Avia BH-7

BH-7
Role	Fighter
Manufacturer	Avia
Designer	Pavel Beneš and Miroslav Hajn
First flight	1923
Number built	2

The Avia BH-7 was a prototype fighter aircraft built in Czechoslovakia in 1923. It was a parasol-wing monoplane developed in tandem with and as an alternative to the BH-6, which shared its fuselage and tail design. Like the BH-6, the BH-7 was involved in a number of serious crashes during its test programme, which led to its abandonment as a fighter. Undaunted, however, Avia used the design as the basis for a racing aircraft, shortening the wingspan by 1.4 m (4 ft 7 in) and fairing it directly into the top of the fuselage and dispensing with the cabane struts. This revised version was designated BH-7B and the fighter (retrospectively) as the BH-7A. When the design proved no more successful as a racer it was finally put to rest.

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: one pilot
• Length: 6.84 m (22 ft 5 in)
• Wingspan: 10.40 m (34 ft 1 in)
• Height: 2.83 m (9 ft 3 in)
• Wing area: 18.2 m² (195 ft²)
• Empty weight: 855 kg (1,885 lb)
• Gross weight: 1,150 kg (2,537 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Skoda licence-built Hispano-Suiza 8Fb Vee-8, 310 kW (231 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 240 km/h (149 mph)
• Range: 480 km (300 miles)
• Service ceiling: 8,000 m (26,200 ft)
• Rate of climb: 6.7 m/s (1,312 ft/min)

Armament

• 2 × fixed, forward-firing .303 Vickers machine guns

See also

Related development

BH-6

References

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 86.
• World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 889 Sheet 86.
• Němeček, V. (1968). Československá letadla. Praha: Naše Vojsko.
• airwar.ru