Argus As 17

The Argus As 17 was an air cooled six-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by the German engineering company Argus Motoren in the 1930s. Developed from the same company's smaller As 8, the engine was produced in ratings between 200 and 280 hp (149 and 209 kW). First demonstrated in 1934, it powered a number of competitors at the Challenge International de Tourisme that year, including the Messerschmitt Bf 108. Argus produced it in small numbers as German manufacturers like Messerschmitt preferring V-8 alternatives for their aircraft.

As.17
An Argus As 17A at the Deutsches Museum Flugwerft Schleissheim
Type	Air cooled inline 6 aircraft engine
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	Argus

Design and development

The Argus As 17 was an inverted six cylinder aircraft engine in the 200 horsepower (149 kW) class that was first demonstrated in 1934.^[1] It was a development of the company's As 8 four-cylinder engine.^[2] The engine had cast aluminium heads and aluminium pistons mounted in steel cylinders and connected to a chrome-nickel steel crankshaft. Bore was 120 millimetres (4.7 in) and stroke 130 mm (5.1 in).^[3]

It was used to power a small number of German aircraft in the late 1930s, notably three entries to the Challenge International de Tourisme 1934, the Fieseler Fi 97, Klemm Kl 36 and Messerschmitt Bf 108.^[4] Each aircraft was entered in two variants, one powered by the Argus engine and other with the more powerful Hirth HM 8U V-8.^[5] The engine was developed in three versions. The lower powered As 17A, which was used to power the fourth prototype Bf 108, was rated at 200 hp.^[6] A more developed engine, the As 17B, rated at 220 hp (164 kW), was used to power the seventh Bf 108A prototype.^[7] The more powerful As 17 Special was also produced, which differed in having a supercharger that increased rated power to 280 hp (209 kW).^[8]

The engine was produced in small numbers, never achieving serial production. Only two of the Fieseler aircraft were fitted with the engine.^[9] Klemm preferred the Hm 8U for the definitive Kl 36B.^[10] Production examples of the Bf 108 used either the HM 8U or Argus's own V-8, the As 10, the latter becoming the standard for the BF 108B.^[11]

Variants

As 17A

200 hp (149 kW)

As 17B

220 hp (164 kW)

As 17 Special

280 hp (209 kW)

Applications

• Fieseler Fi 97^[12]
• Klemm Kl 36A^[13]
• Messerschmitt Bf 108A^[14]

Specifications (As 17A)

Data from Schneider 1936 ^[15]

General characteristics

• Type: 6-cylinder air cooled inverted in-line aircraft piston engine
• Bore: 120 mm (4.7 in)
• Stroke: 130 mm (5.1 in)
• Displacement: 8.82 L (538 in³)
• Length: 1,411 mm (55.6 in)
• Width: 485 mm (19.1 in)
• Height: 753 mm (29.6 in)
• Dry weight: 174 kg (384 lb)

Components

• Valvetrain: Two valves per cylinder
• Fuel type: Gasoline
• Cooling system: Air-cooled

Performance

• Power output:
  
  • (Cruise) 200 hp (149 kW) at 2300 rpm
  • (Peak) 225 hp (168 kW) at 2400 rpm for 120 minutes
• Specific power: 16.6 kW/L (0.37 hp/in³)
• Compression ratio: 6.3:1
• Fuel consumption: 306 g/(kW•h) (0.50 lb/(hp•h))
• Power-to-weight ratio: 0.91 kW/kg (0.51 hp/lb)

See also

Comparable engines

• Alfa Romeo 115
• de Havilland Gipsy Six
• Isotta Fraschini Beta
• Menasco Buccaneer

Related lists

• List of aircraft engines

References

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Argus As 17.

Notes

1. Flight 1934, p. 1254.
2. Schultz & Pleines 1934, p. 7.
3. Angle 1940, p. 94.
4. Schultz & Pleines 1934, p. 4.
5. Schultz & Pleines 1934, p. 8.
6. Ebert, Kaiser & Peters 1992, p. 107.
7. Ebert, Kaiser & Peters 1992, p. 100.
8. Angle 1941, p. 124.
9. Kens & Nowarra 1964, p. 179.
10. Schneider 1936, p. 44.
11. Ebert, Kaiser & Peters 1992, p. 104.
12. Griehl 2015, p. 254; Schneider 1936, p. 23.
13. Grey 1934, p. 339.
14. Grey 1934, p. 322.
15. Schneider 1936, p. 82.

Bibliography

• Angle, Glen D. (1940). Aerosphere 1939. New York City: Aircraft Publications. OCLC 23469771.
• Angle, Glen D. (1941). Modern Aircraft Engines. New York City: Aircraft Publications. OCLC 658901703.
• Ebert, Hans J.; Kaiser, Johann B.; Peters, Klaus (1992). Willy Messerschmitt - Pioneer der Luftfahrt und des Leichtbaues [Willy Messerschmitt: Pioneer in Aviation and Lightweight Construction] (in German). Bonn: Bernard & Graefe. ISBN 978-3-76-376103-6.
• "The Fourteenth Paris Aero Show". Flight: 1236–1253. 22 November 1934. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
• Grey, C.G. (1934). Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft. London: Sampson.
• Griehl, Manfred (2015). X-Planes: German Luftwaffe Prototypes 1930-1945. London: Frontline Books. ISBN 978-1-84-832849-5.
• Kens, Karlheinz; Nowarra, Heinz J. (1964). Die Deutschen Flugzeuge, 1933-1945: Deutschlands Luftfahrt-Entwicklungen Bis Zum Ende Des Zweiten Weltkrieges [German Aircraft 1933-1945: Germany's Aviation Developments up to the end of the Second World War] (in German). Munich: Lehman. OCLC 832559181.
• Schneider, Helmut (1936). [Book of Aircraft, 1936] (PDF) (in German). Leipzig: H. Beyer. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
• Schultz, R.; Pleines, W. (1934). Technical Aspects of the 1934 International Touring Competition (Rundflug) (Report). Washington DC: National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.