DAR-10
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DAR-10 | |
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Type | Light bomber and reconnaissance |
Manufacturer | Darzhavna Aeroplanna Rabotilnica |
Maiden flight | July 1941 |
Status | Prototype |
Primary user | Bulgarian Air Force |
Number built | 2 |
The DAR-10 (ДАР-10) was a Bulgarian light bomber and reconnaissance aircraft.
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[edit] Design and development
The DAR-10 was designed by Zvetan Lazarov in 1938 in the DAR (Darzhavna Aeroplanna Rabotilnica, meaning literally 'State Airplane Workshop') factory in Bozhurishte, near the capital Sofia.
The Dar-10 was a single-engine two-seat (pilot and gunner) low-wing cantilever monoplane aircraft of conventional layout. Its two seats were in tandem under enclosed glazing. Its tailwheel undercarriage was fixed, and the main gears were spatted. the wings had wooden structure, covered with plywood. Flaps were not used.
The fuselage was comparatively wide and deep, to accommodate the nose-mounted radial engine. It was constructed of steel-tube framework and wood formers, covered with fabric.
Three-bladed steel propellers were used.
Two prototypes were built, powered by different engines:
- DAR-10A Bekas (Bulgarian: "snipe"), powered by an Alfa Romeo 128 R.C.21 9-cylinder radial engine rated at 950 hp (709 kW). This was the first DAR-10 to fly, in July 1941. It was designed to carry four machine guns (2 fixed forward-firing and 2 in rear gunner position). It could carry five 100-kg bombs, mounted under the wings. There was also the possibility of a fixed 20 mm forward-firing cannon installation in the forward fuselage.
This aircraft crashed in the summer of 1942. In spite of good flight reviews, the type was not chosen for production. The high-wing KB-11 Fazan was selected for production instead.
- Dar-10F (the "F" to indicate its Fiat engine), powered by a Fiat A 74 R.C.38 14-cylinder radial engine rated at 870 hp (649 kW). This aircraft first flew in March 1945. It was slightly heavier and longer than the DAR-10A. Its top speed was 454 km/h (282 mph). Thanks to a stronger construction and dive flaps, it could serve also as a dive bomber. It could be equipped with two fixed fuselage-mounted 20 mm cannons firing forward, two fixed wing-mounted machine guns, and two machine guns for the gunner. It could carry 650 kg bombs (1 x 250 kg and 4 x 100 kg) - or 450 kg, according to other data. The bombs would be mounted under the wings.
The DAR-10 was not selected for production. Some sources suggest that it was passed over in favor of the German Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive bomber.
[edit] Variants
- DAR-10A
- First prototype, powered by an Alfa Romeo radial engine.
- DAR-10F
- Second prototype, powered by a Fiat radial engine.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Specifications (DAR-10)
Data from Jane's Aircraft Recognition Guide [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: 2
- Length: 31.3 feet (9.54 m)
- Wingspan: 40.0 feet (12.20 m)
- Height: 10.8 feet (3.3 m)
- Wing area: 239 ft² (22.2 m²)
- Empty weight: 4,063 lb (1,843 kg)
- Loaded weight: 5,666 lb (2,570 kg)
- Powerplant: 1× Alfa Romeo 128 R.C.21 , 950 hp (708 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 255 mph (410 km/h)
- Range: 727 miles (1,170 km)
- Service ceiling: 23,785 feet (7,250 m)
Armament
- 4x machine guns:
- 2x 7.92 mm fixed in wings
- 2x 7.7 mm in rear upper station
- 1x 20 mm gun in nose (?)
- 500 kg bombs
[edit] References
- ^ Rendall, David (1995). Jane's Aircraft Recognition Guide. Glasgow, UK: HarperCollinsPublishers, 505. ISBN 0-00-4709802.
[edit] External links
[edit] See also
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
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