Pander & Son

Pander & Son was a Dutch aircraft company based in The Hague, founded by Harmen Pander and his son Henk Pander.

History

Henk Pander was the managing director of a furniture company who in 1924 bought the assets of the bankrupt "Vliegtuig Industrie Holland" (VIH) company, which included the services of designers Theodorus Egbert Slot and Van der Kwast. Pander set up the "Nederlandse Fabriek van Vliegtuigen H. Pander & Zonen" (H. Pander and Son Dutch Aircraft Company) and began construction of an improved version of the VIH Holland H.2, renamed the Pander D.

In 1929 the German sailplane builder Alexander Lippisch came to the Netherlands prompting Theo Slot to build the first Dutch glider in 1930. This aircraft, the P-1 Zögling, was a copy of the Stamer and Lippisch Z-12 Zögling.

The company built a small number of trainer and sporting aircraft, perhaps the most well-known aircraft being the Pander S.4 "Postjager", designed by Theo Slot. The design was suggested by pilot Dirk Asjes, who was critical of the slow development of Dutch airmail flights. He asked Pander to build a special mail plane. This was designated the S.4, and was known as the "Postjager" or "Panderjager" (and later, due to its mechanical unreliability, as the "Pechjager" - "Pech" being Dutch for "breakdown").

In October 1933 this aircraft flew to the Netherlands East Indies. It made an emergency landing in Italy, but eventually arrived at Batavia after 72 hours and 20 minutes in the air.

In 1934 it took part in the London-Melbourne air race. At Allahabad, India, the landing gear was damaged on landing. This was repaired, but the aircraft collided with a motor tractor on take off, crashed, and was burnt out. The crew escaped unharmed. This disaster meant the end for the Pander company which was wound up.

World War II

During World War II Henk Pander, an enthusiastic member of the Dutch Nazi Party, the NSB, refounded the company and built 555 SG-38 sailplanes for the German paramilitary NSFK, and repaired German aircraft. After the war Henk was arrested and tried for collaboration.

Pander aircraft

; Pander D (1924)
* A single-engined, single-seat monoplane military trainer. This was an improved version of the Holland H.2 - itself an improved version of the Carley C-12. Seven aircraft were built and served with the MLD and the LA-KNIL (later the ML-KNIL).

; Pander E or EG-100 (1926)
* A single-engined, one/two-seat sesquiplane. The most successful Pander aircraft. Seventeen were built specially for the Dutch Aviation School (NLS). In 1932, the Pander E "Adelaar" ("Eagle") flew to the Netherlands East Indies and back.

; Pander P1/P2 "Gypsy Pander" (1929)
* A single-engined, two-seat, high-wing sports plane. The aircraft was reasonably successful as race plane, but only two were built.

; Pander PH-1 Zögling (1930)
* The first sailplane built in the Netherlands, a copy of a design of Alexander Lippisch. A replica can be seen at the Aviodrome Dutch aircraft museum.

; Pander P3 (1932)
* A single-engined, one/two seat high-wing aircraft. Only one was built.

; Pander Multipro (1932)
* A single-engined, three-seat, high-wing sport plane. Three were built.

; Pander S.4 Postjager (1933)
* A three-engined, three-seat, low-wing mail plane. Meant speed up the mail flights to the Netherlands East Indies, it suffered from persistent breakdowns, and within a year of its first flight the only model was destroyed in a crash.

External links

* [http://www.aviacrash.nl/paginas/panderjager.htm Account of Pander S.4 crash (with photos)] nl icon

References

* "Pander, een Haagse vliegtuigfabriek", Harm J. Hazewinkel, 2007, uitg. KNvVL
* "Vliegtuigbouw in Fokkers schaduw", Harm J. Hazewinkel, uitg. Rebo Prod., ISBN 903660348X
* "De Nederlandse vliegtuigen", Theo Wesselink, Thijs Postma, uitg. Romen, ISBN 9022837920
* "Vergeten legende, Frits Koolhoven 1886-1946", Sytze van de Zee, 2001, Bezige Bij, ISBN 9023470575