The long range Dornier Do X was a German built flying boat, powered initially by 12 Bristol Jupiter radial engines. With long range seating for 66 passengers, or up to 100 for short flights, it was the largest aircraft of its time.
First flying on 12 July 1929, it once carried 169 passengers on a demonstration flight. This was the most people to fly on a single aircraft, a record that stood for twenty years.
Dornier Do X Video
Following on from the video last week on the British Aerospace 146, this time we have a look at the Dornier Do X. Running for around ten minutes, the presentation gives an excellent overview of this revolutionary flying boat.
It undertook a tour in 1930-1931, flying from Germany via points in Europe and West Africa to Brazil and north to New York. It spent nine months there before flying back home.
Inside, it was styled very much like an ocean liner. Passengers had sleeping berths, a bar, dining saloon and other creature comforts for the day. You can see a lot of this in snippets in the film.
Just three aircraft were produced, one for Germany and two for Italy. Despite plans for air services, nothing really eventuated, though it did fly for Lufthansa for a little while before a landing accident took off the tail. Eventually it was put into a museum, before being destroyed during World War II.
Overall Thoughts
Arguably the Dornier Do X paved the way for the flying boats that entered service in the 1930s. More famous were the Boeing 314 flying boats and the British Short C Class.
Eventually flying boats were replaced by the land planes we all use today. Apparently at least one flying boat captain was glad to see the end of them, as they were considered to be far less safe than the aircraft they were replaced by.
Have you heard about this flying boat before? What did you think of the video? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Featured image via San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives on Flickr.
