Car body and aircraft factory in Vienna

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The Wiener Karosserie- und Flugzeugfabrik (WKF) was founded on June 10, 1913 under the name Wiener Karosseriefabrik W. Gutmann . The registered office of the company in the Vienna Commercial Register was Vienna XVIII., Schumanngasse 45. The founder of the factory was the industrialist Wilhelm von Gutmann.

history

The factory was a supplier to the army and originally produced bodies and automobiles. When in 1916, during the First World War, the aviation troops' demand for aircraft increased, the company headquarters was relocated. The new factory building was in Vienna X., Laxenburgerstrasse 131–135. On October 31, 1916, the name was changed to Wiener Karosserie- und Flugzeugfabrik (WKF).

In 1917 a works airfield and a sawmill were built in Hennersdorf, Lower Austria. The factory airfield was used for test flights as well as for final assembly.

Initially, no aircraft of their own were manufactured, only licensed products. Among other things, aircraft for the Hungarian Lloyd aircraft and engine factory were manufactured. The WKF DI hunting double-decker, an in-house design by the company's chief designer Alfred Gassner, did not go into series production until 1918.

In 1919 the Treaty of Saint-Germain was signed, which required Austria to deliver all military aviation material. Accordingly, the production of aircraft had to be stopped and there was no longer any need for the factory airfield. This was then abandoned.

In 1920 the Österreichische Waffenfabriksgesellschaft (ÖWG) took over operations, and in 1926 the WKF finally closed its doors.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Reinhard Keimel: Aircraft construction in Austria. Aviatic Verlag, Oberhaching 2003, ISBN 3-925505-78-4 , p. 335 (limited preview on Google Books )
  2. a b Flugfeld Hennersdorf in the Vienna History Wiki of the City of Vienna
  3. The Austro-Hungarian Aviation Force - The emergence, structure and organization of the Austro-Hungarian Army Air Force 1912–1918. Reinhard Karl Boromäus Desoye, Diplomica Verlag, Hamburg 1999, p. 184
  4. Gates to the World - From Aspern to Schwechat: A Brief History of Vienna Airports. Matthias Marschik, Wiener Zeitung, August 13, 1999. Retrieved May 30, 2016.
  5. Hubert Schier: The Steyr automobile history. Ennsthaler Verlag, Steyr 2015, ISBN 978-3-85068-926-7 , p. 332