Ikarus pre-war projects

[bigvlada]

The Ikarus aircraft factory was founded in Novi Sad in 1923 but later moved to Zemun (municipality of Belgrade) because of the better infrastructure. It produced various domestic and foreign aircraft under license. It's most famous prewar aircraft is the Ikarus Ik-3, the best Yugoslav prewar fighter.
This picture is the picture of the Ikarus Ik-1, the prototype which spawned the Ik-2 production model aircraft.

 

[bigvlada]

Ikarus ŠM (školski mornarički - navy trainer) was the basic hydroplane trainer and reconnaissance aircraft. The pilots called it šimika (I don't know the English word for it, it's the name of the piece of fabric that is found on the top of the shoe. Spats? )

 

[bigvlada]

Ikarus IO (izviđač obalni - coastal reconnaissance plane) was similar project to Ikarus ŠM. The amusing thing is that both were built in Novi Sad which is a few hundred kilometers away from nearest sea. The Danube had to pose as Adriatic sea.

 

[bigvlada]

If you are interested, on this page there is detailed explanation how to build Ikarus ŠM
http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=6429
A few additional photos of Ikarus ŠM.

 

[bigvlada]

More ŠM photos

 

[bigvlada]

Most of the photos are from Kumbor, town in Boka Kotorska gulf, Montenegro.

 

[Justo Miranda]

The Ikarus aircraft factory was founded in Novi Sad in 1923 but later moved to Zemun (municipality of Belgrade) because of the better infrastructure. It produced various domestic and foreign aircraft under license. It's most famous prewar aircraft is the Ikarus Ik-3, the best Yugoslav prewar fighter.
This picture is the picture of the Ikarus Ik-1, the prototype which spawned the Ik-2 production model aircraft.

Some additional infofrom
-Le Fanatique de lÁviation.
-Profile nº 242
-YASIG March 1998

 

[bigvlada]

Thanks Justo, I haven't seen some of these photographs.
I've mentioned the SIM VIII (twoseated tourist plane - 2 prototypes built) and Ikarus Orkan (1 prototype - two engine destroyer) before and in other threads.
Another interesting craft was Ikarus MM-2 advanced trainer. In late thirties VVKJ (Vojno Vazduhoplovstvo Kraljevine Jugoslavije - Royal Yugoslav Air Force) realized it needed an advanced trainer plane. They had Me 109 in their inventory, IK-3 was getting ready for production and Hurricane MK1 (one with DB 601 engine)was also produced under license, but there were no trainers with retractable wheels, closed cabin, flaps and other modern equipment. They wanted Yugoslav Arado Ar 96 or North American AT-6 Harvard.
There were two stages, M1 and M2 before the final MM2 design was approved. The main requirement in the design was that only domestic component were to be used (importing anything in 1940 was not an option). In the end only one prototype was built before the brief April war.

 

[bigvlada]

Some additional IK-2 drawings.

 

[cluttonfred]

That MM-2 is new to me and quite lovely. It's not clear to me how the gear retracted, though...what sort of mechanism and in which direction?

Thanks Justo, I haven't seen some of these photographs.
I've mentioned the SIM VIII (twoseated tourist plane - 2 prototypes built) and Ikarus Orkan (1 prototype - two engine destroyer) before and in other threads.
Another interesting craft was Ikarus MM-2 advanced trainer. In late thirties VVKJ (Vojno Vazduhoplovstvo Kraljevine Jugoslavije - Royal Yugoslav Air Force) realized it needed an advanced trainer plane. They had Me 109 in their inventory, IK-3 was getting ready for production and Hurricane MK1 (one with DB 601 engine)was also produced under license, but there were no trainers with retractable wheels, closed cabin, flaps and other modern equipment. They wanted Yugoslav Arado Ar 96 or North American AT-6 Harvard.
There were two stages, M1 and M2 before the final MM2 design was approved. The main requirement in the design was that only domestic component were to be used (importing anything in 1940 was not an option). In the end only one prototype was built before the brief April war.

 

[bigvlada]

I'm not certain either. A few articles I've read do not mention this. The situation is much clearer with first M-1 design. But, because the plane was rushed (it was completed mere days before the April war) perhaps the wheels did not retract at all.

 

[bigvlada]

If you wander why seaplanes were the first projects, and in Novi Sad no less, here's the interesting story about the founder of Ikarus, Dimitrije Konjović.
His brothers were renown composer Petar Konjović and painter Milan Konjović. Being a K und K citizen, he finished the military academy in Pula.
Here comes the fun part, on Septemebr 15th, 1916, Konjović and his wingman Walter Zhelezny,were on patrol in south Adriatic, flying the Lohner L seaplane (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lohner_L) searching for allied navy which in that period began transporting the serbian army from Albania to greek island of Corfu.
They spotted, bombarded and sunk the French submarine Focault Q-70. This event could be the first time that a submarine was sunk by airplane on the open sea. There were no casualties because the French managed to exit the submarine. Konjović landed his Lohner L and the French sailors managed to grab onto plane untill the Austrohungarian boats arrived to pick them up. As was the custom back then, the officers were given a banquet before being transferred to p.o.w. camp. In 1968 Konjović received a french commendation for saving the sailors.
After the war, Novi Sad became the capital of Serbia's(and Yugoslavia's) northern province, Vojvodina. A lot of aircraft inventory was left in Novi Sad and in subsequent years several projects were built using austrian designs such as small and medium brandenburgs. Ikarus IO and ŠM seaplanes were inspired bz Lohner L.
Konjović was a good businessman and by the end of 1940 Ikarus had a large factory, lots of successful designs and over 3000 employees. A Yugoslav version of Howard Hughes. He survived the war and acted as an interim director of the devastated Ikarus plant. But since being capitalist wasn't an option in a socialist country, he was forced to give his shares in Ikarus (alongside other shareholders) to the government. In later years, he occupied himself with agriculture and moved back in Belgrade when he decided to retire. He died in 1982. Twice married, with four children, he lived a full life.

