 | |
| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Plage i Laśkiewicz |
| Founded | 1936 |
| Headquarters | , Poland |
Key people | |
| Parent | Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów (1936–1939) |
Lubelska Wytwórnia Samolotów (LWS; translation from Polish: Lublin Aircraft Factory) was a Polish aerospace manufacturer, located in Lublin, created in 1936 from Plage i Laśkiewicz works and produced aircraft between 1936 and 1939.
The LWS was created out of the nationalized Plage i Laśkiewicz works, the first Polish aircraft manufacturer. Due to plans of the Polish military aviation authorities, headed by Ludomił Rayski, to gather all aviation industry in state hands, Plage & Laśkiewicz works were forced to go bankrupt in late 1935. Then, they were nationalized under the name LWS in February 1936. While formally it was owned by the PWS state aircraft manufacturer, in fact it was subordinated to the PZL. A director was Maj. Aleksander Sipowicz, a technical director and the main designer was initially Zbysław Ciołkosz; from autumn 1937 the technical director was Ryszard Bartel and the main designer Jerzy Teisseyre.
The first LWS aircraft were Plage & Laśkiewicz developments. 18 almost ready Lublin R-XIIIF army cooperation aircraft were completed in 1936 and bought by the Polish Air Force (their quality was the pretext for forcing Plage & Laśkiewicz bankruptcy), and the next series of 32 was built for the Polish Air Force by 1938. The factory also continued works upon a two-engine torpedo bomber seaplane Lublin R-XX prototype, now designated LWS-1, but it was not ordered due to a low performance.
In 1937 a light ambulance aircraft LWS-2 prototype of Ciołkosz design was first flown, but despite it was quite successful, it did not enter production, since the factory was busy with military orders.
In 1936, a further development of the medium bomber PZL-30 of Ciołkosz design, was handed to the LWS, under a designation LWS-6 Żubr. Since it was much inferior to PZL.37 Łoś, a planned serial production was finally reduced to 15 aircraft, built in 1938. However, works upon its modernized variant continued until 1939. The factory also proposed its torpedo-bomber seaplane variant designated LWS-5, but it was not accepted due to a low performance and the prototype was not completed.
From 1938 to 1939 the LWS built a series of 65 licence RWD-14 Czapla army cooperation aircraft for the Polish Air Force (it was sometimes called the LWS Czapla after the manufacturer). In 1937, there was flown a prototype of a modern reconnaissance aircraft LWS-3 Mewa of own design. A series of 200 aircraft was ordered by the Polish Air Force, but only a couple were completed just after the outbreak of World War II, and about 30 were in not finished state in a factory.
Apart from aircraft production, the LWS modified 47 Potez XXV light bombers (licence produced in Plage & Laśkiewicz and PWS) fitting them with radial engines PZL (Bristol) Jupiter. The LWS also designed the LWS-4 light fighter and LWS-7 Mewa II reconnaissance plane, but they were not built.
During World War II, the former factory became part of the Majdanek concentration camp. [1]
| Model name | First flight | Number built | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| LWS-1 | 1935 | 1 | Two engine monoplane torpedo bomber seaplane |
| LWS-2 | 1937 | 1 | Single engine monoplane ambulance airplane |
| LWS-3 Mewa | 1938 | 20 [lower-alpha 1] | Single engine monoplane liaison airplane |
| LWS-4 | N/A | 0 | Single engine monoplane fighter [3] |
| LWS-5 | N/A | 0 | Two engine monoplane medium bomber floatplane |
| LWS-6 Żubr | 1937 [4] | 16 | Two engine monoplane medium bomber |
| LWS-7 Mewa II | N/A | 0 | Single engine monoplane liaison airplane |
| LWS Czapla | 65 | License built single engine monoplane liaison airplane | |
PZL was the main Polish aerospace manufacturer of the interwar period, and a brand of their aircraft. Based in Warsaw between 1928 and 1939, PZL introduced a variety of well-regarded aircraft, most notably the PZL P.11 fighter, the PZL.23 Karaś light bomber, and the PZL.37 Łoś medium bomber.
The LWS-6 Żubr was a twin-engined medium bomber designed and produced by the Polish aircraft manufacturer LWS. It was only produced in limited numbers and was used for training purposes as it proved to be inferior to the contemporary PZL.37 Łoś medium bomber.
