engines from Sweden and France. The Mercedes engines were heavier and stood up better to the rigors of service, lasting throughout the time the aircraft were in service, that is until 1935!
   F.52 made its initial flight on 25 October 1921. During the autumn and winter F.52, together with F.54 that had been completed on 1 April 1922, successfully completed all testing of the type. After the last two of the batch had been accepted, it was decided to send F.56 and F.58 on a demonstration flight along the whole coast of Norway, all the way to Kirkenes. Pilots were 1st Lt. Riiser-Larsen and 1st Lt. Lutzow-Holm with mechanics Engeland and Myhre as passengers. Petrol dumps had been arranged in advance at five convenient positions along the coast. The flight commenced on 12 July 1922, from the Horten Naval base. The total distance covered was 2,600 km in 21.5 hours flying time.
   On landing at Hammerfest on the return flight, Lutzow-Holm was asked to fly the doctor to Alta where the district doctor lay sick. This was accomplished in two hours whereas it would have taken 48 hours in a boat. The following day Lutzow-Holm made another mercy flight when he took the doctor to Simavik on Star Island where an outbreak of typhus had occurred.
   On the return flight all the coastal cities were visited and flown over. F.56 was damaged while force landing at Valder Sound due to a fuel feed blockage. Riiser-Larsen alighted some 10 meters from the water. Although the machine was "bruised" somewhat they continued, arriving unannounced at Horten on 25 July. F.58 was awarded a "Polar Star" for its exploits, and this was painted on the rear fuselage.
   As a reconnaissance aircraft the W.33 had to carry a radio and as the gunner/observer could not be spared, some of these aircraft were modified into three seaters. Space was at a premium. Armament was a fixed, synchronised Vickers gun for the pilot and a flexible Lewis gun on the rear gun ring. Sometimes 50 kg bombs would be carried as well.
   Construction started in 1920 and continued to 1929, the Marinens Flyvebatfabrikk (Naval Aircraft Factory) ultimately delivering 24 of the type to the Navy. In addition, the Haerens Flyvemaskinfabrikk (Royal Norwegian Army Aircraft Factory) at Kjeller completed the six Make II seaplanes that had been contracted to the A/S Norsk Aeroplanfabrikk in Tonsberg, but were taken over by the Army after the company went bankrupt. The Make II is sometimes referred to as a hybrid of the W.29 and W.33; however, according to J. Hover the Make II serial "509 - W.33 was one of those planes taken over by the Naval Air service in 1928, and identical with our first W.33 (Benz) and thus no "hybrid" W.29/W.33."(26) The Army factory then built another four W.33 floatplanes sometimes referred to a Make III. These latter machines went straight to the Navy in 1928 after little or no use by the Army.
   The W.33 was used in expeditions between 81° North and 73° South, between Severn Island and Bouvet in the Queen Maud region. Two Brandenburgs were sent to Svalbard in 1923, 1925, and 1928 in connection with Roald Amundsen's expeditions and flew thousands of kilometres in the Antarctic, 12,000 km in 1928 alone.
   The last W.33 in Norwegian service was written off in 1935. In the intervening years they gave sterling service. They were used by the military and also by the postal service and for fishery patrols. F.38 III had been chartered by the Norwegian postal service as N-47 from 5 August to 17 November 1931, for us on the mail route between Oslo and Gothenburg. The last aircraft on the original Norwegian civil register was N-48, an ex-Navy F.52. It was also used for air-mail flights.
   The Norwegian machines had a c/n issued by the factory, and a registration/serial number that was carried on the aircraft. This number could be used more than once on the same or different types.
   On 1 June 1928 the Coastal Artillery was handed over to the Navy and the surviving Army floatplanes were handed over to the Navy and as the Army had paid the Navy for the licence to build the type, it is reported that they were unhappy with the arrangement proposing that the Brandenburgs be operated on wheels and skis, but this was vetoed by the minister. The army and navy had separate air forces until they were amalgamated in 1942 while in exile due to the Second World War.
   The Brandenburgs were considered to be excellent in good weather and sea conditions.
   In cases of turbulence, which you often have along the steep, rocky coast of Norway, they were rather sluggish and heavy to keep steady. In case of forced landing in rough seas on account of motor cut out, we could usually get them down all right, but when drifting before the wind, the tips of the low wings had a tendency of dipping into the sea tops with disastrous result to the aircraft.
   In spin they were dangerous. Only one man, a test pilot, has managed to get her out and survive. We all knew that so as soon as there was any indication of a start of unintended spin: Nose down, full throttle and hope you had enough height to clear the drink(27)
   A W.33 had been completed by the A.S. Norsk Aeroplanfabrikk before bankruptcy and this machine entered the civil register as N-21. It was operated by the J.L. Tiedmanns Tobaksfabrik for advertising purposed after their Friedrichshafen FF.49 crashed in 1922. Christened "Tiger" this aircraft has the dubious distinction of being the first civil registered aircraft on the Norwegian civil register to be involved in a fatal accident when it crashed near Rorvik in the Namsdalen Valley on 22 July 1922, killing the two occupants.

(25) Letter from J. Hover to author, 12.06.1976.
(26) Letter from J. Hover to author, 06.12.76.
(27) Tor Kleppe, retired Commodore of the Royal Norwegian Navy "consulted a couple of other tottering veterans, and together" they came to the conclusions recorded here. T. Kleppe, Marinemuseet, letter to author, 01.12.75.


