Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (Type D/FD) Reconnaissance Aircraft - History, Specs and Pictures

Authored By Staff Writer | Last Updated: 9/25/2009

The Hansa-Brandenburg B.I was designed by Ernst Heinkel and was an unarmed reconnaissance aircraft of World War 1.

Follow Military Factory on Facebook:

Trending on Military Factory:

Compare Aircraft
You Know You Want To

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles of the World Listing

UAVs
Eyes in the Skies

Top 10 Fighters
The Best of the Best

World War 2 Aircraft
Age of the Metal Monoplane

World War 1 Aircraft
Of Canvas and Wood

Vietnam War Aircraft
Last of the Gunfighters

Korean War Aircraft
Dance of the Jets

Recent Articles:

The BAe Systems Mantis Unmanned Aerial Vehicle serves as an important technology demonstrator for Europe

Lightweight by no means, the 7.58cm Minenwerfer was the most portable of the German trench mortars of WW1

Amidst budget constraints, the French Navy has managed to lease the all-modern L'Adroit P725 patrol vessel

The M108 of 1952 preceded the more famous M109 Paladin self-propelled gun series and saw action in Vietnam

Born as the M1 during World War 2, this howitzer became the M114 in 1962 and saw widespread use around the globe

The German invasion of 1941 was eventually undone with Soviet artillery such as the 100mm M1944 dual-role series

The EX 41 from Naval Ordnance Station Louisville became an abandoned multi-shot grenade launcher project

Whether known as the Blooper, Bloop Tube, Thumper or Thump-Gun, the M79 grenade launcher proved its worth

Temporarily unable to net itself F-16s or F-20s, Taiwan moved on to develop its own F-CK-1 "Ching-Kuo" fighter

When losses to IEDs started to mount, the US military turned to such MRAPs as the Navistar MaxxPro

Ernst Heinkel - whose German firm Heinkel would gain some level of notoriety in World War 2 - designed a series of reconnaissance aircraft for the Hansa-Brandenburg firm during World War 1. The B.I was one such aircraft, an unarmed two-seat reconnaissance platform that made its way to the frontlines for a time. Though a serviceable aircraft in her own right, the B.I went on to set the stage for the more capable C.I and C.II aircraft - these being armed reconnaissance versions with more capabilities - appearing from 1916 and onwards. First flight of the B.I occurred in 1914 with deliveries to the Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops of the Austro-Hungarian Empire thereafter.

The B.I fuselage took on a boxy-type appearance complete with slab sides, a straight-faced top and a somewhat-curved forward underside. The engine was fitted to the extreme forward of the design and powered a two-blade wooden propeller. As a biplane, the B.I featured an upper and lower wing assembly that saw both wings staggered in their placement and were of an unequal span (the upper assembly with a wider span). Each wing sported two bays with parallel struts and applicable cabling. The pilot sat direct aft of the engine compartment and behind and beneath the upper wing assembly. The pilot was accompanied by his observer who was situated directly behind him in a combined cockpit area - that is, there was not two distinct cockpits in the B.I, which was conventional in other two-seaters from other nations. The fuselage tapered off into the empennage that featured a single vertical tail fin and horizontal planes. The undercarriage of the B.I was nothing more than two braced and fixed main landing gear wheels coupled with a simple tail skid under the empennage. The B.I did not carry any armament for self-defense.

The B.I operated with an empty weight of 1,680lbs and a gross weight of 2,340lbs. Range was listed at 190 miles with a top speed equaling 78 miles per hour. A service ceiling of 10,500 feet was possible with a rate-of-climb of 430 feet-per-minute.

The B.I was produced in two major variants. While both retained their base military designation of "B.I", Hansa-Brandenburg assigned the company designations of "Type D" and "Type FD" to denote their difference in selected engines. The Type D model was the initial production form and powered by the Benz Bz.II series engine. The Type FD was the second production form and powered by the Benz Bz.III series engine of 160 horsepower.

Aero, a Czechoslovakian firm, produced the B.I in both wartime and in the after-years as the "Ae 10", with this experience proving priceless in development of other derivatives for the firm. Along with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Norway was another notable B.I user. Poland fielded the type in the post-war years with their Polish Air Force. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
MilitaryFactory.com does NOT sell equipment/weaponry. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Please consult manufacturers for such information. Our disclaimer. Email corrections / Comments to MilitaryFactory at Gmail dot com.

Picture of Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (Type D/FD)

View All Images (1)

Specifications for the
Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (Type D/FD)
Reconnaissance Aircraft

Country of Origin: Imperial Germany
Manufacturer: Hansa-Brandenburg - Germany
Initial Year of Service: 1914
Production: Not Available

Focus Model: Hansa-Brandenburg (Type FD)
Crew: 2

Length: 27.76ft (8.46m)
Width: 43.08ft (13.13m)
Height: 9.51ft (2.90m)
Weight (Empty): 1,676lbs (760kg)
Weight (MTOW): 2,337lbs (1,060kg)

Powerplant: 1 x Benz Bz.III 6-cylinder water-cooled inline engine of 160 horsepower.

Maximum Speed: 78mph (125kmh; 67kts)
Maximum Range: 186miles (300km)
Service Ceiling: 10,499ft (3,200m; 2.0miles)
Rate-of-Climb: 430 feet per minute (131m/min)

Hardpoints: 0
Armament Suite:
None.

Variants:
B.I(Type D) - Initial Production Model; fitted with the Benz Bz.II series engine.

B.I(Type FD) - Second Production Model; fitted with the Benz Bz.III series engine.

Operators:
Austria-Hungary; Poland; Norway

ALL AIRCRAFT CATEGORIES

BY DECADE:

• 1900 to 1909
• 1910 to 1919
• 1920 to 1929
• 1930 to 1939
• 1940 to 1949
• 1950 to 1959
• 1960 to 1969
• 1970 to 1979
• 1980 to 1989
• 1990 to 1999
• 2000 to 2009
• 2010 to 2019
• 2020 to 2029
• VIEW ALL