# PZL P.6
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{{Short description|Polish single-seat gull-wing monoplane fighter}}
{{Infobox aircraft
|name = PZL P.6
|image = Pzl p-6.jpg
|caption = PZL P.6
|type = [Fighter](/source/fighter_aircraft)
|manufacturer =[PZL](/source/Pa%C5%84stwowe_Zak%C5%82ady_Lotnicze)
|designer =Zygmunt Puławski
|first_flight = August 1930
|number_built = 1
|status =Prototype
|primary_user = [Polish Air Force](/source/Polish_Air_Force)
|developed_from = [PZL P.1](/source/PZL_P.1)
|variants = [PZL P.7](/source/PZL_P.7)
}}
The '''PZL P.6''' was a pre-WW2 Polish single-seat gull-wing monoplane fighter, designed by [Zygmunt Puławski](/source/Zygmunt_Pu%C5%82awski), and manufactured by the [Państwowe Zakłady Lotnicze (PZL)](/source/Pa%C5%84stwowe_Zak%C5%82ady_Lotnicze) state-owned factory. It remained a prototype and did not go into production.
==Design and development==
Zygmunt Puławski designed the all-metal metal-covered monoplane [PZL P.1](/source/PZL_P.1) fighter in 1928 which was powered with an inline engine, and developed a speed of {{cvt|302|km/h}}, but remained a prototype, because the [Polish Air Force](/source/Polish_Air_Force) decided that its fighters should be powered with a Polish-built [radial engine](/source/radial_engine). The next model '''PZL P.6''', was powered with a [Bristol Jupiter](/source/Bristol_Jupiter) VI FH radial engine.
The PZL P.6 flew for the first time in August 1930 with test pilot [Bolesław Orliński](/source/Boles%C5%82aw_Orli%C5%84ski) at the controls. It had a very similar wing to the P.1, but the [semi-monocoque](/source/semi-monocoque) fuselage was completely redesigned with an circular cross-section, and the tail was altered. The modifications reduced the aircraft's empty weight by over {{cvt|200|kg}}.
==Technical description==
The PZL P.6 was an all-metal [duralumin](/source/duralumin)-covered, strut-braced, [gull-wing](/source/Gull_wing) [monoplane](/source/monoplane). The forward fuselage was built around a tubular steel frame, while the rear fuselage was a circular semi-monocoque. The tapered two-spar wing which was thinner and narrower at the root was skinned with a ribbed and corrugated Wibault type duralumin sheet, and braced by a pair struts on either side. The open cockpit was provided with a windscreen but no headrest. The [Bristol Jupiter](/source/Bristol_Jupiter) VI FH radial engine mounted in front was fitted with a [Townend ring](/source/Townend_ring) to reduce drag and used a fixed pitch two-bladed metal propeller. Puławski abandoned the single strut internally sprung legs of the P.1, and used a pair of vees, each braced to the centerline. The fixed [undercarriage](/source/Landing_gear) with a rear skid was conventional and typical of the period. The fuselage had a fuel tank that could be jettisoned in case of an emergency.
==Testing and evaluation==
The wing design was referred to as the "Polish wing" or "Puławski wing" although it was preceded by the [Nieuport Madon](/source/Nieuport_Madon) and [Curtiss XP-10](/source/Curtiss_XP-10), which used the same configuration. During a presentation at the [Paris Air Show](/source/Paris_Air_Show) in Le Bourget in December 1931, the aviation press, such as ''L'Air'', ''The Aeroplane'', ''[Flight](/source/Flight_International)'' and ''[Die Luftwacht](/source/Die_Luftwacht)'' acknowledged the P.6 as one of the world's top fighter designs. Significantly, the P.6 prototype, piloted by Bolesław Orliński, won the American [National Air Races](/source/National_Air_Races) held in [Cleveland](/source/Cleveland) between the 29th of August and the 7th of September 1931.
The PZL P.6 did not enter production, because at the same time the next improved variant, the [PZL P.7](/source/PZL_P.7) was being developed. The first P.7 prototype retained most design traits of the P.6 with a more powerful supercharged Bristol Jupiter VII F engine, and achieved better performance at higher altitudes.
The single P.6 prototype crashed on 11 October 1931 near [Częstochowa](/source/Cz%C4%99stochowa) due to the propeller breaking apart, resulting in catastrophic engine failure. The pilot bailed out successfully.
==Variants==
* '''P.6/I''' : Prototype, which also served as the prototype for the P.7.
