Letov S.231
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Spanish Civil War - Republican Air Force

2nd Escadrille of the  71st Air Group

1937

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Function: fighter; Year:1933-36; Crew: 1; Engines: 1 * 560hp Bristol Mercury; Wing Span: 10.06m; Length: 7.90m; Empty Weight: 1280kg; Speed: 348 km/h; Ceiling: 9 000m; Range: 560 km; Armament: 4*mg 7.92mm (nose, wings), 6x20Kg bombs 


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The mainden  fight  of  the  prototype  of  S.231  (original
designated S.31A) was  made on  17th March  1933, with  test
pilot Kovanda at cintrols.  Some  changes  of  the  airframe
followed and the  test fights  continued. On  July 21st  the
prototype was taken over by Military Technical Air Institute
in Prague  -  Letnany  for  official  flight-tests.  Shortly
after, by dive-fight-tests,  the prototype crashed,  killing
the test pilot Srg. R.  Cernin. It showed that the  rigidity
of the airframe was not sufficient, atthough the results  of
previous break-tests were  acceptable.  After  the  dealings
between Ministry of National  Defence and  Letov Factory  in
1933, the second prototype and  the series  of twenty  three
S.231 was ordered. Durnig  1934  the  second  prototype  was
intensively tested by MTAI and on November 3rd the  official
permission for series production  was issued.  The price  of
series-production S.231 was 264000  Kc. In  1936 the  planes
werw taken  over by  military comissionand  since June  1934
they were supplied to  the 2nd Air  Regiment in Olomouc  and
allocated to 35th and 36th Squadrons (code letters F and G).

Letov S.231 fighter planes served by the 2nd Air Regiment in
Olomouc for abouth two years  only. By the  end of 1936  and
early 1937 they  were concentrated  in Prague  - Letnany  in
Letov  Factory,  where  they  were  dismantled,  packed  and
delivered to Republican Spain.

The first seven of  them reached Bilbao  in late 1936.  They
were assembled on  the base Santander.  However the lack  of
any assembly instructions,  flight instructions etc.  caused
the troubles and disappointment  for the Spanish  personnel.
All was necessary to do  by way  of trial.  The planes  were
transported to the airfield Carreno. Two of them crashed due
to too long takeoff runs, the next two crashed under similar
circumstances shortly after that. The three remaining planes
werw used operationally. Their pilots werw Miguel  Zambudio,
Berbero Olmos and Juan Olmos. The latter was taken, togather
with his plane, POW in May 1937. One S.231 was destroyed  by
bomb on the  airfield Gijon  and the  last one  fell in  the
hands of Nationalists in Santander.

About ten futher S.231s appeared in Cartagne in the  second
half of 1937. They equipped  the 2nd Escadrille of the  71st
Air Group under  command of  Capitain Jose  Bastida. One  of
this S.231s, coded CL-004, was  lost  over  France  after  a
navigation failure. Spanish S.231s  as said  to be  re-armed
with Wickers  MGs. Later  fates of  S.231s on  the 71st  Air
Group are not known, except  they ware destroyed in  Banolas
in February 1939, when the Spanish Civil War ceased.

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NEW origilal 3Dz model  by  Karel  Chvojka;
Cockpit SteveT adapted by Jan Tuma;
Skin by Karel Chvojka & Jan Tuma;
FLT files by Jan Tuma


Karel Chvojka
2/10/2002

Jan Tuma
4/10/2002

Letov S-231 in Czechoslovak camo:
http://mujweb.cz/www/tuma.eaw
tuma.eaw@atlas.cz