The DAR 3 Garvan ('Raven' or 'Laz-3') was a 1930s Bulgarian single-engine, multipurpose reconnaissance and auxiliary aircraft.
Design and development
The aircraft was a multipurpose close air support biplane developed by the ''
Drjavna Aeroplane Rаbotilnitsa.'' It was intended to be a short-range
reconnaissance/
light bomber
A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance.
The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...
. The first
prototype
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...
was powered by a 400 hp (298 kW)
Lorraine-Dietrich 12D
The Lorraine 12D, also referred to as Lorraine-Dietrich 12D, was a series of water-cooled V12 engines produced by the French company Lorraine-Dietrich. The first variant began production in 1917, and the engines were used to power bombers for the ...
engine. During its early stages, the DAR 3(I) prototype suffered various modifications. It's
maiden flight occurred in 1927 and it was delivered in 1928. In 1930 the it was fitted with a
Gnome et Rhône Jupiter 9Akx radial engine. The second prototype came shortly after: the first prototype's
rudder and
fin were enlarged and its
undercarriage
Undercarriage is the part of a moving vehicle that is underneath the main body of the vehicle. The term originally applied to this part of a horse-drawn carriage, and usage has since broadened to include:
*The landing gear of an aircraft.
*The ch ...
was revised. A second aircraft known as the DAR 3(I bis.), refereed to as the third prototype, was built. It featured an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
Wright Cyclone engine and triangular pointed fin and was delivered in 1929.
Operational history
During the 1930s and 1940s, the DAR 3 was used for reconnaissance, army co-operation,
liaison and continuation training.
The DAR 3 also saw action over the
Balkans in 1944. After the crash of two Garvan-III aircraft, the Bulgarian Air Force handed the 10 remaining planes to the Yugoslavian Air Force.
Variants
; DAR 3(I)
: First and second prototypes.
; DAR 3(I bis.)
: Third prototype modified with Wright Cyclone engine and triangular pointed fin.
; DAR 3 Garvan-I
: Series 1 aircraft with open
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 ...
and one Wright Cyclone engine in a
Townsend ring.
; DAR 3 Garvan-II
: Series 2 aircraft with open cockpit, wheel
spats and one Siemens Jupiter VI engine, which was later retrofitted with the
Alfa Romeo 126 RC34 engine
and a hooded cockpit.
; DAR 3 Garvan-III
: Series 3 aircraft powered by one Alfa Romeo 126 RC34 engine
[http://cyber.breton.pagesperso-orange.fr/pdf/dar_3.pdf ] in longer
cowling. Featured a cockpit
canopy for the pilot but not for the gunner and a lengthened
fuselage.
Operators
*
Bulgarian Air Force
The Bulgarian Air Force ( bg, Военновъздушни сили, Voennovazdushni sili) is one of the three branches of the Military of Bulgaria, the other two being the Bulgarian Navy and Bulgarian land forces. Its mission is to guard and p ...
*
Yugoslavian Air Force
The Air Force and Air Defence ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Ратно ваздухопловство и противваздушна одбрана, Ratno vazduhoplovstvo i protivvazdušna odbrana ; abbr. sh-Cyrl-Latn, label=none, separator=/, РВ и ПВ ...
Specifications (DAR 3 Garvan-III)
References
{{reflist
Reconnaissance aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1926
Biplanes
Single-engined tractor aircraft