Though only some 100 or so Dornier Do 215's were produced, there were variants of note appearing throughout its production run. The Do 215 V1 was the initial prototype constructed from the Do 17 Z-0 and featured original Do 17 engines. The Do 215 V2 was the second prototype, this being fitted with French Gnome-Rhone 14-cylinder engines. The Do 215 V3 became the third prototype in the series, now fitted with German Daimler-Benz DB 601Ba inline piston engines.
The first production form became the eighteen Do 215 A-1's intended for use by the Swedish Air Force. Three of these were refitted (including the FuG 10 navigation system) for use by the German Luftwaffe under the new designation of Do 215 B-0. Likewise, the remaining fifteen of the original Swedish production batch fell under Luftwaffe operation with the designation of Do 215 B-1. The B-models would become the standard production models of the Do 215 series. The Do 215 B-2 were slightly revised Do 215's intended for the photographic reconnaissance role. There aircraft were fitted with three Rb 50/30 series cameras in the bomb bay and a sliding cover under the original bomb bay doors. The Do 215 B-3 was produced in only two examples, essentially the photo-reconnaissance Do 215 B-2's, produced for sale to the Soviet Union - the only two Do 215's not used by Germany. The Do 215 B-4 appeared as an "improved" reconnaissance platform developed from the Do 215 B-2 series models and were equipped with Rb 20/30 and Rb 50/30 series cameras.
Perhaps the most distinct form of the Do 215 became the Do 215 B-5 "Kauz III", a dedicated night-fighter built from Do 215 B-1 and Do 215 B-4 models. These aircraft featured the similar "Kauz II" noses found on the Dornier Do 17 Z-10's, fitted with an IR search light, antenna trees and "Spanner" infrared detection systems. Armament included 4 x 7.92mm MG 17 machine guns along with 2 x 20mm MG FF cannons all housed in the nose. The Spanner infrared detection system was later replaced by the FuG 202 Lichtenstein B/C series radar as the former proved to be of little operational value. Operation of this type ran from January of 1941 through May 1944.
In all, the Do 215 appeared in these major roles with only the reconnaissance and night-fighters making any impact of note for the German Luftwaffe. The aircraft was eventually succeeded by the Dornier Do 217, a medium/heavy bomber and night-fighter appearing from 1940 and onwards (all Do 215's were retired by the end of 1944). Official operators of the Do 215 included Germany, the Soviet Union and Hungary. Like the eighteen Do 215's intended for Sweden, an order of Do 215's to Yugoslavia (placed before the start of the war) were never completed for that country's use.
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