PZL Mielec, formerly WSK-Mielec and WSK "PZL-Mielec" is a Polish aerospace manufacturer based in Mielec. It is the largest aerospace manufacturer in postwar Poland. In 2007, it was acquired by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, which retained the brand name. Between 1948 and 2014, the company manufactured approximately 15,600 aircraft.
RWD was a Polish aircraft construction bureau active between 1928 and 1939. It started as a team of three young designers, Stanisław Rogalski, Stanisław Wigura and Jerzy Drzewiecki, whose names formed the RWD acronym.
The Lublin R-XIII was the Polish army cooperation plane, designed in the early-1930s in the Plage i Laśkiewicz factory in Lublin. It was the main army cooperation plane in the Invasion of Poland. Its variant Lublin R-XIV was a military trainer aircraft.
Plage i Laśkiewicz was the first Polish aerospace manufacturer, located in Lublin and manufacturing aircraft under Lublin name. Full name was: Zakłady Mechaniczne E. Plage i T. Laśkiewicz – Mechanical Works E. Plage & T. Laśkiewicz. The factory produced aircraft between 1920 and 1935, when it was nationalized as the Lubelska Wytwórnia Samolotów.
The RWD-14 Czapla was a Polish army cooperation aircraft, designed in the mid-1930s by the RWD team, and produced in the LWS factory from 1938. A series of 65 aircraft were built and most were used by the Polish Air Force observation squadrons during World War II in 1939.
The LWS-3 Mewa ("Seagull") was a Polish observation and close reconnaissance aircraft, designed in the late-1930s by the LWS factory. It was ordered by the Polish Air Force, but did not manage to enter service before the outbreak of World War II.
Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów was a Polish aerospace manufacturer between 1923 and 1939, located in Biała Podlaska.
The PWS-19 was a Polish reconnaissance and bomber plane prototype of the 1930s, constructed in the PWS.
Lotnicze Warsztaty Doświadczalne (LWD) was the Polish aerospace manufacturer and construction bureau, located in Łódź, active between 1945 and 1950. The name meant Aircraft Experimental Workshops. It was the first Polish post-war aerospace construction bureau.
The Lublin R-XX was the Polish torpedo bomber floatplane, designed in the early 1930s in the Plage i Laśkiewicz factory in Lublin. It remained a prototype.
Samolot was the Polish aerospace manufacturer, located in Poznań and active between 1924 and 1930. It manufactured among others aircraft under the Bartel name. The name Samolot itself simply means airplane in Polish.
Doświadczalne Warsztaty Lotnicze (DWL) was the Polish aircraft manufacturer, active in 1933-1939. It was a home of the RWD construction team and manufactured aircraft under a brand RWD.
PZL-Świdnik S.A. is the biggest helicopter manufacturer in Poland. Its main products are PZL W-3 Sokół and PZL SW-4 Puszczyk helicopters. In early 2010 the factory was acquired by AgustaWestland, today Leonardo.
The Lublin R-XVIII was a Polish heavy bomber project, created by Jerzy Rudlicki of the Plage i Laśkiewicz factory in Lublin, based on the earlier unsuccessful Lublin R-VII Odwet design of 1924, following the specification for a "retribution bomber" by the Polish Ministry of Military Affairs.
PWS-22, otherwise known as PWS-22BN3 was a Polish heavy bomber design created by Zbysław Ciołkosz and Antoni Uszacki of the Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów (PWS) factory in Biała Podlaska. Created in 1929 as a possible replacement for outdated Farman Goliath and improvised Fokker F.VII bombers in use by the Polish Army at the time, it was rejected along all other Polish designs.
PWS-23 was a Polish heavy bomber and transport plane design created by Zbysław Ciołkosz and Antoni Uszacki of the Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów (PWS) factory in Biała Podlaska. Intended as a heavier, trimotor version of the PWS-22 and submitted along with it to the Polish Ministry of Military Affairs in 1929, it was intended as a possible replacement for outdated Farman Goliath and improvised Fokker F.VII bombers in use by the Polish Army at the time. It was created in two possible configurations: the PWS-23 B3N and PWS-23T. However, both designs were rejected along with the PWS-22, and the PWS-23 remained on paper only.
PWS-40 Junak was a Polish trainer aircraft of the 1930s. First flown in the spring of 1939, it was to become the standard training aircraft of the Polish Air Force's fighter pilot schools before more advanced trainers could be delivered. However, due to the outbreak of World War II only the prototype was completed and test-flown.
