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Aviatik C.IX

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
C.IX
Oblique view of the second C.IX prototype
Role Reconnaissance aircraft
Manufacturer Aviatik
First flight 1918
Primary user Luftstreitkräfte
Number built 3

The Aviatik C.IX was a prototype German observation aircraft built by Aviatik in the final months of World War I.

Design

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The C.IX was a development of the C.VIII with a nine-cylinder Benz Bz.IV engine with a capacity of 200 hp. The aircraft's armament consisted of a synchronized 7.92-mm machine gun LMG 08/15 Spandau and one 7.92-mm machine gun LMG 14 Parabellum on a turret mounted in the rear cabin.

Three prototype aircraft were built (Wk.n. 6306/18-6308/18). The two prototypes had ailerons on both wings, while the third had ailerons only on the upper wing. The prototypes also differed from each other in the form of the tail.[1]

Specifications

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Data from German Aircraft of the First World War[2]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 7.3 m (23 ft 11 in)
  • Wingspan: 10.7 m (35 ft 1 in)
  • Height: 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in)
  • Wing area: 28 m2 (300 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 980 kg (2,161 lb)
  • Gross weight: 1,340 kg (2,954 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Benz Bz.IV 6-cylinder water-cooled in-line piston engine, 150 kW (200 hp)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 160 km/h (99 mph, 86 kn)
  • Cruise speed: 145 km/h (90 mph, 78 kn)
  • Endurance: 3 hours
  • Service ceiling: 4,500 m (14,800 ft)

Armament

  • Guns: 1 fixed, synchronized 7.92 mm (0.312 in) LMG 08/15 Spandau machine gun in the forward fuselage and a 7.92 mm Parabellum MG 14 machine gun on a flexible mount in the rear cockpit
  • Bombs: 60 kg

References

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  1. ^ "Aviatik C.IX".
  2. ^ Gray & Thetford, p. 283

Bibliography

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  • Gray, Peter & Thetford, Owen (1987) [1970]. German Aircraft of the First World War (2nd ed.). London: Putnam. ISBN 0-85177-809-7.
  • Herris, Jack (2023). Aviatik Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes. Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 10 (2nd ed.). n.p.: Aeronaut Books. ISBN 978-1-953201-59-1.

Further reading

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  • Taylor, Michael J.H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopaedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. ISBN 978-0-517-69186-1.