Heinkel HD 26
Heinkel · German Reich · first flew 1925 · reconnaissance aircraft
The Heinkel HD 26 was a single-seat reconnaissance floatplane developed by Heinkel for licensed production in Japan, intended as a warship spotter aircraft.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Mid-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 8.44 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Single-seat biplane floatplane sized for launch from a warship's catapult ramp
- Staggered wings and twin floats
- Open cockpit with no observer position, unlike most contemporary Heinkel reconnaissance seaplanes
A compact single-seat biplane floatplane, smaller than most contemporary Heinkel reconnaissance seaplanes since it carried no observer.
Specifications
- The Heinkel HD 26 has a length of 8.44 m (28 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 11.8 m (39 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 211 km/h (131 mph).
- Typical crew: 1.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
Designed as a smaller single-seat counterpart to the two-seat HD 25, the HD 26 pattern aircraft supplied to Aichi was powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8, while Aichi's own version used a locally built Bristol Jupiter engine and became the Navy Type 2 reconnaissance seaplane. Launching ramps were fitted to the battleship Nagato and the cruiser Furutaka for trials, but both the HD 25 and HD 26 were already obsolete by the time testing was complete.
Variants
The Japanese production version, built by Aichi, differed mainly in its locally sourced engine.
Where you'll see it
Overtaken by newer designs before wide adoption, no HD 26 survives today.
Related aircraft
- Heinkel HD 14
- Heinkel HD 21
- Heinkel HD 22
- Heinkel HD 24
- Curtiss O-1E Falcon
- Potez 25 TOE
- Aero A.15
- Loening OA-1A
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