Norwegian Army Brandenburg W.33
C/N Const. Reg. No. Version Notes
1 NA 505 Make II W/Off September 1925
2 NA 507 Make II W/Off Oct. 1926
3 NA 509 Make II To Navy as F.60 with 268:15 flying hours
4 NA 511 Make II W/Off June 1928
5 NA 513 Make II W/Off June 1928
6 NA 515 Make II W/Off November 1925
57 MF 517 W.33 To Navy as F.40 II
HF 519 W.33 To Navy as F.36 II
HF 521 W.33 To Navy as F.50 II
HF 523 W.33 To Navy as F.48 II
HF 525 W.33 To Navy as F.38 in
NA = Norsk Aeroplanefabrikk; MF = Marinens Flyvebatfabrikk; HF = Haerens Flyvenmaskinfabrikk


Norwegian Navy Brandenburg W.33
C/N Registration No. Version Notes
35 F.52 R2 Became civil N-48 in 1931
36 F.54 R2 Total loss 30.07.25
37 F.56 R2 Total wreck, Valders, 24.07.22
38 F.58 R2 W/Off 28.07.26, midair collision
41 F.14 II R2 Total wreck 25.07.25
42 F.16 II R2 Scrapped 18.11.33
43 F.18 II R2 Fatal crash 30.07.28
44 F.20 II R2/R3 W/Off 25.08.33. Crash two killed
48 F.56 II R2 Total wreck 05.07.26
49 F.22 III R2/R3 Total wreck 06.07.31
50 F.24 II R2/R3 Scrapped 06.09.35
51 F.32 II R2 Scrapped March 1935
52 F.34 II R2 Total wreck 17.09.28
55 F. 14 III R2/R3 W/Off 16.09.25. Fatal crash
57 FAO II R2 Ex-Army 517. Scrapped March 1935
58 F.14 IV R2/R3 Total wreck 23.10.30
62 F.54 II R2/R3 Total wreck 24.08.32
65 F.56 III R2 Total wreck 16.08.29
66 F.58 II R2 Scrapped March 1935
71 F.10 IV R2 Scrapped 26.04.34
74 F.26 II R2 Scrapped September 1935
75 F.28 II R2/R3 Scrapped March 1935
76 F.30 II R2/R3 Scrapped March 1935
- F.36 II R2/R3 Ex-Army 519. Reserve March 1935. W/Off December 1937
- F.38 III R2 Ex-Army 525. Charted as N.47 in 1931. Scrapped March 1935
- F.48 II R2 Ex-Army 523. Total wreck 12.07.29
- F.50 II R2/R3 Ex-Army 521. Scrapped March 1935
78 F. 18 III R2R3 Scrapped 18.11.33
- FAO R2 Ex-Army 509. W/Off June 1932
79 F.34 III R2/R3 Fatal crash 14.01.31

