PZL P.24
| PZL P.24 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| The second prototype of the PZL P.24 | |
| Role | fighter |
| Manufacturer |
PZL IAR |
| Designer | Zygmunt Puławski |
| First flight | May 1933 |
| Introduction | 1936 |
| Retired | 1960 Turkish Air Force |
| Primary user |
Royal Romanian Air Force Bulgarian Air Force Hellenic Air Force |
| Developed from | PZL P.11 |
| Variants | IAR 80 |
The PZL P.24 was a Polish fighter aircraft, designed in mid-1930s in the PZL factory in Warsaw. It was exported to several countries, but not used in Poland.
The PZL P.24 was developed as an export version of the PZL P.11, a gull-wing all-metal fighter designed by Zygmunt Puławski. The P.11 was powered with a license-built Bristol Mercury engine. The license did not permit export sales, so the French Gnome-Rhône company proposed using their engines in the P.11. The first P.24/I prototype, based on the P.11a and powered by a Gnome-Rhône 14Kds 760 hp (570 kW) engine, was flown in May 1933. The second P.24/II prototype, named the "Super P.24", set a world speed record for radial engine-powered fighters (414 km/h). The third P.24/III prototype was the "Super P.24bis" with a more powerful 14Kfs engine. The type was shown at the Paris air show in 1934 attracting great interest from the participants.
The aircraft was conventional in layout, with high wings. It was all-metal and metal-covered. The wings had a gull-wing shape, with a thin profile close to the fuselage, to provide a good view for the pilot. This configuration was developed by Zygmunt Puławski and called "the Polish wing". The canopy was closed (apart from prototypes). An internal 360 liter fuel tank in the fuselage could be dropped in case of fire emergency. It had conventional fixed landing gear, with a rear skid.
The armament was a combination of 20 mm Oerlikon FF cannon and 7.92 mm Colt-Browning machine guns in the wings.
Despite being a better fighter than the PZL P.11, none were acquired by the Polish Air Force, which preferred to wait for the PZL.50. When it became clear the PZL.50 would not be ready in time to counter the imminent German attack, the PAF briefly considered ordering PZL-24H, but in the end ordered the P.11G as an interim measure. Despite such rumours, no PZL.24s were used in the Polish Campaign (the P.11 were commonly misidentified as the P.24 by the Germans). The aircraft had greater success abroad, though.
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