Hansa-Brandenburg GW

The Hansa-Brandenburg GW was a floatplane torpedo bomber produced in Germany during World War I for the Imperial German Navy. In configuration, it was similar to the Hansa-Brandenburg G.I land-based bomber, but the GW was substantially larger and heavier. Like the G.I, it was a conventional three-bay biplane design with staggered wings with the lower wing of slightly greater span than the upper. The undercarriage consisted of twin pontoons, each mounted on a separate truss structure, leaving space between them for a single torpedo to be dropped from the underside of the fuselage. The metal trusses that had attached the engines to the sides of the G.I's fuselage were not present in this design, with the engine nacelles carried on struts in the interplane gap.

Specifications (variant)

General characteristics

• Crew: Three
• Length: 12.57 m (41 ft 4 in)
• Wingspan: 21.56 m (70 ft 9 in)
• Height: 4.15 m (13 ft 7 in)
• Gross weight: 3,938 kg (8,664 lb)
• Powerplant: 2 × Mercedes D.III, 120 kW (160 hp) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 105 km/h (65 mph)
• Range: 500 km (310 miles)
• Service ceiling: 1,000 m (3,280 ft)

Armament

• 1 × machine gun
• 1 × torpedo

References

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. pp. 472.