02/08/2026. Remarks by
Johan Visschedijk: "The Caspar Werke AG (formed by Carl Caspar in the former Fokker factory at Travemünde in 1921) built the first military aircraft in Germany after WW I.
Designed by Ernst Heinkel, the experimental U 1 single-seat reconnaissance floatplane was envisaged to be based on submarines. The unarmed wooden aircraft was powered by a 50 hp Siemens & Halske Sh 4 five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine. The aircraft could be disassembled (wings, floats, propeller) in 100 seconds and stowed in a deck-mounted pressure hull 19 ft 8.25 in (6 m) long and 4 ft 11 in (1.5 m) in diameter. Reassembly took about 200 seconds.
(A-6434) (
Johan Visschedijk Collection)
Two aircraft were ordered by the US Navy for testing and serialed A-6434 and A-6435 they were delivered to
NAS Anacostia, Washington, District of Columbia, in late 1922. A-6434 was to be shown in a parade in July 1923, mounted on a truck, it contacted low-hanging trees and was damaged beyond repair; the second aircraft completed the tests late 1923.
A third aircraft, registered D-293 (c/n 510) was delivered to the Reichsmarine. Two more aircraft were produced, designated U 2 (which differed from the U 1 only in its equipment), these were delivered to Japan, where they were copied into the Yokosho Navy Type 1."
