| M.23 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Role | Two-seat sports aircraft |
| National origin | Germany |
| Manufacturer | Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) |
| Designer | Willy Messerschmitt |
| First flight | early 1928 |
| Number built | ≥ 100 |
| Developed from | M.19 |
The BFW M.23, sometimes known as the Messerschmitt M 23, was a 1920s two-seat sporting aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt, and produced by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Examples won several prestigious races in 1929 and 1930.
The BFW M.23, [1] (the M standing for its designer Willy Messerschmitt), was developed in response to a specification issued in 1929 by the German Aero Club for the Ostpreussenflug (East Prussian Circuit) competition. The result was an improved version of the M.19, with seating for two, and wings that could be folded for transport or storage. [1]
The M.23 was a small, conventional low-wing cantilever monoplane. It had a fixed undercarriage, the mainwheels mounted on a cranked axle, plus a tailskid. The fin and rudder assembly were broader and shorter than that of the M.19, though the shape varied with sub-type. A wide variety of engines were fitted, with power ranging from the 28 kW (38 hp) ABC Scorpion two-cylinder motor to the 112 kW (150 hp) of the seven-cylinder Siemens Sh 14a radial. [1]
The first of three production variants, the M.23a used low-powered engines and had a very angular vertical tail. The M.23b had curved upper fuselage decking and a more rounded tail and was produced with a large range of engines, both inline and radial. The length depended slightly on the engine fitted. The final version, the M.23c had an enclosed cockpit, the most powerful engines and was slightly larger (200 mm/8 in in span, around 500 mm/20 in in length) than the earlier variants. Its tail was again different, more rounded at the top and missing the elevator cutaway of the earlier models. [1]
At least one M.23b appeared on floats. [1]
The M.23bs won both the 1929 Ostpreussenflug (Genet-powered) and the Circuit of Europe (Siemens Sh 13-powered) races. The M.23c was developed for, and won, the Circuit of Europe the following year with seven of them entered.
Production numbers are not certain, but 74 appear on the reconstructed German civil aircraft register; [2] 53 of these are M.23bs and 11 M.23cs. Many were bought by flying clubs for basic and acrobatic training. Other went to individual owners, with some familiar names amongst them like Ernst Udet (who made well publicised flights to Africa and to Greenland, the latter with Leni Riefenstahl as a passenger) and Rudolf Hess. In 1933, Erwin Aichele and his wife flew trouble-free for 13,000 km (8,000 mi) around the Mediterranean. [1]
The corresponding Romanian registers [3] [4] show 26 more M.23bs, 14 of them locally built by ICAR (Intreprinderea de Constructii Aeronautice Romanesti, "Enterprise for Romanian Aeronautical Constructions") under licence from Messerschmitt. These were distinct from the Romanian modified version known as the ICAR Universal. The licensing deal was part of Messerschmitt's successful attempt to save a small core of staff from BFW when it went bankrupt in June 1931, a group that became Messerschmitt-Flugzeubau GmbH and survived until the reformation of BFW under the Nazis in 1933. [1]
Data from Smith 1971, p. 26
General characteristics
Performance
The Focke-Wulf Fw 44 Stieglitz ("Goldfinch") is a 1930s German two-seat biplane. An early design by Kurt Tank, it was produced by the Focke-Wulf company as a pilot training and sports flying aircraft. It was also eventually built under license in several other countries.
The Fleet Finch is a two-seat, tandem training biplane produced by Fleet Aircraft of Fort Erie, Ontario. There were a number of variants mainly based on engine variations. Over several years beginning in 1939, a total of 447 Finches were built, nearly all (431) of them for use as elementary trainers in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) during the Second World War.
The Siemens-Halske Sh 11 was a seven-cylinder, air-cooled, radial engine for aircraft built in Germany in the 1920s. First run in 1925, it was rated at 75 kW (100 hp).
The Dornier Libelle, also designated Do A, was a German open-cockpit, all-metal, parasol wing, monoplane flying boat aircraft, with partly fabric-covered wings. A landplane version, built without sponsons and fitted with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage was produced as the Dornier Spatz.
The Fairchild 22 Model C7 was an American two-seat touring or training monoplane designed and built by the Kreider-Reisner division of the Fairchild Aircraft Corporation at Hagerstown, Maryland.
The ICAR 36 / ICAR Comercial (sic), variously also known as the ICAR M 36, Messerschmitt M 36 or BFW M.36, was a Messerschmitt design built and tested by the Romanian company ICAR in the mid-1930s. It was a small, single-engine high-wing airliner, the first civil transport aircraft built in Romania.
The Klemm Kl 36 is a 1930s German four-seat cabin touring and competition monoplane. It was designed by Klemm and Friedrich Fechner and built by Klemm.
The ICAR Universal was a 1930s Romanian two seat monoplane trainer, touring and aerobatics aircraft.
The Bayerische Flugzeugwerke M 18, was an airliner, produced in Germany in the late 1920s.
The BFW M.35, sometimes known as the Messerschmitt M 35, was a German sports plane of the early 1930s. It was the last of a line designed by Willy Messerschmitt.
The BFW M.27, sometimes known as the Messerschmitt M.27, was a German two-seat sports plane with a low, cantilever wing, open cockpits and a fixed undercarriage sold in small numbers at the start of the 1930s.
The BFW M.29 was a single-engine two-seat low-wing aircraft, designed by Willy Messerschmitt for the 1932 Circuit of Europe races.
The Henschel Hs 122 was a German army cooperation/reconnaissance aircraft of the mid-1930s, radial-engined and with a parasol wing. Though only pre-production variants entered service, the Hs 122 led on to the Hs 126 which was produced in large numbers.
The BFW M.21 was a single-engined biplane trainer designed by Willy Messerschmitt for the German Ministry of Transport. It was one of only two biplanes Messerschmitt designed, neither reaching production.
The BFW M.22 was a twin-engined medium bomber, designed by Willy Messerschmitt for the German Ministry of Transport. It was one of only two biplanes Messerschmitt designed, both unsuccessful.
The BFW M.26 was a single-engined cantilever-winged monoplane light airliner built in Germany in 1930. There were no sales and only one was built.
The Yakovlev AIR-1 (VVA-3) was a 1920s Soviet two-seat light biplane, the first aircraft designed and built by Aleksandr Sergeyevich Yakovlev.
The Udet U 1 was the first of a line of small, low-powered, low wing, cantilever monoplanes built in Germany in the early 1920s.
The Działowski D.K.D.4 was a Polish, parasol-wing, sports two-seater built in 1928. One won the Second National Lightplane Contest, with another coming fifth.
The Sido S.1 was a Polish two seat, parasol wing trainer aircraft, first flown in 1930.