Darmstadt D-18

Akaflieg Darmstadt · Germany · first flew 1929 · light aircraft

The Darmstadt D-18 was a German light sports aircraft designed and built in the late 1920s by the Akaflieg Darmstadt of the Technische Universität Darmstadt.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, straight
E — Engines	1 × piston, nose-mounted
F — Fuselage	6.14 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

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Spot it by:

Cantilever biplane of extreme stagger, with the upper wing ahead of the lower
Two crew in tandem cockpits, later under a common canopy
Five-cylinder radial engine in a cowled nose with the cylinders projecting for cooling

A small, streamlined plywood biplane with extreme stagger, the small upper wing sitting low above the fuselage and ahead of the lower wing.

Specifications

The Darmstadt D-18 has a length of 6.14 m (20 ft).
It has a wingspan of 7.2 m (24 ft).
Its maximum speed is 200 km/h (124 mph).
Typical crew: 2.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

It was designed by F. Fecher and students as a development of the D-16 project, which had won a 1926 Idaflieg contest. The D-18 had a more powerful 88 hp Armstrong Siddeley Genet radial, and a single aircraft was built in 1929.

Variants

Only one aircraft was built, registered D-1561. It was initially open, but by 1930 it had been fitted with a closed canopy over both cockpits.

Where you'll see it

It was one of the fastest aircraft in the Challenge 1929 contest and the best in the fuel consumption trial, but dropped out after a forced landing near Września. Rebuilt with an enclosed cabin, it ditched in the Mediterranean in the Challenge 1930 after a piston broke.

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