Dornier Do 22
| Do 22 | |
|---|---|
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| Dornier Do 22 K in the Finnish Air Force | |
| Role | Torpedo bomber and reconnaissance seaplane |
| Manufacturer | Dornier Flugzeugwerke |
| First flight | 15 July 1938 |
| Produced | 1938–1939 |
| Number built | ~30 |
The Dornier Do 22 was a German seaplane developed in the 1930s. Despite good performance, it was built only in small numbers and entirely for the export market. The type was operated in the Second World War by Greece, Yugoslavia and Finland.
In 1934, Dornier's Swiss subsidiary, based at its at factory at Altenrhein designed a three-seat, single-engined military floatplane, the Do C3; two prototypes were built, with the first flown in 1935.
It was a parasol wing monoplane of fabric covered all-metal construction. Its slightly swept-back wing was attached to the fuselage by bracing struts, its two floats were braced to both the wing and fuselage. It was powered by a Hispano-Suiza 12Ybrs engine driving a three-bladed propeller, and could carry a single torpedo or bombs under the fuselage, defensive armament was one fixed forward firing machine gun, two in the rear cockpit and one in a ventral tunnel.
The first production model, known as the Do 22/See when fitted with floats, did not fly until 15 July 1938 from Dornier's factory at Friedrichshafen, Germany, although it did incorporate parts made in Switzerland. While the Luftwaffe was not interested in the aircraft, examples were sold to Yugoslavia, Greece and Latvia. In March 1939, a prototype with conventional landing gear (the Do 22L), was completed and test flown, but it did not enter production.
The Greek Do 22s were destroyed during the German invasion of the Balkans in 1941, but the crews of eight of the Yugoslav machines successfully evaded capture or destruction by fleeing to Egypt. There they flew under the control of the British Royal Air Force until the lack of spare parts made the aircraft unusable.
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Wikipedia