| BH-41 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Praga BH-41 | |
| Role | Military advanced trainer |
| National origin | Czechoslovakia |
| Manufacturer | ČKD-Praga |
| First flight | 1931 |
| Primary user | Czechoslovak Air Force Slovak Air Force |
The Praga BH-41, later redesignated E-41, was a military advanced trainer aircraft produced in Czechoslovakia during the 1930s. [1] [2]
Designed in response to a Defence Ministry competition and based on the BH-39, it was a conventional biplane design with unstaggered two-bay wings of equal span. The pilot and instructor sat in open cockpits in tandem, and the fixed tailskid undercarriage featured divided main units. The powerplant had been specified by the government to be the Hispano-Suiza 8Fb which were then being manufactured under licence by Škoda.
The E-41 was selected as the winner of the competition, and a contract for 43 aircraft was signed. Praga also produced a version powered by a ZOD 260 radial diesel engine, designated the E-141. This was not a success and only a single prototype was built. In 1936, a BH-41 was fitted with a Walter Pollux II engine, and designated the E-241. [1] [2] Following successful trials, an order was placed for a second batch of aircraft, this time for 95 machines with this engine.
These aircraft continued service in the Slovak–Hungarian War and into the Second World War, when around 30 E-241s saw service with the Slovak Air Force in its campaign against the Soviet Union together with the German Luftwaffe.
Data fromNěmeček 1968.
General characteristics
Performance
Related development
Related lists
The Aero A.100 was a biplane light bomber and reconnaissance aircraft built in Czechoslovakia during the 1930s. It was the final step in a design lineage that extended back to the Aero A.11 a decade earlier. A.100s remained in service throughout World War II and for a few years postwar.
The Avia BH-21, first flown in 1925, was a robust biplane that served an important role in securing Czechoslovak national security during the period between World War I and World War II. As well as being a competent fighter, it was also an accomplished racer, winning several air races in 1925.
The Avia B-34 was a biplane fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in the early 1930s. It was the first design of František Novotný for the Avia company and although built only in small numbers, it paved the way for the Avia B-534.
The Avia BH-4 was a prototype fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1922. It was a development of the BH-3 fitted with a Hispano-Suiza 8 engine in an attempt to improve the aircraft's performance. To accommodate the new powerplant, the forward fuselage was considerably redesigned, and the structure in general and undercarriage in particular were strengthened. Performance was found to be only marginally better than the BH-3, and development was quickly abandoned.
The Avia BH-6 was a prototype fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1923. It was a single-bay biplane of unusual configuration, developed in tandem with the BH-7, which shared its fuselage and tail design.
The Avia BH-7 was a prototype fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1923. It was a parasol-wing monoplane developed in tandem with, and as an alternative to the BH-6, which shared its fuselage and tail design. Like the BH-6, the BH-7 was involved in a number of serious crashes during its test programme, which led to its abandonment as a fighter. Undaunted, however, Avia used the design as the basis for a racing aircraft, shortening the wingspan by 1.4 m, fairing the wing directly onto the top of the fuselage and dispensing with the cabane struts. This revised version was designated BH-7B and the fighter (retrospectively) as the BH-7A. When the design proved no more successful as a racer, it was finally put to rest.
The Avia BH-8 was a prototype fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1923. It was an unequal-span biplane developed on the basis of the ill-fated BH-6 design, in an attempt to address that type's problems. It shared the BH-6's unusual wing cellule design.
The Avia BH-17 was a biplane fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1924. It was a development of the BH-6 and BH-8, and work on the latter aircraft was cut short in favour of this one. Operational trials in 1924 revealed performance good enough for the Czech Air Force to place an order for 24 examples. In actual service, however, the BH-17 proved unreliable and was soon withdrawn.
The Avia BH-19 was a fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1924. It was a low-wing braced monoplane derived from the Avia BH-3 and reflected its designers' ongoing belief that the monoplane configuration was the most suitable for a fighter aircraft. Initial trials revealed excellent performance, but also displayed control problems and aileron flutter. Nevertheless, the Czechoslovakian Army was sufficiently impressed to inform Avia that it would order the BH-19 if the problems could be rectified. The first prototype was destroyed in a crash during speed trials, and the second prototype revealed no better handling than its predecessor. At this point, the Czechoslovakian War Ministry stepped in and asked Avia to cease its attempts to develop a monoplane fighter.
The Avia BH-22 was a trainer aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1925, based on the BH-21 fighter. A smaller engine was used and armament removed. The lighter engine required the wing stagger to be decreased. No significant modifications were made to the airframe structure, reduced weight further increasing the ultimate load factor. Some aeroplanes carried a camera gun. The type saw long service as a special aerobatic trainer and eventually several examples found their way into Czechoslovakia's aero clubs.
The Avia BH-23 was a prototype night fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1926. The design was derived from the BH-21 day fighter, incorporating structural changes made to the BH-22 trainer, and the type was originally designated BH-22N. Searchlights and other night-flying equipment were added, but the Czechoslovak Air Force were not interested in the project and no sale resulted.
The Avia BH-29 was a trainer aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1927, in the hope of marketing it to both the Czechoslovakian Army, and to Czechoslovakian Airlines as a primary trainer. It was an conventional design, an unequal-span biplane of wooden construction and with tailskid undercarriage. The pilot and instructor sat in tandem open cockpits. A more powerful version was built, powered by a 120 hp (89 kW) Walter NZ-120 radial engine.
The Avia BH-33 was a biplane fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1927. It was based on the BH-21J which demonstrated promising results by combining the original BH-21 airframe with a licence-built Bristol Jupiter radial engine. Other than the peculiar Avia hallmark of having an upper wing with a shorter span than the lower, it was utterly conventional, even featuring a tail fin for the first time in a Pavel Beneš and Miroslav Hajn design.
The Letov Š-16 was a Czechoslovak single-engined, two-seat biplane bomber. It was designed by Alois Šmolík at Letov Kbely. The Š-16 first flew in 1926.
The Beneš-Mráz Be-50 Beta-Minor was a light airplane manufactured in Czechoslovakia shortly before World War II.
Praga E-39/BH-39 was a Czechoslovakian trainer aircraft.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.230 aircraft was the main elementary trainer for the French Armée de l'Air throughout the 1930s. Almost all French pilots flying for the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of World War II had had their earliest flight training in this machine. It was the equivalent of the Stearman trainer in the United States air services and the de Havilland Tiger Moth in the British Royal Air Force.
The Avia B.122 was a Czechoslovak single-seat biplane aerobatic aircraft, which was developed in the mid-1930s. It saw some service in the first years of World War II.
The Nieuport-Delage NiD.29 was a French single-seat biplane fighter designed and built by Nieuport-Delage for the French Air Force.
The Letov Š-20 was a fighter aircraft produced in Czechoslovakia during the 1920s.
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Praga E-41 . |