Dornier Do 317

Do 317

Manufacturer: Dornier Flugzeugwerke
First flight: September 1943
Primary user: Luftwaffe
Number built: 6
Developed from: Dornier Do 217

The Dornier Do 317 was a planned German heavy bomber of World War II.

Design and development

In June 1940, Dornier produced plans for further development of the Do 217, which would have a pressurized cabin and more powerful engines (DB 604 or Jumo 222) and would be designated the Do 317. The Do 317 was one of the proposals submitted to the RLM for the "Bomber B" project. Two versions of the Do 317 were proposed: the simplified Do 317A powered by two DB 603A engines and featuring conventional defensive armament, and the more advanced Do 317B with DB 610A/B engines, remotely-controlled defensive barbettes, heavier bombload, and an extended wing.

Six prototypes of the Do 317A were ordered, and the first of these, the Do 317 V1, commenced its flight test program on 8 September 1943. The Do 317 V1 was very similar in appearance to the Do 217, but featured a pressurized cabin and triangular tail fins. Trials with the Do 317 V1 revealed no real performance advance over the Do 217, so it was decided to complete the remaining five prototypes without cabin pressurization equipment and employ them as Henschel Hs 293 missile launchers. In this form the prototypes were redesignated Do 217R. At this time, the Do 317B project was abandoned due to changing wartime conditions.

Specifications

Do 317A

General characteristics

Crew: 4
Length: 16.80 m (55 ft 1½ in)
Wingspan: 20.63 m (67 ft 8½ in)
Height: 5.44 m (17 ft 10½ in)
Powerplant: 2x— DB 603A 12-cylinder inverted-vee engine, 1,305 kW (1,750 hp) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 600 km/h (373 mph)
Range: 3,980 km (2,470 mi)
Service ceiling: 9,800 m (32,150 ft)

Armament

3 x— 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine gun in upper turret, rear dorsal, and rear ventral positions
2 x— 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 81 machine gun in nose
1 x— 15 mm (.59 in) MG 151 cannon in nose
Up to 3,000 kg (6,612 lb) of disposable stores

Do 317B

General characteristics

Crew: 4
Length: 16.80 m (55 ft 1½ in)
Wingspan: 26.00 m (85 ft 3½ in)
Height: 5.44 m (17 ft 10½ in)
Max takeoff weight: 24,000 kg (52,910 lb)
Powerplant: 2x— DB 610A/B 24-cylinder inverted-vee engine, 2,140 kW (2,870 hp) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 670 km/h at 7,620 m (416 mph at 25,000 ft)
Cruise speed: 537 km/h (334 mph)
Range: 3,600 km (2,237 mi)
Service ceiling: 10,515 m (34,500 ft)

Armament

4 x— 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine gun in forward and rear dorsal turrets
2 x— 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 81 machine gun in nose barbette
1 x— 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon in tail barbette
Up to 9,200 kg (20,282 lb) of disposable stores

Related development

Dornier Do 217

Comparable aircraft

Focke-Wulf Fw 191
Junkers Ju 288

Griehl, M. Dornier Do 217-317-417: an Operation History. Airlife, 1991.
Green, W. Warplanes of the Third Reich. Galahad Books, 1986.
D. Herwig & H. Rode Luftwaffe Secret Projects - Ground Attack & Special Purpose Aircraft. ISBN 1-85780-150-4

Dornier Do 317 Pictures

More aircraft.

Source: WikiPedia