Siebel Si 204

Si 204

Siebel Si 204D PH-NLL displayed at Hilversum Airport in 1967
Role	Light transport/trainer
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	Siebel
Primary users	Luftwaffe Czechoslovakia France
Number built	1,216 (to January 1945)
Developed from	Siebel Fh 104

The Siebel Si 204 was a small twin-engined transport and trainer aircraft developed during World War II. It was based on the Fh 104. Originally designed in response to an RLM development order for a small civil transport aircraft in 1938, it was eventually produced for the Luftwaffe.

Siebel Si 204D-1, D-OWKA, used by 2./KG 200 in support of Albert Speer's peace negotiations in April 1945. The aircraft flew between Prague and Zurich. And in support of Karl Hermann Frank´s negotiations with Karl Dönitz government, he flew it between Prague and Flensburg-Mürwick and Hradec Králové in May 1945. Apparently changed its markings daily

Development and production

Siebel 204 at the Kbely museum near Prague

The Si 204 was planned as a small all-metal passenger aircraft with 2 crew and 8 passengers for German airline Deutsche Luft Hansa (DLH). Development was initiated in 1938. The contractor was, as usual, the RLM, but the development was conducted in close collaboration between DLH and Siebel in Halle. After the beginning of the war the aircraft was re-designed as a trainer aircraft with a full "stepless" glass cockpit, with no separate flat windscreen for the pilot (much as almost all German bomber aircraft of the time were being designed), which seemed to be better for blind flying in the Si 204's case.

The first two prototypes only were delivered as passenger aircraft with the old cockpit. The maiden flight of the first prototype was before September 1940, possibly on 25 May 1940, that of the second prototype before February 1941. The third prototype was re-designed as a trainer aircraft for blind flying. As a result of this, the maiden flight was not earlier than the end of 1941 or the beginning of 1942.

At that time Siebel produced the Junkers Ju 88 under licence, and therefore only 15 prototypes were able to be built in Halle. As a result, SNCAN (Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Nord)) in France produced the A-0 pre-series A-1 production passenger aircraft between April 1942 and November 1943. Českomoravská Kolben-Daněk (ČKD) / Böhmisch-Mährische Maschinenfabrik AG (BMM) in the Czech Protectorate delivered the first blind flying trainer D-0 in January 1943 followed by the production of a further 44 D-0 pre-series aircraft. The D-1 series was begun in March 1943 by the Aero company, also located in the Czech Protectorate, and by BMM in June or July 1943. In August 1943, SNCAN also delivered their first D-1.

The production of the D-3 was started in October 1944 by the Aero company. The D-3 had wooden wings and a tail-plane made of wood and metal. In France, production of the D-1 was ended in August 1944 as a result of the Liberation. SNCAN produced a total of 168 units of the Si 204. BMM produced the aircraft until October 1944 and then changed to producing spare parts for the Si 204. The Aero company was scheduled to cease production of the D-1 in March 1945 after building 486 aircraft and then switch to D-3 only. The aircraft, however, was only built until January 1945 with 541 completed. Therefore the total production was 1,216 (until January 1945) including the prototypes; some production in other countries continued after the war ended.

Variants

Siebel Fh 104: Precursor to the Si 204 family, with a stepped windscreen and slightly smaller dimensions.
Si 204: Prototypes each given a separate V number; Fifteen built by Siebel at Halle.
Si 204A: Pre-production A-0 and initial production A-1 passenger transports built at SNCAN ((Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Nord) in France.
Si 204D: A blind flying trainer developed by ČKD / BMM in the Czech Protectorate; the first D-0 pre-series aircraft was delivered in January 1943 plus another 44. Production of the D-1 was carried out by Aero and BMM. D-3 aircraft were built with wooden wings and tailplanes in an effort to relieve pressure on the Aluminium supply.
Aero C-3: Postwar production in Czechoslovakia for flying (C-3A) and crew training (C-3B).
Aero C-103: Civilian passenger transport variant.
Aero D-44: military transport variant.
SNCAC NC.701 Martinet: Military transport powered by two SNECMA 12S-00 inverted air-cooled V-12 engines.
SNCAC NC.702 Martinet: Passenger transport version with stepped windscreen.

