Arado Ar.96, German users, part one

 

The Arado Ar.96 was a German single-engined trainer aircraft of the second half of the 1930s. It was manufactured by Arado Flugzeugwerke and was equipped with an enclosed cockpit and a retractable landing gear. During World War II, it was the standard advanced trainer of the Luftwaffe.

It was designed by Walter Blume (the same designer who, years later, would design the Arado Ar.234) in 1936 after a request made by the Reichluftfahrtministerium (Reich's Aviation Ministry - RLM). The prototype, which flew for the first time in 1938, was powered by a 240 hp Argus As.10C engine. This trainer was designed as a stop gap between the biplanes used for basic training and the advanced monoplane fighters that were entering service, namely the Messerschmitt Bf.109. 

The Ar.96 was a clean low-wing monoplane made entirely out of metal, employing many light alloys. The instructor and student sat in tandem in an enclosed cockpit. On the V1 prototype, the wheels retracted outwards, just like in the Bf.109, but that meant that the gap between the wheels was too small when deployed, so from the second prototype onwards, they were changed. The rear section was typical Arado-ish with the horizontal surfaces at the very rear, and a tail finn and rudder just in front of them, remaining of other aircraft of the firm like the Ar.68. 

Sources:

1. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arado_Ar_96 (translated)

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arado_Ar_96

3. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_arado_ar_96.html