  
The Industria Valtion Lentokonetehdas A.22

   After the events of 1918-1919, the Finnish aviation corps could only be described as being a mess. Aircraft had been collected from abandoned Russian and German bases. As French political influence was important in helping the new nation gain recognition, Finland purchased 20 Breguet 14 biplanes and 12 Georges-Levy flying boats from France. By 1920 the seaplanes were found to be dangerous and a complete failure. The country wanted reconnaissance aircraft for land and sea, single-seat fighters, and bombers. Finnish pilots, trained in Germany, were in favor of the Brandenburg W.29 and the government tried to obtain these from Germany; however, the Allies refused.
   Lt. Paul Hjelt then purchased a licence to construct the W.33 for 400,000 FM (Finnish marks) on 14 May 1921, in Hamburg, the aircraft to be manufactured at the projected Industria Valtion Lentokonetehdas (State Aircraft Factory) usually known by its initials as IVL. Hjelt, chief technical officer of the air arm, was chosen to go to Germany to handle the handover of plans and technical data. He was an excellent choice as he had graduated from a technical university's chemistry department in 1917, had trained as an observer in Germany, and had received flight training in France in 1920. He had also studied aeronautical engineering in Paris.
   Hjelt checked the blueprints and paid for the licence agreement but could not take the blueprints with him as the permit to do so had been forgotten and left in the Foreign Office's safe. They were later sent via diplomatic pouches. Much work had to be done to translate the instructions into Finnish and redrafting the blueprints. Gunnar Semenius did this task at night in his parent's kitchen which he later described as "the first drawing office of the Aeroplane Factory." There was urgency in this task as it was feared that the French might insist that the plans be returned to Germany. Building a German aircraft was a political issue and Finland's continued independence was dependent on foreign influence. Some of the material, such as stress calculations, had to be obtained secretly. Brandenburg had made several modifications to the W.33 that were not evident on the plans provided. All other equipment such as armament, instruments, etc., had to be obtained elsewhere. The licence was only for the airframe but did not include a royalty no matter how many aircraft were produced.
   As part of the agreement, six German craftsmen, under Ernst Schneider, went to Finland to assist in setting up the production line. The aviation dock at Santahaminna was the most logical place to establish the factory; however, the establishment of the aircraft factory had to be done on the cheap, as there was not enough capital to allow for a new facility. The factory was set up at Suomenlinna dry dock located outside Helsinki. Only two machines could be hungered indoors at the same time, so final erection was done outside prior to a test flight. A woodworking department was set up in the Suomenlinna Fortress. An assembly hall was found by forcing the protesting Uudenmaa Regiment infantry out of their garrison building.
   Parts were manufactured and partial assembly began in the summer of 1922 under Production Manager Gunnar Semenius and the German staff. It took about six months to obtain or build all the jigs and equipment needed to commence manufacture. Attempts to obtain 220 hp Benz engines failed and the 300 hp Fiat A-12bis was selected Initially they cost 48,000 FM each, but later surplus engines obtained from Versailles were only 10,000 FM each. A total of 221 engines were purchased, some used, and all requiring Finnish modifications, such as stronger con rods, before use. Changing from the Maybach meant that there were changes required to the engine beds, radiator circulation as the frontal radiator of the W.33 was abandoned and French Lamblin radiator "eggs" were situated under the fuselage. This enabled a neater cowling to be fitted which improved the Hansa's looks. In addition the fuel and oil systems had to be redesigned. The A.22 was taller than the W.33 due to the increased height of the Fiat engine. The pilot's cockpit was relocated and the observer's cockpit had a French gun ring for twin guns.
   The W.33 had a light-weight structure that was complicated and difficult to manufacture, demanding high standards of construction. The result was a good performance for the available horsepower. The manufacture of the W.33 introduced much new technology to Finland. The fuselage was constructed around four longerons that were spindled to narrow at the rear. The fuselage was ply covered with diagonal stiffeners between the frames. All joints were glued, with copper rivets and brass screws being used in some locations. The early aircraft were built using plywood and material imported from Germany.
   The wing was difficult to manufacture, each of the 22 ribs being different in section and chord. The ribs were constructed of birch plywood with ash strips. The templates for the ribs were especially demanding as there were over 100 different radii and all had to be very accurate. The box spars were of spruce with steel spacers and steel bracing. Control surfaces were of steel tube. Wing and control surfaces were covered with doped fabric. Control wires were run inside the structures to minimize drag. The floats were constructed in a similar manner to the fuselage and comprised watertight compartments. The struts that carried the wings and floats did away with external cable bracing to reduce drag.
   Known as the IVL A.22 in Finnish service, the first W.33 or "Hansa" was rolled out on 15 October 1922. This machine, 4.D.1 was first flown on the 21st by Lt. Tauno Hannelius with the Factory Foreman Osaka Sorsa as passenger. Semenius recalled that this was not necessarily the first flight as one Saturday after the day's work, the machine was taxied towards Harmaja when it rose to about 50 m but landed directly ahead, perhaps an unintended first "flight." Hannelius stated afterwards that the "speed was terrific."
   Performance trials were carried out in November 1922. With a French airscrew the machine climbed better than the original W.33. With the later standard Finnish airscrew the climb was poorer but the speed was faster. Hannelius tested the first two A.22 floatplanes, all the rest being test flown by Georg Jaderholm. Finland was to be the major user of the W.33, the factory constructing 120 in four years in batches of six at a time. Minor differences occurred between batches with different equipment being installed. Early aircraft had Lamblin radiators slung under the fuselage. From early 1924, commencing with A.22 No.27, a frontal radiator was installed. The first 57 aircraft had provision for carrying a fixed synchronised Vickers machine gun, but these were removed in 1925. The US Counsel provided a report on the IVL A.22 in January 1923, wherein he noted that the "on account of its high speed and heavy armament it approaches the fighting machine rather than aeroplanes completely used for reconnaissance."(28)
As production continued the number of manhours to build a machine was halved. This was achieved by contract out parts, having ample spare parts available at all times, and by the acquisition of the necessary skills by the workers.
From the 60th seaplane the airframes were stored as the numbers required for operations were in service. Machines were delivered directly to the air force to replace aircraft written off in accidents or returned to the factory for repair. Production was to cease after 78 monoplanes were completed at the end of 1925. The factory was to then manufacture an indigenous fighter but this project failed and more Hansas were constructed to keep the factory occupied. In all 120 Hansas were constructed, the last being delivered in July 1926.
   The Hansas were the subject to many modifications in their long service. Supply difficulties with obtaining Lamblin radiators led to the development of a frontal radiator in 1923. Nose heavy aircraft had their elevators fitted with ground adjustable trim tabs and an extension to the leading edge of the horizontal stabiliser. On aircraft No. 69 a reduction in weight of 19 kg was achieved by replacing the 3 mm aspen plywood of the rear fuselage with 1.5 mm birch plywood, and the front fuselage ply with 2.5 mm birch plywood, the Germans had used 1.5 mm and 2.5 mm aspen plywood respectively in these locations.
   The W.33 had been designed as a light wartime machine with a short life, and when machines came up for overhaul after three years service they were in such bad condition that it was recommended that they be struck off rather than waste funds refurbishing them, and as new machines were in storage. Poor quality plywood had rotted and warped. Frames had broken. In 1927 the cost of a full overhaul was 50,000 FM, that was 30% more than a new aircraft from the final production run.
   The A.22 gave Finland an aircraft that suited its requirements and it had a marked influence on the development of Finnish aviation. The 1920s was described as the "golden age" of the Hansas when there was much freedom in mission orders and flying was even irresponsible in some cases. No parachutes or seat belts were used.
   There were 42 fatalities in 20 accidents with the floatplanes. The A.22 floatplanes saw long service, 20 being written off in fatal accidents. IL-91 was lost due to a mid-air collision on 21 May 1928. Part of a formation flight, one of the aircraft flew too close to IL-91 striking the aircraft and breaking the elevators. The machine went into a dive, throwing the passenger out. He fell through the roof of a school. The aircraft plunged into the streets of Turkinsaari and burst into flames that engulfed a motor car. Two civilians as well as the two crew members were killed as a result of this accident.
   The A.22 was used at every naval air station in Finland. By the end of 1932, 105 had been written off. The last service public appearance of the machine was on 3 August 1935, at the Sur-Merijoki air show. Total flying time racked up by the A.22 was about 35,000 hours with several having over 700 hours and IL.48 leading with 801 hours.
   Latvia requested two 260-hp Maybach powered Hansas in 1926 following a tour by the A.22 floatplanes in Latvia. This request was examined but the modifications were too great to warrant for a mere two machines. Two of the IVL monoplanes, c/n 99 and 100, were delivered in December 1926, and received the Latvian serials Nos. 12 and 13. Both machines crashed attempting to alight in heavy fog on 4 March 1927. The wreckage was so destroyed in the recovery operation that it was little help in reconstructing the two aircraft, so Karlis Irbitis and his team used measurements of the wrecks and what little technical advice they could get from Finland to reconstruct the two aircraft. Returned to service in 1928 they were operated for a number of years by the Naval Aviation unit at Liepaja. They were struck off on 10 August 1933, although other reports state this occurred in May 1936 when the Naval Aviation Division was reorganised.(29) There were only 120 FVL A.22 floatplanes built. The total of 122 usually quoted comes from the fact that the Latvian ones are counted twice.
   One IVL A.22, No.2, survives in the Finnish Aviation Museum, Helsinki, the only surviving Brandenburg monoplane.

