AGO CI-III
The AGO CI , C.II and C.III double-deckers built by the AGO Flugzeugwerke were reconnaissance aircraft of the German air force in the First World War with a pusher propeller drive.
development
The Swiss designer of AGO CI (factory designation DH6) August Haefeli housed the crew and engine together with the H. & Z. side cooler in a nacelle. To the right and left of this gondola, two slim, high spars with an oval cross-section, placed on the four-wheeled chassis, carried the tail unit. The bracing was three-legged. The observer sat in front of the pilot and had a machine gun.
One machine was delivered to the Imperial Navy under the name AGO C.Iw for coastal patrols .
At the end of 1915, the C.II (factory designation DH7) replaced the CI. Except for minor changes, the design principle of the C.II remained the same. Modifications affected the engine, which was now cooled by a wing cooler, and some aerodynamic improvements had been made. The bracing remained three-legged.
The C.II also built some machines with increased wingspan and wing area in order to deliver them to the Imperial Navy under the name AGO C.IIw either with landing gear or with floats.
The AGO C.III as a smaller variant of the C.II. followed in small numbers as the last prototype of the same construction type. In some examples, the nose wheels have also been omitted.
commitment
Starting in June 1915, the CI was delivered in small numbers to the field pilot units on the Western Front, followed in the summer by the C.II. This had a long range and, as it was popular with pilots as being fast and agile, remained in service until 1917.
In addition to the Otto C types , the AGO CI – III remained the only two-seater pusher propeller that was used on the German side - in contrast to the Allies, who used numerous aircraft of this design principle. In 1914, the companies Euler and Schwade had also experimented with machine-gun-armored pusher propeller planes that were equipped with a forward-facing machine gun as combat aircraft. The Schwade CI with steel nacelle and the two Euler fighter planes (a single-seat version with one and a two-seat version with two MG) were not used. In mid-1915, for example, the AGO-C types were the only two-seat reconnaissance aircraft on the German side with a machine gun that could be used offensively.
Technical data AGO CI – III
| Parameter | AGO CI | AGO CI | AGO C.Iw | AGO C.II | AGO C.IIw | AGO C.III |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction year | 1915 | 1915 | 1915 | 1915 | 1916 | 1915/16 |
| Intended use | spotter | spotter | Maritime patrol | Recon / bomber | Maritime patrol | Scouts, bombers |
| crew | 2 | |||||
| length | 9.84 m | 9.00 m | 10.40 m | 9.84 m | 11.24 m | 7.00 m |
| span | 14.48 m | 15.00 m | 14.48 m | 18.30 m | 11.00 m | |
| height | 3.50 m | 3.50 m | 3.58 m | |||
| Wing area | 40.00 m² | 41.50 m² | 40.00 m² | |||
| Empty mass | 800 kg | 1360 kg | 1316 kg | |||
| Takeoff mass | 1320 kg | 1946 kg | ||||
| water-cooled in- line engine |
Benz Bz III 150 hp |
Mercedes D III 160 hp |
Benz Bz III 150 hp |
Mercedes D IV 220 hp |
Benz Bz IV 200 hp |
Mercedes D IV 220 hp |
| Top speed | 145 km / h in NN | 140 km / h in NN | 145 km / h in NN | 147 km / h in NN | ||
| Climbing time to 1000 m | 7 min | |||||
| Climbing time to 2000 m | 16 min | |||||
| Ascent time to 3000 m | 30 min | |||||
| Service ceiling | 4500 m | 4800 m | 4500 m | |||
| Range | 500 km | 480 km | 580 km | |||
| Flight duration | 4 h | |||||
| Armament | a 7.92-mm - Parabellum MG | |||||
gallery
Ago with lattice hull
Ago on departure
Ago twin-fuselage aircraft with thrust engine
Ago monohull seaplane
See also
literature
- Enzo Angelucci, Paolo Matricardi: Airplanes from the beginning to the First World War (“Gli aeroplani”) . Falken, Wiesbaden 1976, ISBN 3-8068-0391-9 .
- Günter Kroschel, Helmut Stützer: The German military aircraft 1910-18 . Lohse-Eissing, Wilhelmshaven 1977, ISBN 3-920602-18-8 .
- Kenneth Munson: Surveillance and Reconnaissance Aircraft, Volume 2: Bombers 1914-19 . Orell Füssli, Zurich 1968.
- Heinz Nowarra: The Development of Airplanes 1914-18 . Lehmanns, Munich 1959.
- Michael J. Taylor: Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation . Portland House, New York 1989, ISBN 0-517-69186-8 , pp. 39 .
Web links
Individual references / comments
- ↑ The later types AGO C.IV to AGO C.VIII were conventional double-decker propellers.
- ↑ On the subject of the machine gun armament of German aircraft, cf. also Lemma Fokker EI-IV .