Avia B-71/SB - Lehký bombardovací a zvě – Václavík Josef (2021)

The publication focuses on our most modern aircraft in the critical year of 1938, the Avia B71, specifically the Soviet fast bomber SB, whose star rose during the Spanish Civil War from 1936 to 1939. Its licensed production in our country slowly began in 1938-1939 after complicated negotiations, and at the same time, 61 units of this aircraft were purchased from the USSR. These machines were equipped with Czechoslovak engines and armaments and were gradually incorporated into the arsenal. The author briefly describes the aircraft's origin in the USSR, the encounters of several of our pilots with SB aircraft in Spain, the search for a machine of this category for our air force in France, England, and the USSR, and the reasons that led to our decision for the Soviet SB. This is followed by a description of the complicated negotiations regarding licensed production in our country, during which the license for the Škoda mountain cannon was delivered to the USSR as a counter-value. Subsequent chapters cover the testing of the aircraft at VTLÚ, the introduction of the aircraft into service and operational experiences, the training of crews, and a special exercise of the Air Brigade in 1938 with regard to testing the use of the B71. The incorporation of the B71 into the arsenal of Air Regiments 1, 2, 5, 6, as well as in the Combat Center for Bombers in Kunovice and the deployment of the B71 during mobilization is described. In this context, the author tries to...