Klemm Kl 35
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| Kl 35 | |
|---|---|
 Klemm Kl 35 |
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| Type | Two-seat sports and training aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Klemm Leightflugzeugbau Gmbh |
| Designed by | Friedrich Fecher |
| Maiden flight | 1935 |
| Introduced | 1935 |
| Status | out of service |
| Primary users | Luftwaffe Czechoslovakia Hungary Romania Sweden |
| Produced | 1937-1944 |
| Number built | c.2,000? |
| Unit cost | RM17,500 |
The Klemm Kl 35 was a German sporting and training aeroplane developed as a successor to the Kl 25. A product of Klemm Leightflugzeugbau Gmbh it shared the same single-engine, cantilever low-wing configuration as the earlier machine.
The fully aerobatics-capable aeroplane was shown for the first time publicly in October 1935 at the international Air Show in Milan and soon found many private buyers. A number of air forces including the Romanian and the Hungarian: the Swedish Flygvapnet, which alone bought 74 airplanes - designated Sk 15 - for training use. At least five of these were seaplanes. Plans for manufacture under licence abroad did not come to fruition.
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[edit] Development
The Kl 35 was designed in 1934 under the auspices of the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM). Dipl. Ing. Friedrich Fecher had overall responsibility for the construction. The so-called Gemischtbauweise construction was used: steel for fuselage, wood for wings and tail units and only small quantities of light alloy for linings were used. This became a preferred building method with the RLM around this time, because from considerations of strategic material availability.
[edit] Production
The results of the trial must have been satisfactory, because in July 1936, 23 aircraft were ordered for delivery between July and September 1937, with production planned to increase to 3 per month. Klemm were at the time manufacturing the Fw 44 under licence from Focke-Wulf.
By this time the RLM was already looking for a sub-contractor to build the Kl 35A under licence, choosing Fieseler who were already undertaking licence production of the He 72 and Fw 58 alongside Storks at their Kasseler plant.
Further orders, to a total of 1,386, followed and new variants came on line, beginning with the Kl 35B with a new engine.
Manufacture at Fieseler ceased in November 1939, after 365 aircraft, when the RLM transferred licence production to Zlin in occupied Czechoslovakia.
Production ended in May 1943 with total production for the Luftwaffe having reached 1,302. The balance of production was for private and export customers, though since these would have to number nearly 700 to reach the oft-quoted total of around 2,000 this may be exaggerated.
[edit] Variants
- Kl 35a - The first prototype, powered by a 60-kW (80-hp) Hirth HM60R piston engine.
- Kl-35b - Second prototype.
- Kl 35B - Initial production version, powered by a 60-kW (80-hp) Hirth RM60R piston engine.
- Kl 35BW - Floatplane version.
- Kl 35D - Improved version, fitted with a tricycle undercarriage.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Survivors
No Luftwaffe machine is known to survive, but a number of ex-Flygvapnet machines have been preserved. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpOSOvrdnEo
[edit] Specifications (Klemm Kl 35D)
Data from The Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: 2
- Length: 7.50 m (24 ft 7¼ in)
- Wingspan: 10.40 m (34 ft 1¼ in)
- Height: 2.05 m (6 ft 8¾ in)
- Wing area: 15.20 m² (163.62 ft²)
- Empty weight: 460 kg (1,014 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 750 kg (1,654 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× Hirth HM 60R 4-cylinder inverted inline engine, 60 kW (80 hp)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 212 km/h (132 mph)
- Cruise speed: 190 km/h (118 mph)
- Range: 665 km (413 mi)
- Service ceiling 4,350 m (14,270 ft)
[edit] See also
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ Mondey1996, p.149-150
[edit] Bibliography
- Mondey, David. The Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor, 1996. ISBN 1 85152 966 7.
- Translated from de.wikipedia.org
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