The EKW C-36 was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

multi-purpose combat aircraft of the 1930s and 1940s, built by the

Eidgenoessische Konstruktionswerkstaette ''Eidgenössische Konstruktionswerkstätte'' English: "Federal Constructions Works", short K+W, was a Swiss state-owned enterprise, with the aim of making the Swiss military independent of foreign sources for its equipment needs. It was establishe ...

. It was a single-engined

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 ...

with a crew of two. It entered service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in 1942, and despite being obsolete, remained in front line use until the early 1950s, and as a target tug until 1987.

Development and design

In 1935, the

Swiss Air Force The Swiss Air Force (german: Schweizer Luftwaffe; french: Forces aériennes suisses; it, Forze aeree svizzere; rm, Aviatica militara svizra) is the air component of the Swiss Armed Forces, established on 31 July 1914 as a part of the army and ...

developed a requirement for a replacement for the Fokker C.V-E biplanes, which were used as reconnaissance aircraft, escort fighters and patrol aircraft. To meet this requirement, the Swiss Federal Constructions Works (

EKW ''Eidgenössische Konstruktionswerkstätte'' English: "Federal Constructions Works", short K+W, was a Swiss state-owned enterprise, with the aim of making the Swiss military independent of foreign sources for its equipment needs. It was establishe ...

) proposed two designs, a modernised C.V, the

EKW C-35 The EKW C-35 was a 1930s Swiss two-seat reconnaissance biplane aircraft built by the Swiss Federal Construction Works (Eidgenoessische Konstruktionswerkstaette, K+W), Thun. Development Two aircraft were designed by the Eidgenössische Konstrukti ...

and an all new

, the C-36.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, p. 46. Orders for 80 C-35s were placed in 1936, but no decision was made about whether to order the C-36, with preference being given to the purchase of foreign twin-engined aircraft for the role, attempts been made to buy

Messerschmitt Bf 110 The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Des ...

s from Germany or

Potez 63 The Potez 630 and its derivatives were a family of twin-engined, multirole aircraft developed for the French Air Force in the late 1930s. The design was a contemporary of the British Bristol Blenheim (which was larger and designed purely as a ...

s from France. These attempts failed, however, and in 1938 approval was given for EKW to complete detailed design of the C-36 and to build a prototype. The first prototype, the C-3601, carried out its maiden flight on 15 May 1939. It was a low-winged

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 ...

monoplane of all-metal construction. It was powered by a single licence-built

Hispano-Suiza 12Y The Hispano-Suiza 12Y was an aircraft engine produced by Hispano-Suiza for the French Air Force before the Second World War. The 12Y became the primary French 1,000 hp (750 kW) class engine and was used in a number of famous aircraft, ...

engine driving a three-bladed variable-pitch propeller. A crew of two sat in tandem under a long, continuous canopy. The aircraft was fitted with a twin tail, and had a 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 ...

. The C-3601 crashed on 20 August 1939 due to wing flutter, but a second prototype, the C-3602, which had a more powerful engine and a

constant-speed propeller In aeronautics, a variable-pitch propeller is a type of propeller (airscrew) with blades that can be rotated around their long axis to change the blade pitch. A controllable-pitch propeller is one where the pitch is controlled manually by the p ...

flew on 30 November that year. Testing was successful, and orders were placed in 1940 for an initial batch of 10 C-3603 with a retractable undercarriage.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, pp. 47–48.

Operational history

The C-3603s, along with EKW D-3801s, fought off trespassing aircraft to defend Swiss neutrality, but were soon relegated to training and target-towing duties. The last variant of the C-36 aircraft family, the turboprop powered C-3605, had its maiden flight in 1968 remaining in service with the Swiss Air Force until 1988. Thanks to its Black and yellow striped colouration, the C-3605 was called "Flying Zebra Crossing".C-36 - The Swiss WWII Warbird
After retirement several aircraft were kept airworthy on the Civil aircraft register.

Variants

;C-3601 :First prototype with long-span wings, fixed undercarriage and powered by 641 kW (860 hp)

Hispano-Suiza 12YCrs The Hispano-Suiza 12Y was an aircraft engine produced by Hispano-Suiza for the French Air Force before the Second World War. The 12Y became the primary French 1,000 hp (750 kW) class engine and was used in a number of famous aircraft ...

engine.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, p. 47. ;C-3602: :Second prototype powered by 746 kW (1,000 hp) Hispano-Suiza 12 Y-51. ;C-3603 :Production version with retractable undercarriage, powered by Hispano-Suiza 12 Y-51. Armed by one 20mm Oerlikon ''moteur-canon'' cannon firing through propeller hub, two 7.5mm machine guns in the wings and two machine guns in the rear cockpit.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, p. 48. :;C-3603-0 ::Service trial aircraft with long-span (15.10 m (48 ft 6½ in)) wings. 10 built, of which 9 were later converted to C-3603-1 standard. :;C-3603-1 ::Main production version, with short span (13.74 m (45 ft 1 in)) wings. 142 built by 1944, plus further 6 assembled from spare parts in 1947–48. 20 converted to target tugs (''Schlepp'') from 1946 by Farner Werke, and 40 (including surviving original conversions) to improved standard by FFA and Farner from 1953–54.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, pp. 50, 52. ;C-3603-1 Tr ::Advanced trainer version. Two built.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, p. 50. ;C-3604 :More powerful and heavier armed derivative of C-3603, powered by 929 kW (1,245 hp) Saurer YS-2 (a more powerful Swiss development of the Hispano-Suiza 12Y-51) and carrying an extra two 20mm cannon in its wings. One prototype and twelve production aircraft built.Gruenenfelder and Francillon 2001, pp. 49–50. ; C-3605 :Turboprop version with

Lycoming T53 The Lycoming T53, (company designation LTC-1) is a turboshaft engine used on helicopters and (as a turboprop) fixed-wing aircraft since the 1950s. It was designed at the Lycoming Turbine Engine Division in Stratford, Connecticut, by a team he ...

engine (24 converted from C-3603-1). It was much larger and also more powerful than the C-3601, with a maximum speed of 560km/h or 296mph.

Operators

; *

Specifications (C-3603)

References

* * *

External links

Das Virtuelle Luftfahrtmuseum

{{Authority control 1930s Swiss attack aircraft C-036 Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1939 World War II aircraft of Switzerland