(28) G2 Report "Aviation in Finland," dated 23.01.23. Copy in Smithsonian NASM Technical File AI-90000-01 IVL (Finnish National Aircraft Factory) A-22.
(29) http://latvianaviation.com/IVL_A22.html, 16.07.2005.


   The Finns used a rather cumbersome serial system that changed over the period the A.22 was in service. The number 4 designated the role of the aircraft, in this case maritime reconnaissance, while the letter designated the year of manufacture, E meaning it was constructed/purchased in 1923. The system was changed on 1 June 1927, with each aircraft receiving its own serial designator, the A.22 receiving IL. All surviving aircraft received a new serial with gaps for write-offs and exports.
Year Serial
1922 4D.1 to 4D.2
1923 4E.3 to 4E.26
1924 4F.27 to 4F.66
1925 4G.67 to 4G.106
1926 4H.107 to 4H.120


Type W.34

   The W.34 was a slightly larger version of the W.33. Three were ordered, MNs 2727-2729, but only MN 2727 was completed, the other two were waiting their 300-hp Basse und Selve BuS.IVa engines when the war ended. MN T7T7 was taken over and tested by the French post-war but no documents as to the trials has been found to date. According to Green and Swanborough some were fitted with 300-hp Fiat A.12bis engines after the Armistice but this has not been confirmed. Even Heinkel's Typenschau lists the Fiat engine. The post-war versions of the W.33 built in Norway and Finland used the Fiat engine and this may have led to the statement that it was used in the W.34.

Brandenburg W.34 Production
Marine Nummers Class Engine Notes
2727-2729 C3MG BuS.IVa Only MN 2727 completed


Brandenburg W.34 Specifications
Source Typenschau P.M. Grosz Data Brandenburg 3-View MN 2727 (Dated 1919)
Span, m 16.60 16.60 16.600
Chord (max), m - 3.43 3.425
Length, m 11.10 11.10 ca 11.100
Height, m - 4.21 3.370
Wing Area, m2 49.00 49.0 49
Empty Wt, kg 1,534 1,534 1,534
Loaded Wt, kg 2,270 2,270 2,270
Speed in km/hr 175 ca 175 ca 175
Engine 300-hp Fiat* 300-hp BuS.IVa 300-hp Puss (sic)
* The Fiat engine was fitted to the W.33 & IVL A.22 post-war.


Type W.37

   An enlarged monoplane derived from the earlier W.29 to W.34 series of floatplanes, three prototypes were ordered in August 1918. When the Navy stopped work in December only one fuselage had been completed, however, with design refinements this machine eventually appeared as the Caspar S.I post-war. Jane's All the World's Aircraft noted that the S.I "is derived from the Hansa-Brandenburg sea-monoplane so well known during the war." The modifications introduced since the war were the installation of a roomy cabin for four passengers, a better mounting of the engine to facilitate inspections, a stronger undercarriage and improved float design. Instead of the 260-hp Maybach Mb.IV previously fitted, a Mercedes D.IV of the same horsepower was fitted. The version being built for the Swedish Navy was stated to have the 240-hp Siddeley Puma engine, and one model was to be built with the Rolls-Royce Eagle IX engine.
   The S.I was built in Germany and smuggled in parts to Sweden where it was assembled at the Svenska Aero AB in Hastholmen, the company started by the pilot Clemens Bucker. This aircraft was taken on charge by the Swedish navy as the Hansa-Brandenburg Type 31 after its Swedish serial No.31. Test flown over about 11 months it accumulated only 29 hours and had at least three different engines during this time. It was written off on 29 June 1927. The type was to be built in Sweden as the Hansa-Brandenburg Type 32 and serials Nos. 32 to 41 were allocated to the type. One civil Caspar S.I was used in Norway. This was N-23, ex-German D-292, that was registered in 1923 but crashed 15 August 1924.


