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29-637: IAR was founded in 1925 with the aid of the Romanian government, which sought to reduce reliance on foreign companies to supply the Royal Romanian Air Force with aircraft and associated equipment. In addition to its designs, the company built numerous foreign-designed aircraft under license as well. IAR produced a low-wing all-metal monoplane , the IAR 80 , during the Second World War ; this combat aircraft

58-718: A Hungarian Caproni Ca.135 near Berveni . During the Second World War , the ARR fought alongside the Luftwaffe during the advance into Ukraine and Crimea , until the Battle of Stalingrad , when the Southern Luftwaffe Command was installed in Bucharest . It also carried out some reconnaissance and patrol missions over the Black Sea alongside Bulgarian units. The ARR was tasked with

87-483: A few American B-24 Liberator bombers. All of the aircraft listed below were completed before the end of World War II. Prototypes are omitted from the list. Unless specified otherwise, all aircraft machine guns have the caliber of 7.92 mm: Radu Manicatide Radu Manicatide (April 17, 1912 – March 18, 2004) was a Romanian engineer and aircraft constructor. He was born in Iași and grew up in Bucharest , in

116-773: A house on Luterană Street. In 1926, at age 14, Manicatide built his first plane (the RM-1, a single-seat glider ) in his backyard, and flew with it on the street for a few meters. This was followed in 1927 by the RM-2 glider, which he tested at Sinaia . He obtained a pilot license in 1930. From 1931 to 1937 he earned an engineering degree from the University Politehnica of Bucharest , and then pursued his studies at École supérieure des techniques aéronautiques et de construction automobile (ESTACA), in Paris . In 1932 he constructed his first plane,

145-489: The Forțele Aeriene Regale ale României (Royal Romanian Air Force, FARR ), or simply Forțele Aeriene Române ( Romanian Air Force ). It provided support to land forces, carrying out reconnaissance and mounting air raids between other missions. The roundel of the ARR was based on the national cockade of Romania. During World War Two, from 1941 to 1944, the national cockade was reduced in size and placed in

174-591: The Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma , designated IAR 330 . These rotorcraft were not only manufactured for domestic consumption, such as the Romanian Air Force, but also for the global market; roughly one-third of all IAR 330s were reportedly sold to export customers. During the late 1980s, a Soviet -Romanian partnership led to the development of the Kamov Ka-126 helicopter; only a handful were built before production

203-721: The PZL P.24 E, Hawker Hurricane , Heinkel He 112 , Messerschmitt Bf 109 E and G types, Messerschmitt Bf 110 (for night defence), IAR 80 and IAR 81 were also used. Luftwaffe interceptor units were also deployed in the area. After the August 23, 1944 coup d'état , Romania turned against the Axis. The ARR, now allied with the Soviet Air Forces fought against German and Hungarian forces in Transylvania and Slovakia . During initial combat with

232-788: The 8.6t H215M Super Puma ; this arrangement was reportedly reliant upon an initial order for 16 being placed by the Romanian government to extend the type's production. Royal Romanian Air Force The Air Force branch of the Royal Romanian forces in World War II was officially named the Aeronautica Regală Română ( ARR ), or the Romanian Royal Aeronautics, though it is more commonly referred to in English histories as

261-480: The AH-1RO. During 2000, it was announced that the multinational helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter Group was holding discussions over its own bid for IAR. Later that same year, IAR established Eurocopter Romania in conjunction with Eurocopter, the former held a 49% stake in the newly created joint venture . In November 2015, Airbus Helicopters announced plans to invest €52 million in a Romanian facility to manufacture

290-500: The Germans over Bucharest, the ARR claimed 22 German aircraft shot down, including three Me 323 Gigant , and a further five other aircraft destroyed on the ground, while losses amounted to four Romanian aircraft in the air and 30 on the ground. Between 4 September 1944 and the end of the war , 101 enemy aircraft were claimed in battle to the loss of 30 aircraft. A Soviet Yak-3 which engaged two Romanian Bf 109s together with another Yak-3,

319-532: The Hungarian annexation of Northern Transylvania in 1940. Following some Hungarian incursions into Romanian airspace, the 51st Fighter Squadron of 1st Fighter Flotilla equipped with Heinkel He 112 aircraft was brought to Cluj on the Someșeni airfield to supplement the 2nd Fighter Flotilla equipped with the older PZL P.11 fighters. On 28 August 1940, a Heinkel flown by Lieutenant Nicolae Polizu-Micșunești shot down

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348-640: The RM-4, with a weight of 250 kg (550 lb) and a maximum speed of 85 km/h (53 mph). This was followed in 1935 by the RM-5 plane, with a maximum speed of 120 km/h (75 mph) and the RM-7 plane, with a maximum speed of 135 km/h (84 mph). In 1939, he started working at Industria Aeronautică Română (IAR), in Brașov . There, he contributed to the design of the IAR 27 , IAR-37 , and IAR-80 aircraft, and in

377-564: The air defence of the Ploiești oil installations, and also Bucharest against Allied air raids, and to protect Axis convoys in the Black Sea. These units fought against the USAAF and RAF during their raids against Romania . The ARR flew aircraft from Germany and Poland , with their own and other foreign aircraft, as well as captured enemy aircraft. The main models of fighter aircraft used include

406-416: The center of a four-M cross, the seal of King Michael I of Romania . These crosses came in different types and sizes as there was no standard model. The markings were placed on the fuselage as well as on the upper and lower wings, and the national colours were painted on the tail. According to Axis regulations, the engine cowling, the under-surfaces of the wingtips and a vertical band on the fuselage ahead of

