Top speed 330 km/h Length 7.62 m Manufacturer ČKD-Praga | Wingspan 9.25 m First flight July 19, 1932 | |
The Praga BH-44 (designated E-44 by the Czechoslovak Air Force) was a prototype Czechoslovak fighter biplane of the early 1930s. Only two were built, the rival Avia B-34 being ordered instead.
Contents
Design and development
In 1932, ČKD-Praga, the aircraft department of the Czechoslovak company Praga, entered a competition to design a new fighter for the Czechoslovak Air Force, with its design, the BH-44, competing against designs from Avia (the B-34) and Letov (the Š-231). The BH-44 was a single-bay biplane of mixed construction, with wooden wings and a fabric covered, steel-tube fuselage. Powerplant was a single Praga ESV water-cooled V12 engine.
The first prototype made its maiden flight on 19 July 1932. Performance was unimpressive, as the engine delivered only 370 kilowatts (500 hp) instead of the promised 560 kilowatts (750 hp). A second prototype (sometimes called the EH-144), fitted with a supercharged Praga ESVK engine, flew in April 1934, but performance remained disappointing. The first prototype was therefore re-engined with a 480 kilowatts (650 hp) Rolls-Royce Kestrel VII, flying in this form on 30 October 1934, and as such was evaluated by the Czechoslovak Air Force as the E-44. The imported Kestrel engine worked poorly with the fuel used by the Air Force, however, and the type was rejected, the B-34 being purchased instead.
Specifications (ESV engine, performance estimated)
Data from The Complete Book of Fighters
General characteristics
Performance