{{short description|1920s German aircraft}} <!-- This article is a part of Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft. Please see Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout. --> {{Infobox aircraft |name=U 12 Flamingo |image=Udet U 12 Flamingo D-EOSM.jpg |caption=D-EOSM of the ''Deutsches Museum'', Munich, Germany. This replica has a Sh 14 engine, a later, more powerful version of the Siemens-Halske engines fitted to original U 12s. |type=Civil trainer aircraft |manufacturer=Udet Flugzeugbau, BFW and others under licence |designer=Hans Herrmann |first_flight=1925 |introduction= |retired= |status= |primary_user= |more_users= |produced= |number_built=ca. 300 |variants= }}
The '''Udet U 12 Flamingo''' was an aerobatic sports plane and trainer aircraft developed in Germany in the mid-1920s.
==Design and development== The U 12 was a conventional, single-bay biplane of wooden construction with the wings braced by large I-struts. The pilot and instructor or passenger sat in tandem, open cockpits. The U 12 proved extremely popular and sold well, due in no small part to Ernst Udet's spectacular aerobatics routines while flying the aircraft. One particularly acclaimed part of his act included swooping down towards the airfield and picking up a handkerchief with the tip of one wing.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Air Trails|date=Winter 1971|page=49}}</ref> The popularity of this aircraft was insufficient to rescue Udet Flugzeugbau from its dire financial position, but when the company's assets were taken over by the state of Bavaria to form BFW, production of the U 12 soon resumed in earnest. BFW-built U 12s were exported to Austria, Hungary and Latvia, and later built under licence in these countries as well.
thumb|Udet in rear seat
==Variants==
===Germany=== * '''U 12a''': main production version with Siemens-Halske Sh 11 engine ** '''U 12W''': float-equipped U 12a (''Wasser''—"water") * '''U 12b''': version strengthened for aerobatics and with improved wing design * '''U 12c''': advanced trainer with reduced wing area * '''U 12d''': U 12b with Siemens-Halske Sh 12 engine * '''U 12e''': U 12c with Siemens-Halske Sh 12 engine
===Austria=== 20 aircraft produced by Fliegerwerft Thalerhof * '''U 12H''': standard U 12a (''Holz''—"wood") * '''U 12S''': U 12a with redesigned fuselage of fabric-covered steel tube construction (''Stahl''—"steel"). ** '''U 12Ö''': alternative designation for U 12S (''Österreich''—"Austria")
===Hungary=== Forty aircraft produced by KRG and another 40 by Manfred Weiss Works. Some examples armed and used for fighter or bomber training * '''Hungária I''': similar to U 12a with N-type interplane struts * '''Hungária II''': similar to U 12a with N-type interplane struts * '''Hungária III''': similar to U 12a with N-type interplane struts, propeller spinner and Townend ring * '''Hungária IV''': similar to U 12a. Only Hungarian-built version with I-type interplane struts * '''Hungária V''': similar to U 12a with N-type interplane struts
==Operators== ; {{AUT}} * Austrian Air Force (1927–1938) ; {{flagcountry|Kingdom of Hungary (1920–46)}} * Royal Hungarian Air Force ; {{LAT}} * Latvian Air Force
; {{TUR}} * Turkish Air Force
==Surviving aircraft== thumb|Udet Flamingo replica built in 1993 No original aircraft are known to exist. An airworthy replica was kept at the Deutsches Museum but crashed at the 2013 Tannkosh event.<ref>http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=158981 Aviation Safety Net website</ref>
==Specifications (U 12a) == thumb|Udet U-12 Flamingo 3-view drawing from Aero Digest November 1927 {{Aircraft specs |prime units? = met
|crew=two, pilot and instructor |length m=7.4 |length ft=24 |length in=6 |span m=10.0 |span ft=32 |span in=8 |height m=2.8 |height ft=9 |height in=2 |wing area sqm=24 |wing area sqft=258 |empty weight kg=525 |empty weight lb=1,157 |gross weight kg=800 |gross weight lb=1,764
|eng1 number=1 |eng1 name=Siemens-Halske Sh 11 |eng1 kw=<!-- prop engines -->60 |eng1 hp=<!-- prop engines -->80 |max speed kmh=140 |max speed mph=87 |range km=450 |range miles=280 |ceiling m=3,700 |ceiling ft=12,100 |climb rate ms=2.3 |climb rate ftmin=450 }} <!-- ==See also== --> {{aircontent <!-- include as many lines are appropriate. additional lines/entries with carriage return. --> |related= <!-- related developments --> |similar aircraft= <!-- similar or comparable aircraft --> |lists= <!-- related lists --> |see also= <!-- other relevant information --> }}
==References== {{Reflist}} * {{cite book |last= Taylor |first= Michael J. H. |title=Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation |year=1989 |publisher=Studio Editions |location=London |pages=154–55 }} * {{cite book |last= Van Ishoven |first= Armand |title=Udet (BFW) U-12 Flamingo Variants |year=1973 |publisher=Profile Publications Limited |location=London }} * [http://www.histaviation.com/Udet_U-12.html German aircraft between 1919–1945] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405105451/http://www.histaviation.com/Udet_U-12.html |date=2023-04-05 }} * [http://www.airwar.ru/enc/other1/u12.html Уголок неба] *{{youTube|M2CBx7x5GCI|Ernst Udet performs an exhibition precision dead stick loop and side slip landing in a U 12}}
==External links== {{commons category|Udet U 12 Flamingo}}
{{Udet aircraft}}
U 12 Category:1920s German civil trainer aircraft Category:Aerobatic aircraft Category:Weiss Manfred aircraft Category:Biplanes Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft Category:Aircraft first flown in 1925 Category:Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear Category:Single-engined piston aircraft