Focke-Wulf A 16

Focke Wulf A 16
Replica of an A 16 at Bremen Airport
Type:	Light airliner
Design country:	German Empire
Manufacturer:	Focke-Wulf
First flight:	June 23, 1924
Number of pieces:	22nd

The Focke-Wulf A 16 was a light passenger aircraft from 1924 and the first model of the Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau AG founded in the same year .

history

As early as 1919, Henrich Focke and Georg Wulf made the decision to build a small shoulder-wing aircraft in order to gain experience for the later construction of a small airliner. This machine, known as the A 7 , flew for the first time in November 1921 and can be regarded as the direct predecessor of the A 16.

Immediately after the founding of Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau AG on January 1, 1924, work began on the A 16. The construction of three A 16s that had been commissioned by Bremer Luftverkehr GmbH began at the same time. The first copy was completed on June 21, 1924 and flown in by Georg Wulf on June 23. On July 7th and 8th the type test of the A 16 took place in Adlershof in front of leading personalities of the German aviation industry, during which the DVL measured a speed of 136 km / h. After returning to Bremen, regular flight operations could be started on the Bremen – Wangerooge route operated by Bremer Luftverkehr GmbH .

construction

The aircraft was made of wood with plywood planking, the rear fuselage was covered with fabric, and could transport three passengers. The take-off distance to take off was 150 m, the coasting distance was only 50 m. Since the total flight weight of the A 16 did not reach the upper weight limit of the so-called "calculation group 5", the calculation of the strength had to be carried out under conditions that were only required for single-seaters in World War I , e.g. B. had to survive a vertical dive without risk of breakage.

The closed cabin with wicker chairs for usually three passengers was behind the pilot's seat. In order to be able to at least partially compensate for the effect of the engine torque, the fuel tank was installed in the right wing.

variants

A 16a

In order to increase operational safety, the 75 HP Siemens Halske radial engine was later replaced by a more powerful water-cooled 100 HP Mercedes D1 engine. As a result, extensive changes had to be made to the cell. The wing had to be reinforced due to the increased weight of 200 kg. The trunk got wider and longer. Since the engine had to be moved further back, the driver's seat and engine were now side by side. The engine was therefore moved 10 cm from the longitudinal axis.

Four passengers could be transported on shorter flights. The A 16a passed its approval test on March 18, 1925. Various copies were used by Badische Luftverkehrs GmbH , Junkers Luftverkehrs AG and Bremer Luftverkehr GmbH. In 1926, Luft Hansa also took over five A 16 and A 16a aircraft. At the end of 1929 the two aircraft built in 1925 "Baden" (D-548) and "Borkum" (D-659) were still flying. An A 16 crashed in service with Lufthansa in 1933 in Silesia.

A 16b

A 78 hp Junkers engine was installed here.

A 16c

Use of the 108 hp Siemens Sh-12 star engine.

A 16d

Use of a 120 hp Mercedes engine.

Further developments

Focke-Wulf Habicht

A number of other small airliners were developed from the A 16. In 1928 these included the A 20 "Habicht" , the A 28 "Habicht" and, as the latest development, the A 33 "Sperber" taxi aircraft .

1988 replica

The A 16 was the cornerstone for the success of the Focke-Wulf company and its successor EADS Airbus Bremen. Since none of the original aircraft have survived the times, Airbus decided in 1988 to build a twenty-second, non-airworthy machine as part of the tradition of maintaining the tradition. After the machine had been exhibited in the Hamburg Airbus factory for 20 years, it was donated to the Technikmuseum Berlin in 2008.

Technical specifications

Parameter	Data
crew	1
Passengers	3
length	8.50 m
span	13.90 m
Wing area
height	2.30 m
Empty mass	570 kg
Take-off mass (for aerobatics)	970 kg
Max. Takeoff mass
drive	a 7-cylinder radial engine Siemens & Halske Sh 7 with 56 kW (75 PS)
Top speed	136 km / h
Service ceiling	2500 m
Range	~ 550 km

literature

• Johannes Müller: The aircraft of the German Lufthansa 1926–1945 - Focke Wulf A 16 . In: Flight Revue . June 1965, p. 90 ff .
• Reinhold Thiel : Focke-Wulf aircraft construction . H. M. Hauschild, Bremen 2011, ISBN 978-3-89757-489-2 , pp. 19 ff .
• Wolfgang Wagner: German air traffic - the pioneering years 1919–1925 . Bernard & Graefe, Koblenz 1987, ISBN 3-7637-5274-9 , pp. 180 ff .

Web links

Commons : Focke-Wulf A 16  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://histaviation.com/Focke-Wulf_A16.html