The Hansa-Brandenburg B.I was an unarmed military trainer and

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, flown by the

Austro-Hungarian Air Service The Austro-Hungarian Aviation Troops or Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops (german: Kaiserliche und Königliche Luftfahrtruppen or , hu, Császári és Királyi Légjárócsapatok) were the air force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the ...

. Early models were known internally to the

Hansa-Brandenburg Hansa und Brandenburgische Flugzeugwerke (more usually just Hansa-Brandenburg) was a German aircraft manufacturing company that operated during World War I. It was created in May 1914 by the purchase of ''Brandenburgische Flugzeugwerke'' by Cami ...

firm as the type D, while later models with a more powerful engine were designated FD. This aircraft was one of the earliest designs of

Ernst Heinkel Dr. Ernst Heinkel (24 January 1888 – 30 January 1958) was a German aircraft designer, manufacturer, '' Wehrwirtschaftsführer'' in Nazi Germany, and member of the Nazi party. His company Heinkel Flugzeugwerke produced the Heinkel He 178, th ...

, who was working for Hansa-Brandenburg at the time. It was an entirely conventional two-bay biplane with staggered wings of unequal span. The pilot and observer sat in tandem in a long open cockpit. The aircraft was produced under license by

Aero Aero is a Greek prefix relating to flight and air. In British English, it is used as an adjective related to flight (e.g., as a shortened substitute for aeroplane). Aero, Ærø, or Aeros may refer to: Aeronautics Airlines and companies * Aero ...

, both during the war and afterwards (when it became known as the Aero Ae 01), and also by Letov, as the Š10.Krzysztof Chołoniewski, Wiesław Bączkowski (in Polish), ''Samoloty wojskowe obcych konstrukcji 1918-1939'' ilitary aircraft of foreign designs 1918-1939 Warsaw, WKiŁ, 1987. , p. 7 Experience gained with this design would provide Aero with the basis for a number of derivative civil and military designs throughout the 1920s. The design formed the basis for the C.I and C.II armed reconnaissance types.

Variants

''both variants shared the military designation B.I'' * D - initial version with Benz Bz.II engine * FD - later version with

Benz Bz.III The Benz Bz.III was a six-cylinder, water-cooled, inline engine developed in Germany for use in aircraft in 1914. Developing 112 kW (150 hp) at 1,400 rpm from 14.3 L (875 cu in),Smith 1981, p.53. it powered many German military aircraft ...

engine

Operators

; *

Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops The Austro-Hungarian Aviation Troops or Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops (german: Kaiserliche und Königliche Luftfahrtruppen or , hu, Császári és Királyi Légjárócsapatok) were the air force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the e ...

Austro-Hungarian Navy The Austro-Hungarian Navy or Imperial and Royal War Navy (german: kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine, in short ''k.u.k. Kriegsmarine'', hu, Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet) was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Ships of the A ...

; * Polish Air Force (postwar, 15 aircraft) ; *

Czechoslovak Air Force The Czechoslovak Air Force (''Československé letectvo'') or the Czechoslovak Army Air Force (''Československé vojenské letectvo'') was the air force branch of the Czechoslovak Army formed in October 1918. The armed forces of Czechoslovakia ce ...

(postwar) ; *

Royal Hungarian Air Force The Hungarian Air Force ( hu, Magyar Légierő), is the air force branch of the Hungarian Defence Forces. The task of the current Hungarian Air Force is primarily defensive purposes. The flying units of the air force are organised into a single ...

; *

Yugoslav Royal Air Force The Royal Yugoslav Air Force ( sh-Latn, Jugoslovensko kraljevsko ratno vazduhoplovstvo, JKRV; sh-Cyrl, Југословенско краљевско ратно ваздухопловство, ЈКРВ; ( sl, Jugoslovansko kraljevo vojno letalstv ...

(postwar) *

Letalski center Maribor Letalski center Maribor short LCM (English: Aviation center Maribor) is the oldest and the biggest Slovenian general aviation aero club operating at international Maribor Airport operating with 11 aircraft and 11 gliders. Founded on December 20 ...

(postwar)

Survivors

Only a single Hansa-Brandenburg B.I has survived World War One, it is located in the Budapest Aviation Museum in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

Specifications (FD)

References

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External links