Sablatnig SF 3

The Sablatnig SF 3 was a German single‑engine reconnaissance and trainer aircraft built shortly after World War I by the firm of Josef Sablatnig in Berlin‑Tempelhof. Designed in 1919 as a development of the earlier SF 2, the SF 3 incorporated a streamlined wooden fuselage, a two‑bay biplane wing with mild stagger and a 120 hp Mercedes D.II inline engine delivering a top speed of roughly 150 km/h. The cockpit was enclosed in a simple canvas canopy, giving the pilot and observer greater protection and visibility, while the rear seat could be fitted with a light machine gun for defensive training. Its robust undercarriage and forgiving handling made it a popular choice for the newly formed German flying schools and for aerial observation missions during the turbulent post‑war period. Although only a few dozen were produced, the SF 3 demonstrated Josef Sablatnig’s ability to transition from wartime combat designs to peacetime civil and training aircraft, influencing later German biplane trainers of the 1920s. It featured a wingspan of 10.2 m, a length of 7.4 m and could climb to 3,000 m in under ten minutes, performance that set a benchmark for subsequent trainer models. The type remains a modest yet illustrative example of early interwar aviation innovation.

Josef Sablatnig

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