Dornier Do 27

Do 27

Picture - Do 27 in Swiss Air Force markings

Role: STOL light utility aircraft
Manufacturer: Dornier Flugzeugbau GmbH
First flight: 27 June 1955
Status: In civilian use
Primary user: Luftwaffe
Number built: 628
Developed from: Dornier Do 25
Developed into: Dornier Do 28 Dornier Do 29

The Dornier Do 27 was a German single-engine STOL utility aircraft, manufactured by Dornier GmbH (later DASA Dornier, Fairchild-Dornier). Configuration was a classic high-wing, "tail-dragger" aircraft with fixed landing gear.

History

The Do 27 was developed from the Do 25, an aircraft originally designed to a Spanish military requirement for a light utility aircraft.

The Do 27 seated four to six and the original prototype first flew in Spain on 27 June 1955. Most production aircraft were built in Germany, the first taking flight on 17 October 1956. The remainder (50) were manufactured in Spain by Construcciones Aeronx¡uticas (CASA) as the CASA-127.

The German Luftwaffe (Air Force) and Heer (Army) ordered a total of 428 of the Do 27A and Do 27B (with dual controls).

A later version with the same basic specifications but equipped with wider track landing gear was known as the Do 27Q-5. The aircraft was offered as a twin-float seaplane, the Do 27S-1, and with a larger engine (254 kW/340 hp Lycoming GSO-480-B1B6) and a three-blade propeller as the Do 27H-2.

In addition to the military operators in Germany and Spain, Portugal received 40 new build and 106 ex-German aircraft. The Portuguese Air Force used these extensively in the colonial war in Portuguese Africa during the 1960s-70s. In Guinea, in April 1973 two Do 27s were shot down by SAM-7 Grail shoulder launched AAMs.

The Do 27 was notable for being the first mass-produced aircraft in Germany after World War II. It was appreciated for its relatively wide, comfortable cabin and excellent short-field performance.

Variants

Picture - Do 27 used by Bernhard Grzimek

Do 27A : Five-seat single-engine STOL utility transport aircraft.
Do 27B : Dual-control version.
Do 27H : Civil or military version, powered by a 254 kW (340 hp) Avco Lycoming GSO-480 piston engine.
Do 27Q-5 : Six-seat civil version.
Do 27Q-5(R) : Restricted category version of the Do 27Q-5.
Do 27Q-6 : Similar to the Do 27Q-5.
Do 27S : Floatplane version. Only one prototype was built.
Do 27T : One prototype fitted with a Turbomeca Astazou II turboprop engine.

Operators

Military Operators

Angola Belgium Belize

Belize Defence Force

Burundi Republic of the Congo Germany

Luftwaffe
German Army
German Navy

Guinea-Bissau Israel

Israeli Air Force

Mozambique Nigeria Portugal

Portuguese Air Force

Rwanda South Africa

South African Air Force operated 2 aircraft between 1958 - 1967.

Spain

Spanish Air Force

Sudan Sweden

Swedish Army

Switzerland

Swiss Air Force

Turkey

Specifications (Do 27Q-5)

Picture - Luftwaffe Do 27 on display in the Deutsches Museum

Data from Macdonald Aircraft Handbook

General characteristics

Crew: 1 or 2
Capacity: 4-6 passengers
Length: 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Wingspan: 12 m (39 ft 5 in)
Height: 2.80 m (9 ft 2 in)
Wing area: 19.4 m² (208.7 ft²)
Empty weight: 1,073 kg (2,365 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 1,850 kg (4,080 lb)
Powerplant: 1x— Lycoming GO-480-B1A6 6-cylinder piston engine, 201 kW (270 hp)

Performance

Never exceed speed: 333 km/h (180 kn, 207 mph)
Maximum speed: 232 km/h (125 kn, 144 mph)
Cruise speed: 211 km/h (114 kn, 131 mph)
Stall speed: 74 km/h (40 kn, 46 mph)
Range: 1,287 km (695 nmi, 800 mi)
Service ceiling: 3,290 m (10,800 ft)

Related development

Dornier Do 25
Dornier Do 28

Comparable aircraft

PZL-104 Wilga
Scottish Aviation Pioneer

Bibliography

Donald, David (Editor) (1997). The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. Aerospace Publishing. p. 341. ISBN 1-85605-375-X.
Green, William. Macdonald Aircraft Handbook. London. Macdonald & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., 1964.
Jackson, Paul A. German Military Aviation 1956-1976. Hinckley, Leicestershire, UK: Midland Counties Publications, 1976. ISBN 0-904597-03-2.

Dornier Do 27 Pictures

More aircraft.

Source: WikiPedia