Flora (agricultural aircraft)

flora
	; Image wanted
Type:	Agricultural aircraft
Design country:	German Democratic Republic
Manufacturer:	VEB Flugzeugwerke Dresden
First flight:	Project was canceled

The Flora was a German agricultural aircraft with piston engine drive developed from 1959 to 1961 . It was the last aircraft construction project in the German Democratic Republic . The project developed by VEB Flugzeugwerke Dresden (FWD) was pursued after the official end of the GDR aircraft industry, but was ultimately canceled.

history

At the beginning of the 1960s there was no special agricultural aircraft in the Comecon countries . The machines used in agriculture such as the An-2 or the L-60 were originally developed for other purposes and were only suitable to a limited extent for agricultural flight. At the same time, after the collectivization of agriculture in the GDR was over, there was a need for a special agricultural aircraft due to the large cultivation areas now available. Since it became clear that series production of the 152 passenger aircraft would not take place, smaller projects were sought to keep aircraft construction in the GDR alive at all. The most advanced project in this regard was the Flora agricultural aircraft . From 1959 to 1961 32 were S tudies p rojects procedures, which were designated SP 026 to SP 055th The study projects differed, among other things, in the number and performance of the engines and the arrangement of the landing gear. The most advanced was the SP 043. It produced and tested wind tunnel models. Initially it was given the type number 156, then in March 1961 the 157. In addition to the agricultural flight, the Flora was also to be used as a fire-fighting aircraft , ambulance and feeder aircraft. Ultimately, the project was canceled, among other things because the Z-37 agricultural aircraft, which was developed almost at the same time in the ČSSR , managed with just one engine and one pilot.

construction

The most advanced study project, SP 043, was planned as a cantilevered shoulder decker with a rigid three-legged landing gear with nose wheel. The engines were suspended under the wings, the main landing gears, which were braced towards the fuselage, were attached under the engines. The tail unit was attached to a narrow tail unit beam. The rudder was divided. The SP 043 looked similar to the An-14 . The Soviet radial engine AI-14R , which was also used in the An-14, was the preferred engine .

Technical specifications

Parameter	Data
crew	2
length	13.00 m
span	17.30 m
height	4.50 m
Wing area	43 m²
Wing extension	7.0
Max. Takeoff mass	3000 kg
Payload	1090 kg
Service ceiling	3500 m
Take-off run	92 m
Landing runway	75 m
Engine	2 piston engines with 191 kW each

literature

Jochen Werner: Kleinflugzeug-Projekte , in: Die Deutsche Luftfahrt , Vol. 22: Luftfahrt Ost 1945–1990 , Bernard & Graefe Verlag 1994, pp. 152–154, ISBN 3-7637-6109-8 .

Individual evidence

↑ Jochen Werner: Technical data of the aircraft types 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 160 , in: Die Deutsche Luftfahrt , Vol. 22: Luftfahrt Ost 1945–1990 , Bernard & Graefe Verlag 1994, pp. 346–347.

[1] Jochen Werner: Technical data of the aircraft types 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 160 , in: Die Deutsche Luftfahrt , Vol. 22: Luftfahrt Ost 1945–1990 , Bernard & Graefe Verlag 1994, pp. 346–347.