IBG 72518 1:72 P11b Romanian Service

72518 – 1/72 – PZL P.11b Fighter in Romanian Service

Fighter plane, an export version of P.11a, designed under inż. Wsiewołod Jakimiuks supervision as a development of inż. Zygmunt Puławski’s P.6 construction.

Already in mid 1932 French engine manufacturer Gnome-Rhône expressed interest in equipping P.11 construction with their engine, counting on export orders. In the same year the prototype – P.11/IV with Gnome-Rhône 9Kcr Mistral 550 hp engine was presented in Polish Airforce colors on the International Air Exhibition. It aroused interest of Turkish, Romanian, Portugese, Greek, Swedish, Czechoslovak, Japanese and Yugoslavian airforces.

Several of these countries decided to purchase the subsequent P.24 version of the plane, only Romania ordered the P.11 version equipped with GR 9Krsd produced in Romania under licence. Plane with such propulsion was named P.11b. Because of the Romanian side demand to deliver the planes on short notice PZL factory started their production even before the P.11a for Polish Airforce. To speed up the works some of the structural solutions (the wing) from previous project – PZL P.7a were used. The order for 50 planes was delivered at the turn of 1933 and 34.

No P.11b plane survived until this day.