Brandenburg W.37 Production
Marine Nummers Class Engine Notes
2723-2725 CHFT Bz.IV Work stopped December 1918


Brandenburg W.37 Specifications
Source Typenschau P.M. Grosz Data Caspar S.I (Jane’s ATWA)
Span, m 17.70 17.70 17.5
Chord (max), m - 3.52 -
Length, m 12.39 12.39 12.65
Height, m - 4.15 3.85
Wing Area, m2 55.00 55.0 52.5
Empty Wt, kg 1,500 1,500 -
Loaded Wt, kg 2,177 2,177 2,600
Performance
Speed in km/hr 155 ca 155 165
Climb to 1000 m - - 7 min
Ceiling, m - - 5,500
Engine - 220-hp Bz.IV -
Note: The Typenschau refers to the W.34 as the S.I = Heinkel He 1.

C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
W.33 Marine Number 2538, one of the first three W.33 prototypes, Warnemunde, August 1918.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
W.33 F.24 of the Norwegian Naval Air Service, 1920s. Built in 1923, F.24 II survived until 1935.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
W.33 N.47 of the Norwegian Postal Service, Horten, August-November 1931.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
W.33 F.20 of the Norwegian Air Service.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
W.33 F.50 of the Norwegian Naval Air Service, 1928. F.50 II was one of six W.33s built by the Royal Norwegian Army Aircraft Factory at Kjellor. Originally serial 521, it was renumbered E50 II when transferred to the Navy in 1928.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 of the Finnish Air Service, summer 1923.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 4.E16, Finnish Air Service, ca. 1925-26.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 4.F.52, CO, Santahanina Aviation School, Finnish Air Service, Summer 1925. The overall dark color is shown here as red.
W.Green, G.Swanborough - The Complete Book of Fighters
Skis could replace the regular floats of the W 33, as seen on this Finnish-built example flown by No 1 Detached Maritime Flying Squadron.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 IL-93 of the Marine Aviation Sqdn., Finnish Air Service.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 IL-97 of the Finnish Air Service, 1920s.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 IL-115, Santahanina Aviation School, Finnish Air Service. 1929.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 IL-119 of the 1st Detached Maritime Sqdn., Finnish Air Service, February 1930.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
I.V.L. A.22 4G100, Latvian Air Service, 1926-1927
J.Herris - German Seaplane Fighters of WWI /Centennial Perspective/ (2)
The W33 was known as the IVL A.22 in Finnish service, this example survives in the Finnish aviation museum.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.2 on the occasion of its public showing at the international air show at Helsinki airport in September 1969 after its restoration. First flown on Armistice Day 1922 as 4D.2, it was delivered to the air arm of the Finnish Army on 1 December. A forced landing in afield on 3 July 1927, caused much damage as the aircraft was fitted with pontoons at the time. Returned to IVL for repair, it ended up stored at Vesivehmaa airforce base for many years together with other veteran aircraft including an Avro 504K, Rumpler 6B1, and Martinsyde F.4, before being transferred to Finnair's Aviation College at Helsinki airport where it was restored by students of the facility during 1967 to 1969. It was displayed at Tampere until the Finnish Aviation Museum was opened.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Radiator, engine, and propeller of A22 serial IL.2 on display in the Finnish Aviation Museum.
C.Owers - The Fighting America Flying Boats of WWI Vol.2 /Centennial Perspective/ (23)
Despite being a larger aircraft than the W.29, the W.33 is almost indistinguishable from the W.29 in photographs and if the lack of a cut-out at the wing root cannot be seen, then it is necessary to identify the Marine Nummer to be sure that the particular floatplane is indeed a W.33. MN 2538 was ordered as one of the three prototypes on 24 April 1918. This particular machine was in the CK category and was equipped with two fixed, synchronised machine guns for the pilot and a 2 cm Becker cannon for the observer. The engine was the more powerful 260-hp Mercedes D.IVa; other W33s were powered by the 260 hp Maybach Mb.IVa or 275-300 hp BuS.IVa. This photograph was taken at the SVK test center at Warnemunde on 30 August 1918.
J.Herris - German Seaplane Fighters of WWI /Centennial Perspective/ (2)
Front view of Marine #2538, the first Brandenburg W33, shows its streamlined lines. The wing was complex and presented a manufacturing challenge to the Finns when they undertook license production; a lot of technology transfer took place in 1922 between Germany and Finland.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
View of W.33 MN 2538 taken at the SVK test center at Warnemunde on 30 August 1918, emphasize its clean lines for such a large floatplane.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
J.Herris - German Seaplane Fighters of WWI /Centennial Perspective/ (2)
The W3 3 was an enlarged development of the W29 powered by the 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa or similar engines and designed for greater range and endurance. Photographed at Warnemunde on 30 August 1918, these views of W33 Marine #2538 shows the very clean lines of the W33 despite its size. It was finished in the standard late-war naval camouflage.
W.Green, G.Swanborough - The Complete Book of Fighters
Developed from the smaller W 29, the W 33 was built in Norway and Finland after production in Germany was halted by the Armistice.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This W.33 has been modified to have a blind flying hood. Note the underslung radiator in front of the front undercarriage struts. F.16 served from 26 May 1923 to 18 November 1933, totalling 925 hours flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Two W.33 monoplanes carried the registration F18 and are referred to as F.18 II and F.18 III. By the dark color scheme this machine may be F.18 II.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
F.18 in flight over typical Norwegian terrain, 1924. F.18 was damaged by a storm in February 1930 while being extensively used in the Antarctic for reconnaissance flights operating from the Norvegia.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The W.33 was ideally suited for operations from the protected waters of Norwegian lakes.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This group of Norwegian W.33 floatplanes near a slipway display the two color schemes applied to the type. Aircraft 20 displays a pennant to the rear fuselage. Both aircraft have a generator mounted on the side of the observer's cockpit.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
