I.Ae. D.L. 22 Dele Dele
Side view of an I.Ae. 22 DL
Role	Advanced trainer Type of aircraft
National origin	Argentina
Manufacturer	Instituto Aerotécnico
First flight	May or August 1944
Status	retired
Primary users	Argentine Air Force Argentine Navy
Number built	206
Developed from	North American NA-16

The I.Ae. 22 DL was an Argentine advanced training aircraft designed by the Instituto Aerotecnico (AeroTechnical Institute) in 1943, with a wooden structure, which resembled the North American NA-16.

Development

The I.Ae. 22 DL was a development of the I.Ae. D.L. 21, which itself was itself developed from the North American NA-16, at that time in service with the Argentine military.

Argentine experience with the NA-16-4P and deteriorating political relations with the US led to the local development of the I.Ae. D.L. 21, which shared the NA-16 fuselage structure. However it proved too difficult to produce and an entirely new design (the I.Ae. D.L. 22) of similar configuration, but structurally different and optimized to available materials was built instead.^[1]

It had a wooden structure, and a nine-cylinder 450 horsepower (340 kW) I.Ae. 16 El Gaucho radial engine with a Hamilton Standard 2M-D-30 metallic propeller.

The prototype flew on 8 August 1944,^[2] although some sources give 14 May 1944.^[1] Approximately 200 aircraft were built. A version with a 475 horsepower (354 kW) Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah 25 radial engine and a Rotol constant speed propeller was designated I.Ae. 22- C.

Operators

 Argentina

• Argentine Air Force
• Argentine Naval Aviation

Surviving aircraft

• A restored example, constructor number 728, is on display marked as Ea-701 at the Museo Nacional de Aeronáutica de Argentina.^[3]

Specifications (I.Ae.22 DL)

Data from Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1947^[4]

General characteristics

• Crew: two
• Length: 9.2 m (30 ft 2 in)
• Wingspan: 12.6 m (41 ft 4 in)
• Height: 2.82 m (9 ft 3 in)
• Wing area: 23.19 m² (249.6 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 1,520 kg (3,351 lb)
• Gross weight: 2,220 kg (4,894 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × I.Ae. 16 El Gaucho 9-cyl. air-cooled radial piston engine, 340 kW (450 hp)
• Propellers: 2-bladed Hamilton Standard 2M-D-30

Performance

• Maximum speed: 290 km/h (180 mph, 160 kn) at 450 m (1,476 ft)
• Cruise speed: 260 km/h (160 mph, 140 kn)
• Range: 1,100 km (680 mi, 590 nmi)
• Endurance: 4 hours 15 minutes
• Service ceiling: 5,200 m (17,100 ft)
• Wing loading: 96 kg/m² (20 lb/sq ft)
• Power/mass: 0.141 kW/kg (0.086 hp/lb)

Armament

• Guns: 2 x 7,65 mm fixed Madsen machine guns (450 rounds each)^[2]
• Rockets: or 6 x 11 kg (24 lb) rockets.
• Bombs: 3 x 50 kg (110 lb) or 9 x 15 kg (33 lb) bombs