Production figures of the Si 204 until 31 January 1945:

Version	Siebel	SNCAC	BMM/ČKD	Aero	SUM
Prototypes	15				15
A-0		30			30
A-1		85			85
D-0			45		45
D-1		53	447	477	977
D-3				64	64
SUM	15	168	492	541	1.216

Sources: Files from Federal Archive/Military Archive Freiburg and from Lufthansa-Archive, Cologne

After the war, a production of Si 204 continued in Czechoslovakia and France. In Czechoslovakia Aero Vodochody produced 179 Si 204D, developed into military trainer variants Aero C-3A and C-3B (the latter for bombardier training), passenger variant C-103 and military transport variant Aero D-44 until 1949. In France SNCAC (Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Centre), commonly known as Aérocentre, produced 240 transport NC.701 Martinets and a number (110?) of passenger NC.702 Martinets.^[1] The NC.701 was distinguished by three-blade propellers and was powered by 440 kW (590 hp) Renault 12S-00 engines. The NC.702 had a modified nose.^[2]

Operational history

Scrapped Siebel Si 204 at Wunstorf, Germany, 1945

The Si 204D was used mainly in B- and C-Schools (advanced schools) and in FÜG 1 (delivery wing of the Luftwaffe), probably as a taxi aircraft for crews who had delivered other aircraft to fighting units. The utilization in blind flying schools was sporadic; for radio schools there is no evidence of use. The Si 204A flew mainly with communications squadrons and flying services for senior officers, but also with schools.

In July 1944 five Si 204 were destined to be converted to night combat aircraft, but no further aircraft were allotted. They were probably intended for the pre-series Si 204 E-0. There is, however, no evidence that these aircraft were ever used in combat situations.

Luft Hansa received at least four Si 204: The first prototype, D-AEFR, was evaluated from March to May 1941 by Luft Hansa Prague. From spring 1942 to spring 1943 the second prototype, D-ASGU, was used on regular routes as a freight carrier.

An Si 204 was likely the last German aircraft shot down on the Western Front. At 8 PM on May 8, 1945, 2nd Lt. K. L. Smith of the 9th Air Force's 474th Fighter Group, flying a P-38 Lightning, downed a Siebel three miles southeast of Rodach, Bavaria.^[3]

At the end of the war one Si 204D remained in Berlin-Tempelhof (named “Rhein”). One flew to Enns in Austria, where it was captured by the Allies. Captured Si 204s flew in a variety of roles in the Soviet Union, including with Aeroflot and TsAGI, but were all quickly phased out of service as local aircraft manufacturing was re-established.

Prototypes of the Si 204

Version	Engine	Usage	First Flight	Fate
V1	As 410	Prototype passenger plane, Reg. D-AEFR	25 May 1940?	Not mentioned in November 1942, scrapped?
V2	As 410	Prototype passenger aircraft, Reg. D-ASGU	Before February 1941	26.02.44 Crash Erprobungs-Stelle Rechlin
V3	As 410	Prototype Blind flying training aircraft	Before February 1942	01.06.42 Crash Erprobungs-Stelle Rechlin
V4	As 411	Prototype Blind flying training aircraft, Reg. KM+GB	Before November 1942
V5		For stress testing
V6	As 410	Evaluation As 410	December 1942
V7	As 410	Weather reconnaissance
V8	As 410	General flight evaluation
V9	As 410	General flight evaluation		30.06.43 Crash School C-16 Burg
V10	As 410	General flight evaluation
V11	As 410	General flight evaluation
V12	As 410	General flight evaluation		13.03.44 Crash Erprobungs-Stelle Rechlin
V13	As 410	General flight evaluation
V14	As 411	Prototype D-2
V15	As 411	Evaluation As 411

Operators

Military Operators

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakian Air Force operated ex-Luftwaffe Si 204 as well as Aero C-3 built in Czechoslovakia post war.
Czechoslovakian National Security Guard

France

French Air Force operated ex-Luftwaffe Si 204 as well as NC.701 built in France post war.
French Navy

Germany

Luftwaffe

Hungary

Hungarian Air Force operated six Aero C-3s from 1947 to 1953.

