Avia BH-26

The Avia BH-26, constructed in Czechoslovakia in 1927, was an armed reconnaissance aircraft with seating for two individuals.

This biplane had wings of equal span and a fixed tailskid undercarriage, featuring a single bay and no staggering.

Notably, both the upper and lower wings were equipped with long span ailerons, which were balanced by a small auxiliary airfoil mounted on the upper surface of the lower ailerons.

The design of the BH-26 followed the typical style of aircraft built during World War I and the subsequent years.

The pilot and observer occupied tandem open cockpits, with the observer being armed with a machine gun mounted on a ring.

Initially, the BH-26 lacked a fixed fin, only having a rudder.

However, this was later modified during its service.

Specifications

Crew

2

Length

8.93 m (29 ft 4 in)

Wingspan

10.8 m (35 ft 5 in)

Height

3.35 m (11 ft 0 in)

Wing area

31 m2 (330 sq ft)

Empty weight

1,080 kg (2,381 lb)

Gross weight

1,760 kg (3,880 lb)

Fuel capacity.

380 kg (840 lb) fuel and oil

Powerplant

1 × Walter-built Bristol Jupiter, 9-cylinder air cooled radial piston engine,

340 kW (450 hp)

Propellers

2 bladed fixed pitch propeller

Performance

Maximum speed

250 km/h (160 mph, 130 kn)

Stall speed

90 km/h (56 mph, 49 kn)

Range

530 km (330 mi, 290 nmi)

Service ceiling

7,500 m (24,600 ft)

Rate of climb

6.3 m/s (1,240 ft/min)

Time to altitude

5,000 m (16,000 ft) in 13 minutes 20 seconds

6,000 m (20,000 ft) in 17 minutes 30 seconds

7,000 m (23,000 ft) in 27 minutes

Wing loading

55.6 kg/m2 (11.4 lb/sq ft)

Power/mass

0.205 kW/kg (0.125 hp/lb)

Armament

Guns

2 x fixed forward firing synchronised 7.7 mm Vickers machine guns in the forward fuselage upper decking.

&

2 x 7.7 mm Lewis guns on a flexible mount in the rear cockpit.

Sources
Czechoslovakian Air Force, 1918-1970, Aircam Aviation Special 05-Richard Ward, Zdenek Titz & Gordon C. Davies.

Ceskoslovenské Letectvo, 1918-1924-Jiří Rajlich & Jiří Sehnal