The “DELAG” Passenger Zeppelin “Nordstern”, 1919.
A sister ship of the “Bodensee.”
The “DELAG” Passenger Zeppelin “Nordstern.”
Interior view of the passenger cabin.
As progress was made in designing, constructing and testing metal planes, Dornier devoted the work practically toward perfection of internally braced monoplanes. The monoplane principle was maintained from the beginning. Today it is recognized generally as the most desirable type. New designs, methods of handling metal, experiments with various kinds of construction, newly invented machine tools, experimental planes and models, each an advance in efficiency, invariably something newly discovered in the infant science of aerodynamics—these were the activities of Dornier and his staff in six years.
The results were Dornier’s all-metal planes, possessing from 55 to 2,400 horsepower. They had just started quantity production of big planes and flying boats in the factories at Lindau and Seemoos when the German revolution halted all activities. Since then, though hampered by the treaty stipulations, the company has developed a series of commercial types unexcelled in construction, performance and safe operation. Since the war both commercial land planes and flying boats powered with from one to three engines have been produced.
Twenty-one Dornier Designs
During the war their products included pursuit planes, single motor two-place fighters ([Plate 23]), two and three motored bombing planes and four and multi-engined giant planes—all for over land flying. Seaplane types included single engine two-place fighters, two and three motored flying boats and four and multi-engine giant flying boats. More than one hundred domestic patents were held and more than 250 filed in foreign patent offices. Twenty-one different designs for experimental types had been produced, seventeen of them worked out in as many machines which were flown, and four [Plates 24]-[25]-[26]-[27] made into models [Plates 24]-[25]-[26]-[27]. The following is a list of the experimental personnel year by year:
| 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 | 1920 | |
| Engineers | 15 | 25 | 25 | 69 | 52 | 23 |
| Workmen | 30 | 250 | 300 | 547 | 207 | 80 |
PLATE 40