435-468: The company did not persist with road vehicle development in the long term. From 1947, IAR became the Intreprinderea Metalurgica de Stat (State Ironworks) and from 1948, the company was renamed to Uzina Tractorul Brașov  [ ro ] (UTB). The current IAR was re-established in 1968 at Ghimbav , under the name Intreprinderea de Construcţii Aeronautice (ICA). The ICA developed from

464-482: The company employs around 1,200 specialists including more than 170 engineers; it carries out upgrades, revisions, and overhauls on helicopters and light aircraft. To ensure that the Royal Romanian Air Force (the Aeronautica Regală Română , or ARR ) would be supplied with aircraft without reliance on foreign producers, the Romanian government subsidized the creation of three major aircraft manufacturers in

493-425: The decision to also licensed produce its upgraded derivative, the PZL P.24 , which had been designed exclusively for the export market. Both models would see combat service during the Second World War . IAR worked throughout the conflict to produce large numbers of combat aircraft to equip the Romanian military. Perhaps one of the most significant aircraft to be produced by the company was built during these years in

522-483: The engineers designing IAR aircraft in the early 1930s was Elie Carafoli . During 1930, IAR's first original aircraft, the IAR CV 11 , performed its maiden flight ; it functioned as an experimental design only. One of its earliest aircraft to reach quantity production was the IAR 14 , a trainer aircraft derived from the IAR 12 prototype. The IAR 27 was a more advanced trainer that was introduced in larger quantities during

551-617: The form of the IAR 80 , a low-wing monoplane all-metal monocoque fighter and ground-attack aircraft . When it first flew in 1939, the IAR 80 was claimed to be comparable to contemporary designs being deployed by the most advanced military powers, including the British Hawker Hurricane and the German Messerschmitt Bf ;109E . An improved model, the IAR 81 fighter aircraft, was designed and produced mid-way through

580-410: The former Intreprinderea de Industrie Locală (IIL) glider manufacturer. During this time, the company began to produce helicopters , motor gliders and airplanes , besides gliders . Romania arranged multiple licensing agreements with France, resulting in IAR producing Aérospatiale 's SA 316B Alouette III under the local designation of IAR 316 . The company also manufactured a localised version of

609-519: The interbellum period. The first was Societatea pentru Exploatări Tehnice (SET) which was founded in Bucharest in 1923. Next came IAR, which was formed in Brașov since 1925. Finally there was Întreprinderea de Construcții Aeronautice Românești (ICAR) , which was created in Bucharest in 1932, and operated a factory in Brașov known as ICA-Brașov ( Întreprinderea de Construcții Aeronautice - Brașov ). One of

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638-420: The late 1930s. In addition to pursuing its own designs, IAR also pursued work via the licensed production of foreign-developed aircraft. Poland 's innovative PZL P.11 fighter captured the attention of Romanian officials, leading to a batch of 95 aircraft, referred to as the P.11f , being built by IAR starting in 1936. The Romanian Air Force was greatly appreciative of the type, which heavily contributed to

667-511: The production under license of the IAR 79 (with Savoia-Marchetti , Italy ) and Bf 109 (with Messerschmitt , Germany ) fighter aircraft. Manicatide also directed the development of IAR-813 , IAR-818H , and IAR 823 airplanes. In 1945, he designed the M.R. car. In 2002, he was awarded by President Ion Iliescu the Order of the Star of Romania , Knight class. He died in Bucharest in 2004 and

696-555: The tail were painted in yellow. After Romania joined the Allies, the crosses were changed back to the tricolor roundels on the fuselage and wings, and the yellow markings were painted white as "Allied identification markings". The ARR was first established on 1 January 1924 from the previous Romanian Air Corps . The Royal Romanian Air Force fought against the Magyar Királyi Honvéd Légierö (Royal Hungarian Air Force) before

725-433: The war as well. The type remained in frontline use until May 1945, when the conflict was brought to an end . After World War II , starting from 1946, the production of IAR was oriented towards the manufacture of tractors. The first tractor produced being the IAR 22 . Between 1945 and 1947, under the coordination of Radu Manicatide and Radu Mărdărescu , IAR developed a microcar, named M.R. , and an automobile. However,

754-573: Was also shot down on 4 May 1945. The victory was not officially credited in Romanian documents. Fighter units Bomber units Reconnaissance Units Transport Units Liaison Units Aircraft constructed under foreign license or assembled As a result of the German-Soviet Invasion of Poland , a large number of Polish Air Force aircraft were interned in Romania. Also, some Soviet aircraft were captured during World War II, as well as

783-601: Was at one stage set to purchase a 70 percent shareholding in the firm; this arrangement was closely tied to a planned procurement of the AH-1RO Dracula attack helicopter by Romania, which would have been manufactured locally by IAR. However, by 1998, the purchase was put on hold while efforts were made to raise funds for the AH-1RO purchase. Following a period of negotiations, in November 1999, Bell announced that it had abandoned its intentions to take over IAR and to locally produce

812-511: Was extensively used by the nation during the conflict. During the Cold War era, the company branched out into helicopters , securing licensing agreements with France for their designs in the field, leading to the IAR 316 and IAR 330 . In 2000, IAR partnered with the multinational helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter Group to create the Eurocopter Romania joint venture company. Presently,

841-566: Was terminated shortly following the Romanian Revolution and the collapse of the Communist government. Since 1968, IAR has produced more than 360 helicopters, along with 830 gliders and including motor gliders, as well as 136 light aircraft . During the late 1990s, American aerospace company Bell Helicopters entered negotiations on the topic of acquiring a majority stake in IAR. According to aerospace periodical Flight International , Bell

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