The Beneš-Mráz Bibi was a 1930s

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

two-seat touring aircraft.

Design and development

The Bibi was designed and manufactured by Beneš-Mráz, developed from the Beta-Minor design. The Bibi was a lighter, smaller aircraft in which the seats were side-by-side instead of in tandem, and the

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

s were fully enclosed, retaining the Beta-Minor's

cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a canti ...

low-wing

monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...

layout, with fixed

tailwheel undercarriage Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynami ...

. Development of the Bibi began with the Be-501 two-seat cabin tourer, and culminated with the Be-555 Super Bibi.Jackson 1974, p. 358

Operational history

One example of the Be-550 Bibi (OK-BET) was imported into the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, stored during World War II, then registered as ''G-AGSR'' until a fatal crash in 1951.

Variants

;Be-501 Bibi :Single seat, initial development aircraft for the Bibi cabin tourer. ;Be-502 Bibi :Single seat development prototype for the Bibi series. ;Be-550 Bibi :Initial production version introduced in 1936, with at least six built, including single exports to Egypt and the UK. ;Be-555 Super Bibi :The final iteration of the Bibi with many improvements. Production continued after the start of WWII, with at least ten built.

Specifications (Be-550)

Notes

References

* *Jackson, A.J. (1974). ''British Civil Aircraft since 1919''. Putnam * Němeček, V. (1968). ''Československá letadla''. Praha: Naše Vojsko. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Benes-Mraz Bibi 1930s Czechoslovakian sport aircraft Low-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft

Bibi Bibi is a given name, nickname and surname. Notable people with this name As a nickname or stage name * Bibi Andersson (1935-2019), Swedish actress * Bibi (artist) (born 1964), French visual artist Fabrice Cahoreau * Bibi Baskin (born 195 ...

Aircraft first flown in 1936