F.20 II in the dark green finish. This machine has two Lamblin radiators under the fuselage. The metal badge of the Marinens Flyvebaatfabrik can be seen on the fuselage near the footstep under the pilot's cockpit. Delivered on 27 August 1923, this seaplane was used together with F.28 to search for herring along the west coast in November 1929. The operation lasted until the end of December and in January the tow aircraft returned to Horten. In 1930 an enclosed cabin for a radio operator was fitted. F.20 II was written off after a fatal crash in August 1933, the crash leading to the grounding of the Brandenburgs still in service.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This floatplane was the third naval W.33 to bear the F.22 registration. Built as a two-seat machine with 260-hp Mercedes engine, it was sent together with N-24 and N-25 to Goteborg in August 1924 when explorer Roald Amundsen's Dornier Wai flying boat went missing during his Arctic expedition.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
F.22 after an interesting landing. In March 1922 this aircraft brought supplies to four ships stuck in ice in the Kristiania Fjord.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
F.24 displays the Vickers gun installation, generator at rear cockpit and twin Lamblin radiators under the fuselage.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
F.24 displays the bomb racks under the fuselage, underslung radiator, and purpose of the long cylinder on the port float is unknown but is considered to be a storage container. F.24 II was built on a contract for four machines at 28,200 Norwegian crowns without motor. In 1924 it was on a trip to Gothenburg. On 28 June 1926 it suffered a crash but was repaired. It suffered a broken wing on alighting in August 1927. The machine was overhauled in the winter of 1928, but required another overhaul in the winter of 1929/1930 after a forced landing due to engine failure on 18 September. 1 January 1934 found the seaplane at Kristiansand with 833 hours logged. It was written off in December 1935.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Norwegian Brandenburgs at Horten preparing for warfare exercises, 1924. Most Norwegian W33s used the 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa engine. Armament was a fixed Vickers for the pilot and a flexible Lewis for the observer. The original nose radiators were replaced with a pair of under-wing Lamblin radiators, altering the aircraft's appearance. Note the rail lines leading to the slipway. The tall masts in the background would most probably be for radio transmission.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Aircraft 36 displays a pennant to the rear fuselage. F.36 II was ex-Army 519 and a Make III. It was stored and turned over to the Navy at Horten on 4 February 1928. It made flights over the polar ice with Lutzow-Holm. It was completely overhauled in the winter of 1928/1929. It was finally placed into reserve until written off in December 1937.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
A W.33 in the dark green doped scheme.The numerals "50" may be discerned on the original. F.50 was ex-Army 521.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Three W.33 floatplanes at Karljohansvern Marine Flystasjon. F.58 has its Polar Star marking.This is machine c/n 38, the first W.33 to bear the F.58 registration. It entered service on 4 July 1922, with a 220-hp Benz engine and an extra fuel tank that gave it an endurance of seven hours. From 12 to 27 July 1922, Pr. Ltn. Lutzow-Holm and mechanic Myhre flew F-58 from Horten to Kirkrnes and back, a distance of 5,200 km, under poor conditions. For this flight F-58 had a Polar Star painted on the fuselage. On 28 July 1926, F-58 collided with F-24 when alighting. It was struck off charge with 250 hours total flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Johan Hover is the pilot of this W.33. Hover was instrumental in obtaining the license for the production of the W.33 in Norway post-war.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Two Norwegian W.33s in flight. The radiators were mounted under the fuselage.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Poor-quality air-to-air photo of a Norwegian W.33 in flight.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The Norwegians made use of their W.33 floatplanes operating from ships. According to the original caption here No.25 is onboard the light cruiser Peter Skram. They were also used for fisheries reconnaissance and in the Antarctic.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Hoisting a W.33 aboard ship at Horten in 1925 before setting out for Spitsbergen to search for Roald Amundsens's missing aircraft N.25. This machine has a single Lamblin radiator under the fuselage.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Possibly the same machine on board a ship.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Ground crew with a W.33.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
One of the four F.F.8 Make III built at Kjeller, probably in February 1928. The type and engine is identified by the legend on the rudder: MAKE, 260/B. The Navy did not use this type of marking, indicating that it is in Army markings. The ability of the Brandenburgs to operate from ice and snow was a benefit to the Scandinavian states that operated the type. The two men on the wing give some idea of the size of these large floatplanes.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This W.33 has a French Lamblin radiator under the fuselage. The Norwegians produced two version of the W.33, one was a two-seat version (R-2) and the other offered cramped accommodation for two personnel in the rear cockpit (R-3).
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
As described in the text N-47 and N-48 were civil Norwegian Brandenburg W.33 seaplanes used on airmail services. Both photographs were taken at the Horten Naval Base in 1931. (Norwegian Air Register via Kay Hagby)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The IVL A.22 was the W.33 built in Finland. The machine illustrated is in a dark (green) finish that makes discerning the serial difficult. It appears to be 4.E.15. (via AHT AL0459-204)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Another experimental color scheme tried out on A.22 No.2 at the Aviation School. At this time this machine has the early engine installation with Lamblin radiator.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Detail of the nose of the early A.22 monoplanes, with two French Lamblin radiators under the fuselage. In summer only one radiator was needed.The first A.22 floatplanes were delivered with this type of engine installation. Later aircraft had the nose radiator equipped with shutters and aircraft still in service were modified to fit the new radiator.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Launching 4.D.2 of the Aviation School at Santahamina on 8 October 1925. Note the logo with construction number under the tailplane. The rudder is a dark color and presumably so are the elevators. This machine is preserved in the Finnish Aviation Museum, the only surviving Brandenburg floatplane.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This A.22 has been identified as No.14, however it bears no serial or c/n unlike other machines that had this scheme such as 4.E.6 and 4.E.17.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The experimental camouflaged A.22 and other monoplanes on the shore. Note the relaxed conditions without any visible military presence. (via AHT AL459-205)