Poland

Polish Air Force operated six NC.701s (received from LOT airlines) from 1949 to 1955 for aerial photography^[4]

Slovakia

Slovak Air Force (1939-1945)

Switzerland

Swiss Air Force

Soviet Union

Soviet Air Force operated several captured Si 204.

Civil Operators

Czechoslovakia

ČSA operated post-war built Aero C-103s.

Germany

Deutsche Luft Hansa operated at least four aircraft.

Netherlands

Nationaal Luchtvaart Laboratorium (NLL) (NLL Dutch National Aeronautical Laboratory) operated one Si 204D-1 (BMM built) from 1946 till 1964, registered PH-NLL.

Poland

Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT operated in 1947-1948 six NC.701 bought in France. Aircraft were used for aerial photography and had markings from SP-LFA to LFF.^[4]

Sweden

Rikets Allmänna Kartverk operated five NC.701 bought in France between 1962-1970 for mapping photography.

Soviet Union

Aeroflot operated post war some captured Si 204 for transport duties.

Specifications (Si 204)

General characteristics

Crew: one or two pilots
Capacity: up to 8 passengers or up to 1,650 kg (3,638 lb) cargo
Length: 13.00 m (42 ft 8 in)
Wingspan: 21.33 m (70 ft 0 in)
Height: 4.25 m (14 ft 0 in)
Wing area: 46 m² (495 ft²)
Empty weight: 3,950 kg (8,709 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 5,600 kg (12,348 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Argus As 411-A1 air-cooled V12 engines, 441 kW (592 hp) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 364 km/h (228 mph)
Range: 1,400 km (875 miles)
Service ceiling: 6,400 m (20,992 ft)
Rate of climb: 360 m/min (1,181 ft/min)

References

Notes

↑ Aviafrance.com
↑ Green, W. and Pollinger, G. The World's Fighting Planes (1954) London:Macdonald & Co
↑ Olnyk, Dr. Frank J. USAAF (European Theater) Credits for the Destruction of Enemy AIrcraft in Air-to-Air Combat World War 2. (Privately published 1987)
1 2 Jońca 1985

Bibliography

Franzke, Manfred. Siebel Fh.104/Si.204 varianten. Ilterissen, Germany: Flugzeug Publikations GmbH, 1997
Griehl, Manfred. The Luftwaffe Profile Series No. 11: Siebel Fh 104/Si 204 and its variants. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publications, 1998. ISBN 0-7643-0566-2
Jońca, Adam. Samoloty linii lotniczych 1945-1956 Warszawa, Poland: WKiŁ, 1985. ISBN 83-206-0529-6
Smith, J.R. and Kay, Antony J. German Aircraft of the Second World War. London: Putnam, 1990. ISBN 0-85177-836-4

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Siebel Si 204.

Aircraft produced by Aero Vodochody

1919-1938	Ae 01 Ae 02 Ae 03 Ae 04 Ae 10 A.11 A.12 A.14 A.15 A.17 A.18 A.19 A.20 A.21 A.22 A.23 A.24 A.25 A.26 A.27 A.29 A.30 A.32 A.34 A.35 A.38 A.42 A.46 A.100 A.101 A.102 A.104 A.125 A.130 A.134 A.200 A.204 A.230 A.300 A.304 A.330 A.430

1945-1992	Ae 45 Ae 50 Ae 145 Ae 245 Ae 345 L-29 L-39 L-59 L-60

1993-present	L-159 Ae 270

Under licence	C-3 C-103 D-44 MB.200

Reich Air Ministry aircraft designations

1 to 100	B 9 Gö 9 Do 10 Do 11 Wn 11 Do 12 Do 13 Do 14 Do 15 Wn 15 Do 16 Wn 16 Do 17 Do 18 Do 19 Do 20 Do 22 Do 23 Do 24 Kl 25 Do 26 Kl 26 M 27 Do 29 Kl 31 Kl 32 W 33 L 33 W 34 Kl 35 Kl 36 HD 37 HD 38 G 38 DFS 39 BV 40 DFS 40 A 40 Fw 42 He 42 Fw 43 HD 43 Fw 44 He 45 He 46 Ju 46 Fw 47 Ju 47 K 47 A 48 He 49 Ju 49 He 50 A 50 He 51 K 51 Ju 52 K 53 NR 54 Fw 55 NR 55 Fw 56 Fw 57 Fw 58 He 58 He 59 He 60 Ju 60 Fw 61 He 61 Fw 62 He 62 He 63 Ar 64 He 64 Ar 65 He 65 Ar 66 He 66 Ar 67 Ar 68 Ar 69 He 70 He 71 He 72 He 74 Ar 76 Ar 77 Ar 79 Ar 80 Ar 81 Ju 85 Ju 86 Ju 87 Ju 88 Ju 89 Ju 90 Ar 95 Ar 96 Fi 97 Fi 98 Fi 99 He 100

