The Lublin R-XIII was the Polish army cooperation plane (observation and liaison plane), designed in the early-1930s in the Plage i Laśkiewicz factory in Lublin. It was the main army cooperation plane in the Invasion of Poland. Its variant Lublin R-XIV was a military trainer aircraft.

Design and development

In 1927, the Polish aviation authorities announced a contest for an army-cooperation plane (in Polish: samolot towarzyszący, literally: "accompanying plane"). In Polish doctrine it was a close reconnaissance, observation and liaison aircraft, operating from casual airfields, providing big Army land units with information about the enemy. The PZL state factory proposed the PZL Ł-2, built in a series of 25 aircraft, while private factory Plage i Laśkiewicz in Lublin proposed the Lublin R-X, designed by Jerzy Rudlicki. It was flown on February 1, 1929. Five aircraft were built for the Air Force as R-Xa, and one was built as a long-distance sports plane. The third competitor was the PWS-5t2.

The contest was won by the R-Xa, having the shortest take-off and landing, and good performance, but the factory was ordered to develop design further. At that time, Rudlicki was working upon an unarmed trainer aircraft R-XIV and an observation aircraft R-XV. Both were new designs, basing upon the R-X construction. Number XIII was initially omitted in designations as "unlucky". In February 1930, the Polish Air Force ordered 15 of R-XIV. The first serial plane was built in June 1930, without an earlier prototype, and all were delivered by July 1931. The R-XIV was a two-seater, parasol wing aircraft, with a 220 hp radial engine and fixed landing gear. The crewman sat in open cabs in tandem. The R-XV was not ordered, but the Air Force demanded instead, that two R-XIV should be armed with an observer's machine gun, for testing. Thus armed, the R-XIV, fitted also with other minor modifications, most notably a changed shape of a tail fin, became the first prototype of the army-cooperation plane, that eventually received a designation Lublin R-XIII. One more prototype was newly built (no. 56.1).

On July 21, 1931, 50 aircraft R-XIII were ordered. The first couple of aircraft were designated R-XIIIA, and were distinguished by flat fuselage top. On September 8 all planes were bombed, while stationed on the sea near Hel on the Hel Peninsula.

Variants

thumb|250px|Lublin R-XIII ter/hydro

  • R-XIII prototype (no. 56.1) A 9-cylinder air-cooled radial engine Wright Whirlwind J-5 (produced in Poland) with 162 kW (220 hp) nominal power and 176 kW (240 hp) take-off power (on 22 aircraft R-XIIIF, 250 kW (340 hp) engine Skoda G-1620A Mors-I). Two-blade wooden or metal propeller. Fuel tank 200 liters in the fuselage, could be dropped in case of fire emergency (R-XIV - 135 liter tank).

Operators

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  • Polish Air Force
  • Polish Navy

;

  • Royal Romanian Air Force

Specification (R-XIIIB)

Bibliography

  • Glass, Andrzej (1977): "Polskie konstrukcje lotnicze 1893-1939" (Polish aviation constructions 1893-1939), WKiŁ, Warsaw,
  • Morgała, Andrzej (2003). Samoloty wojskowe w Polsce 1924–1939 [Military aircraft in Poland 1924–1939], Bellona, Warsaw,

Further reading

  • Cynk, Jerzy B. "Lublin R-XIII variants". Aircraft in Profile, Volume 11. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Profile Publications Ltd., 1972, p. 193-217.
  • Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. .
  • Glass, Andrzej. Lublin R.XIII (Wydawnictwo Militaria 1) (in Polish). Warszawa, Poland: Wydawnictwo Militaria, 1994. .