 

[bigvlada]

two more pictures of Ikarus mm2

 

[bigvlada]

Pictures of the twin engined Ikarus Ik-5 were submitted in several threads, but I'll put them here, along with technical data for Ik-2, Ik-3 and Ik-5
Ik-5 was a heavy fighter prototype and the logic behind it was similar to Me 110. He would accompany license built Do 17's and Bristol Blenheim's on bombing missions. The first flight was planned for autumn of 1941. Interesting bit was that Igor Sikorsky visited Yugoslavia in 1940 and was shown the IK-5 blueprints. He stated that Ik-5 would be the one of the outstanding aircraft in its class in the world. With top speed of 670km/h (420 mph) and all metal construction, it was the pinnacle of prewar Yugoslav design. First series of 15 aircraft was planned but only one fuselage without wings was completed. It would have used Hispano-Suiza h38/39 engines and one pair, intended for the prototype arrived before the April war.

 

[robunos]

I'm assuming that the Ik-5 was a single-seater?
What armament was it meant to carry?
It reminds me an awful lot of the Westland Whirlwind...
Do you have the spec sheet you posted in higher resolution?

cheers,
Robin.

 

[bigvlada]

Not exclusively, the requirements called for an aircraft that can do a variety of roles in both single and double pilot configurations: fighting, long range reconnaissance, photographic reconnaissance, destroyer (Me 110 role) and training.
Fuselage: Steel tube frame faired to an oval section by formers. Sheet metal covering. Plans were in hand to introduce a monocoque structure. Fuselage ventral air brakes were to have been fitted. The enclosed cockpit was to have been equipped for all weather operations. Cameras were also specified and dual controls for trainer version.
Mainplane: One piece, two-spar wing with sheet metal covering NACA 230-series aerofoil section. Ailerons and flaps also metal sheet covered.
Tail assembly: Conventional structure, control surfaces fitted with trim tabs and Flettner tabs.
Undercarriage: Retractable; Main legs, Messier type, retracted into engine nacelles.
Powerplant: two Hispano-Suiza H38/H39 (left and right hand turning to counteract torque) liquid cooled, 12-cylinder upright-Vee inline 1100hp engines driving three blade propellers.
Armamaent: three variants;
a battery of two 20mm Oerlikon cannons and four Browning FN 7,92mm machine guns in the nose
a battery of two 20mm Oerlikon cannons and four 12,7mm machine guns in the nose
a battery of four 20mm Oerliko cannons in the nose
All variants would be carrying four 50kg (110lbs) bombs on external carriers under the fuselage during the ground attack missions.

 

[robunos]

Thanks for the PDF and explanation, Bigvlada...


cheers,
Robin.

 

[hesham]

Hi,


here is the IK-3 early sketch,initial design,first prototype and second prototype drawings,
from the Avions magazine issue 149.

 

[bigvlada]

Two photographs, from paluba.info forum, taken last year on Partner 2013 military equipment fair in Belgrade. King Alexander I can be seen in the Ikarus ŠM in the first picture.

 

[hesham]

I'm not certain either. A few articles I've read do not mention this. The situation is much clearer with first M-1 design. But, because the plane was rushed (it was completed mere days before the April war) perhaps the wheels did not retract at all.

Hi,


here is a clearer view to M-1 and a sketch for it,also the MM-2 tunnel model.


Avion MIMA-2

 

[Jjr]

Bigvlada mentioned under MM-2 that theywere interrested in the Arado and the North american trainers.
But he is not mention the Dutch Koolhoven F.K.56.
There are not much details left concerning Koolhoven because the factory was in May 1940 destroyed so also the archive.
In March they did a reservation for two civil registrations for two F.K.56, these were under construction for Yugoslavia.
This were the serials: PH-AZA with constructionnumber 5633 and the PH-AZB with constructionnumber 5634.
Were these ordered for test purposes or should they be used as they were build under license?

Are there somewhere in archives of the former Yugoslavian Air Force any details?
Who can be of any help?
Jjr

 

[brewerjerry]

Hi
From 'googling'

it appears from images there was a single seat and what appears to be a 'bf110' type setup as well

Cheers
Jerry

 

[majevica]

 

[hesham]

From, IKARUS-IKARBUS Monografija 1923-1998,

what was this ?.

 

[Apophenia]

From, IKARUS-IKARBUS Monografija 1923-1998,

what was this ?.

The 1924 Ikarus ŠB, a reverse-engineered Hansa Brandenburg B.1 for use as a military trainer.

 

[robertino]

Yes
Šm (šb) - školski brodski, or školski mornarički

 

[hesham]

Hi,

Ikarus MM-2

With the emergence of new fighter planes in the years leading up to the Second World War, it became necessary to replace the older biplane trainer aircraft, which were too slow, in order to efficie…

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