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This experimental "splinter" camouflage scheme was applied to several A.22 floatplanes in summer and autumn 1923, as well as to Breguet 14 bombers and the sole Finnish Fokker D.VII. Colors were black brown, light and dark blue, and dark green. Lower surfaces were also light blue.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The experimental camouflaged A.22 and other monoplanes on the shore in a casual atmosphere.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This ski equipped A.22, thought to be 4.E.24 of the Aviation School circa 1925, has only a single underslung Lamblin radiator. This machine was in service by 8 December 1923 and survived until 3 July 1925, when it was wrecked. Total flight time 154:50 hours.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.E.26 is similarly equipped. Skis proved useful to allow the A.22 more freedom of operation during the winter months. No.26 was in service by 28 December 1923. It was written off on 31 October 1924, apparently after a bad crash.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.F.16 is another Hansa with the large serial application.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This A.22 appears to have a large numeral "9" marked on the fuselage. 4.F.19 is known to have carried an exceptionally large serial in 1926.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Rescuers with the wreck of 4.F.27 of the Aviation School. The machine hit trees while coming in to alight and crashed into the sea at Santahamina on 31 July 1926. Despite the appearance of the machine there were no casualties. It was officially written off on 22 November that year with 241:10 hours flight time. The cut-out at the wing root to improve downward vision is well displayed here.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.F.31 on the wooden compass turntable at Santahamina. This machine accumulated over 300 hours in the 2 1/2 years it served with the Aviation School. Received on 29 February 1924, it was written off on 14 June 1927.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.F.40 in an idyllic setting. Getting lost with mild mechanical problems near a convenient house was a favorite pastime in the 1920s. Received on 10 May 1924, this machine suffered a forced landing in fog on 1 February 1926. This photo was taken 23 July 1925.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.F.46 in flight over lakes on 23 August 1923, Vainio, Finland, shows the type of tailplane adopted for the late W.29 and W.33 floatplanes. The cut-out at the wing root appears larger than that usually applied.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The ability of the A.22 to use the many lakes of Finland made it a useful aircraft. Here 4.F.46 of the 2nd Maritime Squadron flies over typical terrain on 23 August 1925.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Detail of a ski equipped and armed 4.F.47 of the 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron based at Sortavala. This machine had striped rudder and carried the unit's osprey emblem. It crashed in woods on 17 August 1924.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This dark colored A.22 serial 4.F.52 is unusual in that the serial is marked in white. The special color scheme was for the commander of the Aviation School at Santahamina in the summer of 1925. It had been received on 8 September 1924.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
4.F.53 was received on 13 September 1924. It was ski equipped when it came down and was destroyed in a forced landing at Santahamina due to its engine stopping inflight on 22 November 1926. This machine had the extension of the horizontal tailplane to overcome nose heaviness.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Armed 4.F.56 on skis, with twin Lewis guns on the gun ring. This A.22 was received on 27 September 1924.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Removing the engine from a ski equipped 4.F.61 of the 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron at Kasinhanta on 23 April 1927. A.22, c/n No. 70 in background. Received into service on 15 November 1924.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Manhandling 4.F.62 of the 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron from the hangar at Sortavala on 19 April 1927.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Starting up a Hansa for an engine test. The airscrew was only turned once behind the compression to lessen the danger of being hit by the airscrew. Carburettor fires were common and the fire was usually suppressed by the mechanic placing his hat over the intake. 4.F.62 of the 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron has dark colored elevators and rudder. The unit emblem was an osprey carrying a sword. In addition to being mounted on skis, a bundle of skis is carried on the fuselage side above the wing. Received on 18 January 1924, it was written off as IL.62 on 22 December 1927 with 237:35 hours flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Erecting 4.G.97 outdoors. As only two machines could be constructed at the one time and they could not fit through the factory doors assembled their floats were attached on the dock using this crane setup.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Bearing the Finnish serial 4.G.99 this Latvian A.22 is stuck in the snow. This machine was delivered to the Latvian Navy on 13 December 1926.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The 100th A.22 produced together with No.99 was sold to Latvia. The Latvian emblem was a red swastika at 45°. This machine was delivered to the Latvian Navy in December 1926. Both Latvian A.22 seaplanes were written off soon after delivery when they ran into thick fog and had to make forced landings. They were rebuilt under the supervision of Karlis Irbitis, who later became a well known Latvian aircraft designer.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.2 during its public showing at the international air show at Helsinki airport in September 1969 after restoration.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Details of IL.2 on display in the Finnish Aviation Museum.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Details of A22 serial IL.2 on display in the Finnish Aviation Museum.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.59 carries the same osprey emblem as IL.63. Note the colored stripes on the rudder and elevators. Received on 7 February 1927, it served until 4 October 1932.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Close-up details of the nose and radiator of IL.59. Note the IVL logo on the airscrew.described as the "golden age" of the Hansas when there was much freedom in mission orders and flying was even irresponsible in some cases. No parachutes or seat belts were used.