The Ago Ao 192 ''Kurier'' was a small

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

twin-engined aircraft designed and built by AGO Flugzeugwerke in the 1930s. A small production run of six aircraft followed three prototypes, these being used as transports.

Development and design

The AGO Flugzeugwerke was re-established at

Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...

in 1934, with its first design a multi-purpose light-twin-engined aircraft offered against the same requirement for a light aircraft that produced the

Gotha Go 146 The Gotha Go 146 was a twin-engine utility aircraft developed in Germany in the mid-1930s. It was a conventional low-wing cantilever monoplane with tailwheel undercarriage, the main units of which retracted into the engine nacelles on the wings. ...

and

Siebel Fh 104 The Siebel Fh 104 Hallore was a small German twin-engined transport, communications and liaison aircraft built by Siebel. Design and development In 1934, the Klemm Leichtflugzeugbau set up a new factory at Halle, for production of all-metal ai ...

.Smith and Kay 1972, p.578. AGO's design, the Ao 192, 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 cant ...

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 con ...

of all-metal construction. Its

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

fuselage accommodated a crew of two pilots who sat side by side in an enclosed

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopte ...

, while there were seats for five passengers in a separate cabin. It was powered by two 179 kW (240 hp)

Argus As 10 The Argus As 10 was a German-designed and built, air-cooled 90° cylinder bank-angle inverted V8 "low power" aircraft engine, used mainly in training aircraft such as the Arado Ar 66 and Focke-Wulf Fw 56 Stösser and other small short-range r ...

and had a retractable

tailwheel undercarriage Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...

. The first prototype made its maiden flight in mid-1935, soon being followed by a second aircraft, similar to the first. A third prototype, with a deeper fuselage allowing an additional passenger to be carried, more powerful engines and a revised undercarriage, formed the basis for the planned Ao 192B civil transport, with versions planned to serve as light transports, ambulance aircraft and survey aircraft. In addition, a number of military variants were proposed, including a light reconnaissance aircraft and a light bomber. AGO had large orders for licence-built aircraft for the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

however, with much of their wartime work involved with Focke-Wulf, and only six AGO production aircraft could be built.

Operational history

The six production aircraft were acquired by the German state, with one being used as the personal transport of Dr

Robert Ley Robert Ley (; 15 February 1890 – 25 October 1945) was a German politician and labour union leader during the Nazi era; Ley headed the German Labour Front from 1933 to 1945. He also held many other high positions in the Party, including ''Gaul ...

, the head of the

Reichsarbeitdienst The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major organisation established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate it with Nazi ...

, while others were used as transports by the

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

and at the test-centre at

Rechlin Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, around 100 km (60 mi) northwest of Berlin. The town's airport has a long history and was the Luftwaffe's main testing ground for new aircraft designs in Nazi Germany. ...

Variants

;Ao 192 V1 :First prototype. Argus As 10 C engines. ;Ao 192 V2 :Second prototype, revised, braced, tailplane. ;Ao 192 V3 :Third prototype. Argus As 10E engines, revised fuselage and undercarriage. ;Ao 192B :Production series based on V3. Six built.

Specifications (Ao 192B)

Notes

References

* *"Plane Facts". '' Air International'', June 1977, Vol 12 No 6. p. 306. *Smith, J.R. and Kay, Antony J. ''German Aircraft of the Second World War''. London: Putnam, 1990. .

External links

AGO Ao 192

- In Polish {{RLM aircraft designations 1930s German civil utility aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1935 Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft Ao 192