Photograph:
Bolkow BO-208 Junior ZK-EDH (c/n 649) at Ardmore, NZ in April 2015 (David C Eyre)
Country of origin:
Germany
Description:
Two-seat light touring monoplane
Power Plant:
One 75 kw (100 hp) Continental O-200-A four-cylinder horizontally-opposed air-cooled engine
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 7.4 m (24 ft 4 in)
- Length: 5.8 m (19 ft 2 in)
- Height: 2 m (6 ft 7 in)
- Wing area: 8.6 m² (93 sq ft)
- Max speed at sea level: 230 km/h (143 mph)
- Cruising speed: 204 km/h (127 mph)
- Economical cruising speed: 200 km/h (124 mph)
- Initial rate of climb: 274 m/min (900 ft/min)
- Service ceiling: 4,267 m (14,000 ft)
- Range with max fuel: 998 km (620 miles)
- Range with max payload: 805 km (500 miles)
- Empty weight: 379 kg (835 lb)
- Loaded weight: 630 kg (1,390 lb)
History:
The Bolkow BO-208 series of light aircraft emanated from the prototype built in the USA by Bjorn Andreasson, and flown for the first time on 10 October 1958. Subsequently, production commenced in Sweden by A B Malmo Flygindustri under the designation MFI-9 Junior. The first Swedish production prototype flew for the first time on 17 May 1961. Further Swedish developments appeared later, including the MFI-9B, introduced in 1964, with an enlarged cabin, and the MFI-9B Military Trainer, which had provision for under wing stores, being aimed at the military primary trainer market.
In 1962, when licence production commenced in Germany at the premises of Bolkow, the type became known as the BO-208, and in 1964 the BO-208B was introduced with electrically-operated flaps, trailing-link nosewheel suspension, and an optional long-span wing. A subsequent improved version was the BO-208C, which had a larger wing as standard. The Junior, with side-by-side seating for two, was of all-metal construction.
One Bolkow 208 Junior VH-EVG (c/n 523 – ex D-EGMU) was registered in Australia from October 1969 to April 1976. Based at the Woomera Rocket Range in South Australia, it was owned by a German technician working there, the aircraft returning to Germany when he had completed his work in Australia.
In 2010 a Bolkow BO-208A was placed on the Australian RAA register as 24-5212.
Ten were imported to New Zealand by Aerocraft of Palmerston North between 1964 and 1965 and were registered, all ten of them being airworthy and remaining on the civil register in 2018. These were: Bolkow BO- 208 Juniors ZK-CJA (c/n 542), ZK-CJB (c/n 643), ZK-CJE (c/n 562) and ZK-CJF (c/n 564); and Bolkow BO-208C Juniors ZK-CJG (c/n 601), ZK-CJH (c/n 607), ZK-CJI (c/n 603), ZK-CJK (c/n 618), ZK-CJL (c/n 643) and ZK-EDH (c/n 649).