Dornier constructed a number of aircraft that
were later to be dubbed the "Flying Pencils" due mainly to the long thin
outline of the fuselage. probably the most famous, and the one that was
to take part in the Battle of Britain period was the Dornier 17. Because
of the fuselage shape, it was highly improbable that the aircraft was originally
designed as a passenger aircraft for the Lufthansa Airline. More than likely
the designers hoped that it would be accepted as a transport although many
believe that the aircraft was destined to become a mailplane that could
also carry four to six passengers.
The first flight of the Dornier was on
November 23rd 1934, and was rejected by Lufthansa and the prototypes were
left in a hangar, only to be discovered a few years later by Robert Untucht
who was the air ministry liaison officer, and a test pilot with Lufthansa.
he tested the Dornier, and believed that with modifications, the aircraft
would more than handle the role of a bomber in the military arena.
The original Do17 had a pair of 750 hp
BMW engines that propelled the aircraft at 225 mph, but after Robert Untucht
made the first modifications and by the time the Do17 had reached version
4, the BMW engines were retained, but the tailplane section had been redesigned
doing away with the single tailfin, and replacing it with double tailfins
and rudders. In an effort to increase speed even further, the version 5,
designated Do17Z V5 was equipped with Hispano engines, and although heavier
it managed to give the Dornier a top speed of 245 mph, which at the time,
was far greater than any fighter, and this was proven in 1937 when the
Do17 saw service in Spain, and outpaced all of the Republican fighter aircraft.
Modifications continued, the Do17Z V8 was
tied with the Daimler Benz DB 600A engines that were producing 1,000 horsepower.
, the Do17E was the first production bomber to see service with the Luftwaffe
and the designers reverted back to the 750 hp BMW V1 engines at the sacrifice
of a lower top speed. The Do17M was equipped with 1,000 hp Bramo 323A engines,
but otherwise stayed the same as the Do17E. With more powerful engines
coming out of a number of factories in Germany, the Do17K of which a number
were bought by Yugoslovia were powered by Gnome-Rhône 14N engines
and were amongst the fastest of the Dorniers by attaining a top speed of
259 mph.
The Spanish Civil War was to be the toughest
test yet on the Do17 bomber. It proved to be fast, in fact was fast enough
to outpace any enemy fighter, although it could not match Germany's own
Bf109, but one important lesson was learnt. It was vulnerable to enemy
gunfire, especially in the forward section. The nose had been shortened
on the Do17E and the Do17F variants, but the firing arc of the forward
gunner was restricted somewhat and the narrow diameter of the fuselage
of the Do17 which was how it became known as the "Flying Pencil" meant
cramped conditions for the cockpit area of the aircraft.
These lessons learnt, were applied to the
Do17U. The nose was severely cut down and the forward machine gun positioned
so that it had a complete arc of fire. An enlarged forward fuselage not
only gave existing crew more room, but allowed for an additional crew member
if required. All these modifications were to prove successful, and they
were put into the Do17Z in 1939. It was this variant that was to see service
throughout the battle of Britain and in operations during 1940 and 1941.
One of the Do17 variants, was modified as a night fighter and had a nose
section of a Ju88C fitted complete with cannon and machine guns. Additional
to that was the installation of a FLIR (Forward Looking Infra Red) detector,
said to be the worlds first. The first success of the use of the FLIR detector
was the shooting down of a Wellington bomber of RAF Bomber Command on the
night of October 16th/17th 1940 over the French-German border.
Dornier 17Z Specifications
Type |
Medium Range Medium Bomber/Night
Bomber/Reconnaissence |
Crew |
Five (sometimes four, depending
on variant) |
Power Plant |
2 x Bramo 323A 1,000 hp
radial engines |
Fuel Capacity |
1,550 litres (2,445 litres
with additional fuel tank) |
Unladen weight |
11,484 lbs |
Laden weight |
18,931 lbs |
Max Speed (16,500 ft) |
265 mph |
Cruising Speed (14,500 ft) |
236 mph |
Max range (Normal Load) |
745 miles |
Max range (with tanks) |
1,860 miles (with normal
load) |
Service Ceiling |
26,740 ft |
Armament |
1 x 20mm MG FF Cannon (on
some versions)
1 x 13mm MG 131 Machine
Gun (on some versions)
6 x 7.9mm MG 15 and/or MG
81Machine Guns
2,200 lb bombload (carried
internally) or
1,100lb bombload plus max
fuel (all carried internally) |
Wingspan |
59 feet |
Length |
53ft 5½in |
Height |
15ft 9in |
Wing Area |
592 sq ft |
|