The Arado SD III was a fighter biplane developed in Germany in the 1920s. It was developed in parallel with the SD II and shared most of that aircraft's airframe design. The main differences were connected with the powerplant installation, which in turn required a shorter forward fuselage and redesigned undercarriage. Evaluated at Staaken, Rechlin and finally at Lipetsk, it was judged unsuitable for mass production, but the lessons learned from it proved invaluable to Arado in designing the Ar 64 and Ar 65.

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: one, pilot
• Length: 7.75 m (25 ft 5 in)
• Wingspan: 9.90 m (32 ft 6 in)
• Height: 3.20 m (10 ft 6 in)
• Wing area: 23.0 m² (248 sq ft)
• Powerplant: 1 × Siemens-Halske licence-built Bristol Jupiter VI , 380 kW (510 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 225 km/h (140 mph, 120 kn)
• Rate of climb: 11.9 m/s (2,340 ft/min)

Armament

• 2 × fixed, forward-firing 7.92 mm (.312 in) machine guns

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

• Blériot-SPAD S.51
• Gloster Gamecock
• Hawker Woodcock

References

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 73.
• World Aircraft Information Files. Brightstar Publishing, London. File 889 Sheet 74
• German Aircraft between 1919 - 1945