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Ground personnel with IL.63. Note the frontal radiator on this version.The 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron's unit emblem was an osprey in black with grey details carrying a sword. This insignia was in use from 1926-1929. Received on 30 October 1925, as 4.F.63, this machine served until 16 December 1921, when it was written off with 518:20 hours flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The Hansas were the first aircraft of the Finnish air force to carry any type of unit insignia. The insignia of the Merilentoeskaaderi (Marine Aviation Squadron) on IL.93 was a wing rising from the waves. IL.74 carried crossed rifles behind the unit insignia as the personal emblem of the OC of the squadron.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.94 carries the 2nd Detached Maritime Squadron's osprey insignia. This A.22 was received on 2 September 1925.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.97 has a striped rudder and the unit emblem appears to be a mailed arm with a sword. Note the grey paint has flaked off the fuselage over the wing.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.97 from the same unit after a hard landing in snow, Pakkolasku, 25 January 1934. Noteworthy are the pale rudder stripes. Received on 22 September 1925, this machine had crashed earlier on a failed take off on 26 February 1932. It would appear that it was written off after the event depicted here.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The A.22 could be equipped with skis for winter operations from suitable fields and frozen lakes. First experiments were carried out in the winter of 1923. While the skis worked, their rigid framework stressed the airframe, and despite discussion it was to be 1930 before limits were set on their winter use. Photographed on 29 March 1933 at 15:26 hours, IL.102 carries the emblem of a mailed arm carrying a sword, the unit emblem of the 2nd Detached maritime Squadron from 1930-1934. The colors were black and white with a red boarder. Served from 12 January 1926, to 10 October 1932 when it made its last flight. It was officially written off on 31 October 1933, with 542:35 hours flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.102 has stripes on the elevator as well as a unit insignia.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.105 landed in a paddock at Wahlmann on 8 August 1929, but appears to be little damaged.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.110 on 12 August 1927. The round wooden table in front of the machine is for swinging the compass. This A.22 was received on 26 February 1926. Written off the month following its crash and sinking on 22 August 1928.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
An armed IL.113 of the Ilmailukoulu (Aviation School) in a winter setting on the ramp at Santahamina, 4 March 1925. This machine carried the blue observer's squadron chevron on the fuselage and the individual badge of a lighthouse. Received on 31 March 1926, it was in service by June 1927, and was written off with 406 hours flight time on 28 December 1929.
These aircraft used the 300 hp Fiat A-12bis, and 120 were built from 1922. The type served until 1936!
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
The emblem of IL.115 denotes the reconnaissance role of the A.22. The chevron was light blue. IL.115 was based at Santahamina on 1 April 1929. It entered service by 25 August 1927, and made its last flight on 12 April 1929, totalling 297:15 hours flight time.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.118 in grey and clear doped/cream finish. Note the chevron, unit insignia and colored rudder. Received on 4 June 1926, and immediately placed in storage. In service by August 1928, it survived until 1932.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IL.119 on skis, 20 February 1931. There are wooden extensions under the fuselage behind the wings for attaching the bomb racks. This machine has a flap over the elevator hinge. The blue lightning bolt emblem was the unit marking of the 1st Detached Maritime Squadron from 1927-1933. Received on 15 June 1926, it was in service by 4 July 1929. Last flight on 5 December 1935, for a total flight time of 561 hours. Behind the c/n under the tailplane is stencilled KORJATTU/ VALTION LENTOKONETEHDAS/SUMENLINNA. (Repaired (date)/State Aircraft Factory/Sveaborg).
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
IVL A.22 in flight. The grey tones of the color scheme vary considerably in photographs.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Three IVL A.22 floatplanes in flight. They all bear the IL serial prefix. The way the grey scheme varies in the light is well illustrated here. It would have been a shiny finish when first applied. Note the flap over the elevator to tailplane join.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
This A.22 has a Scarff-type mounting for the observer's gun ring.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Filling the radiator. Note the IVL logo on the airscrew.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Close-up of loading bombs to the underside of a ski equipped A.22. The external extensions for the bomb racks are clearly seen.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Assembling an A.22 outdoors at the IVL factory. There was no room indoors to assemble the machines.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Poor but extremely interesting photograph of the construction of an IVL A.22 fuselage in a simple jig. The frame-work was very light with various thickness of the covering plywood taking the loads.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
France received three Brandenburg floatplanes including MN 2731. These photographs showing 2731 under test by the French at Frejus-Saint-Rafael post-war have been used to illustrate the W.34 monoplane in many works, for example in Green and Swanborough's The Complete Book of Fighters. As far as is known only one W.34, MN 2727, was completed and this was post-Armistice. MN 2731 bears French markings with Lamblin "lobster pot" radiator under the nose. The batch MNs 2730-2759 is reported to have been W.29 monoplanes; however, it appears that the machine illustrated does not have the characteristic wing root cut-out of the W.29. If the report on this machine be discovered it may clear up this apparent discrepancy.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Pilot's cockpit of the preserved IL.2.
W.Green, G.Swanborough - The Complete Book of Fighters
Developed from the smaller W 29, the W 33 was built in Norway and Finland after production in Germany was halted by the Armistice.
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33 Factory Drawing
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33 Factory Drawing
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33 Factory Drawing
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33 Factory Drawing
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.33
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.34 Factory Drawing
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.34
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.34
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.34
C.Owers - Hansa-Brandenburg Aircraft of WWI. Volume 3 - Monoplane Seaplanes /Centennial Perspective/ (19)
Brandenburg W.37 Factory Drawing