101 to 200	Al 101 Al 102 Al 103 Fi 103 Fh 104 Kl 105 Kl 106 Kl 107 Bf 108 Bf 109 Bf 110 He 111 He 112 He 113 He 114 He 115 He 116 Hs 117 He 118 He 119 He 120 Hs 121 Hs 122 Hs 123 Hs 124 Hs 125 Hs 126 Hs 127 Hs 128 Hs 129 Hs 130 Bü 131 Hs 132 Bü 133 Bü 134 Ha 135 Ha 136 Hü 136 Ha 137 BV 138 Ha 139 Ha 140 BV 141 BV 142 BV 143 BV 144 Go 145 Go 146 Go 147 Ju 147 Go 149 Go 150 Kl 151 Ta 152 Kl 152 Ta 153 Ta 154 BV 155 Fi 156 Fi 157 Fi 158 Fw 159 Ju 160 Bf 161 He 162 Bf 162 Bf 163 Me 163 Me 164 Fi 166 FK 166 Fi 167 Fi 168 He 170 He 172 He 176 He 177 He 178 Bü 180 Bü 181 Bü 182 Ta 183 Fl 184 Fl 185 Fw 186 Ju 186 Fw 187 Ju 187 Ju 188 Fw 189 Fw 190 Fw 191 Ao 192 DFS 193 DFS 194 Ar 195 Ar 196 Ar 197 Ar 198 Ar 199 Fw 200

201 to 300	Si 201 Si 202 DFS 203 Si 204 Fw 206 Me 208 Me 209 Me 209 (1943) Me 210 Hü 211 Do 212 Do 214 Do 215 Do 216 Do 217 Hs 217 He 219 He 220 BV 222 Fa 223 Fa 224 Ao 225 Fa 225 BV 226 Ho 226 FGP 227 DFS 228 Ho 229 DFS 230 Ar 231 Ar 232 Ar 233 Ar 234 Do 235 BV 237 BV 238 Fw 238 Ar 239 Ar 240 Go 241 Go 242 Go 244 BV 246 Ju 248 BV 250 Fw 250 Ho 250 Ho 251 Ho 252 Ju 252 Fi 253 Ho 253 Ta 254 Ho 254 Fi 256 Sk 257 Fw 261 Me 261 Me 262 Me 263 Me 264 Fl 265 Me 265 Fa 266 Ho 267 Ju 268 Fa 269 He 270 We 271 Fw 272 He 274 He 275 He 277 He 278 He 280 Fl 282 Fa 283 Ta 283 Fa 284 Fl 285 Ju 286 Ju 287 Ju 288 Ju 290 Me 290 As 292 Hs 293 Hs 294 Hs 295 Ar 296 Hs 296 Hs 297 Hs 298 Fw 300

301-	Me 309 Me 310 Do 317 Do 318 He 319 Me 321 Ju 322 Me 323 Me 328 Me 329 Fa 330 DFS 331 DFS 332 Fi 333 Me 334 Do 335 Fa 336 Fl 339 E.340 WNF 342 He 343 Rk 344 So 344 Go 345 DFS 346 Rk 347 Ba 349 Ju 352 Me 362 Me 364 Ju 388 Ju 390 Fw 391 Ar 396 Ta 400 Me 409 Me 410 Do 417 He 419 ZMe 423 Ar 430 Ka 430 Ar 432 Do 435 Ar 440 Ju 452 Me 462 Ju 488 Fw 491 Me 509 Me 510 He 519 ZSO 523 Ar 532 Do 535 E.555 Me 609 Ar 632 Do 635

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