Race Planes of the thirties - The PZL 19

By Willie Bodenstein

26.03.2023



Designed in 1931 by Polish nationals Jerzy Dabrowski and Franciszek Misztal the PZL.19 sport aircraft powered by a 120 hp de Havilland Gipsy III straight engine was specifically designed for the upcoming Challenge 1932 contest held that year in Germany. Of modern construction the crew of three sat in an enclosed canopy of the all-metal cantilever low-wing monoplane with a fixed landing gear.

Three PZL.19s took part in the Challenge in August 1932. In a technical evaluation they were bested only by another Polish entrant, the RWD-6. However, in the technical trials and the race part they were less successful. Jerzy Bajan finished on the 11th place, Ignacy Giedgowd 18th while Boleslaw Orlinski withdrew from the race due to illness. Despite its failure in the Challenge which was won by the Polish RWD-6, it was regarded as a successful machine and took part in several Polish and international contests.



In May 1933, Jerzy Bajan and Piotr Dudzinski flew two PZL-19s 4063 km from Warsaw, through Kharkov, Leningrad and Lwów to Vienna where they took part in the 1st Alpen Flight international contest finishing 1st and 2nd place.

General characteristics
Crew: 1
Capacity: 1 or 2 pax / 314 kg (692 lb) payload
Length: 7.15 m (23 ft 5 in)
Wingspan: 10.42 m (34 ft 2 in)
Height: 2 m (6 ft 7 in)
Wing area: 16 m2 (170 sq ft)
Empty weight: 475 kg (1,047 lb)
Gross weight: 800 kg (1,764 lb)
Fuel capacity: 140 L (37 US gal; 31 imp gal) in wing tanks and 9 L (2.4 US gal; 2.0 imp gal) collector tank in the fuselage
Powerplant: 1 × De Havilland Gipsy III 4-cylinder inverted air-cooled in-line piston engine, 89 kW (120 hp) for take-off
78 kW (105 hp) normal / max continuous
Propellers: 2-bladed Ratier variable-pitch propeller

Performance
Maximum speed: 228 km/h (142 mph, 123 kn) at sea level
Cruise speed: 195 km/h (121 mph, 105 kn)
Landing speed: 65 km/h (40 mph; 35 kn)
Range: 1,000 km (620 mi, 540 nmi)
Ferry range: 5,000 km (3,100 mi, 2,700 nmi)
Service ceiling: 4,000 m (13,000 ft)
Rate of climb: 4 m/s (790 ft/min)
Wing loading: 50 kg/m2 (10 lb/sq ft)
Power/mass: 1.1337 kW/kg (0.6896 hp/lb)
History
Classic Aircraft







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