==Operators==
;{{POL}}
*[Polish Air Force](/source/Polish_Air_Force)
==Specifications (P.6/I)==
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=''Polish aircraft 1893-1939'' [{{cite book |last1=Cynk |first1=Jerzy B |title=Polish aircraft 1893-1939 |publisher=Putnam |date=1971 |isbn=0370000854 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/polishaircraft1800cynk/page/147 147-154] |url=https://archive.org/details/polishaircraft1800cynk/page/147 }}]
|prime units?=met
|crew=1
|length m=7.16
|span m=10.3
|height m=2.75
|wing area sqm=17.2
|airfoil='''root:'''IAW-72 (Bartel 37/IIa) (6.5%); '''tip:''' IAW-72 (Bartel 37/IIa) (8%)[{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url=https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website=m-selig.ae.illinois.edu |accessdate=16 April 2019}}]
|empty weight kg=908|gross weight kg=1355|max takeoff weight kg=
|fuel capacity={{cvt|250|L|USgal impgal}} in a jettisonable fuselage tank
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[Bristol Jupiter VIFH](/source/Bristol_Jupiter_VIFH)|eng1 type=9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine|eng1 hp=450
|prop blade number=2
|prop name=Gnome-Rhŏne fixed-pitch metal propeller
|prop dia m=
|max speed kmh=292|max speed note=at sea level
::::{{cvt|285|km/h|mph kn}} at {{cvt|3800|m}}
*'''Minimum speed:''' {{cvt|100|km/h|mph kn}}
|stall speed kmh=103
|stall speed note={{citation needed|date=November 2019}}
|range km=600
|ceiling m=8600
|climb rate ms=10.3
|climb rate note={{citation needed|date=November 2019}}
|time to altitude={{cvt|2000|m}} in 2 minutes 50 seconds
::::{{cvt|5000|m}} in 9 minutes 1 seconds
|wing loading kg/m2=78.7
|power/mass={{cvt|0.15|hp/lb|order=flip}}
|guns=2 x {{cvt|7.7|mm|3}} [Vickers E machine gun](/source/Vickers_E_machine_gun)s in the fuselage
}}
==See also==
{{aircontent
|related=
*[PZL P.1](/source/PZL_P.1)
*[PZL P.7](/source/PZL_P.7)
*[PZL P.8](/source/PZL_P.8)
*[PZL P.11](/source/PZL_P.11)
*[PZL P.24](/source/PZL_P.24)
|similar aircraft=
*[Dewoitine D.371](/source/Dewoitine_D.371)
*[Loire 46](/source/Loire_46)
*[Ikarus IK-2](/source/Ikarus_IK-2)
*[Polikarpov I-15](/source/Polikarpov_I-15)
|lists=
}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* Cynk, Jerzy B. ''History of the Polish Air Force 1918-1968''. Reading, Berkshire, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1972. {{ISBN|0-85045-039-X}}.
* Cynk, Jerzy B. ''Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939''. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. {{ISBN|0-370-00085-4}}.
* Eberspacher, Warren A. and Koniarek, Jan P. ''PZL Fighters Part One - P.1 through P.8. (International Squadron Monograph 2)''. St. Paul, MN: Phalanx Publishing Co., Ltd., 1995. {{ISBN|1-883809-12-6}}.
* Glass, Andrzej. ''Polskie konstrukcje lotnicze 1893-1939'' (in Polish: "Polish Aviation Constructions 1893-1939"). Warszawa, Poland: WKiŁ, 1977. no ISBN
* Glass, Andrzej. ''PZL P.7: Cz.1''. Gdańsk, Poland: AJ Press, 2000. {{ISBN|83-7237-080-X}}.
* Kopański, Tomasz J. ''PZL P.7: Cz.2''. Gdańsk, Poland: AJ Press, 2001. {{ISBN|83-7237-081-8}}.
{{refend}}
==External links==
{{commons category|PZL P.6}}
*[http://www.airwar.ru/enc/fww1/pzl6.html Photos and drawings at Ugolok Neba]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070927022838/http://www.samoloty.ow.pl/fot/fot272.jpg Photo at Samoloty 1,5]
{{PZL aircraft}}
Category:1930s Polish fighter aircraft
Category:PZL aircraft
Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft
Category:Gull-wing aircraft
Category:Aircraft first flown in 1930
Category:Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear
Category:Single-engined piston aircraft
---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [PZL P.6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PZL_P.6) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PZL_P.6?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.