page_title: Dornier Do 17
section_title: Dornier Do 17Z: The main variant
hierarchical_section_title: Dornier Do 17 / Variants / Dornier Do 17Z: The main variant
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Lichtenstein b/c Radar Anordnung der Antenne an der Flugzeugkanzel einer Do 17 Z-10 Kauz II ITU-classificatio: Radiolocation land station in the radiolocation service
context_page_description: The Dornier Do 17, sometimes referred to as the Fliegender Bleistift, is a light bomber of Nazi Germany during World War II. It was produced by Claudius Dornier's company, Dornier Flugzeugwerke. The aircraft was designed as a Schnellbomber, a light bomber which, in theory, would be so fast that it could outrun defending fighter aircraft.
  The Dornier was designed with two engines mounted on a "shoulder wing" structure and possessed a twin tail fin configuration. The type was popular among its crews due to its handling, especially at low altitude, which made the Do 17 harder to hit than other German bombers.
  Designed in the early 1930s, it was one of the three main Luftwaffe bomber types used in the first three years of the war. The Do 17 made its combat debut in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War, operating in the Condor Legion in various roles. Along with the Heinkel He 111 it was the main bomber type of the German air arm in 1939–1940.
context_section_description: The Dornier Do 17Z series was the most recognised and mass-produced variant, and saw more combat service than the E-U types. The type was modified as a result of combat experience during the Spanish Civil War. The forward fuselage was redesigned, with the cockpit area being "dropped", or extended further to enable a rear firing gunner position to be installed, and the canopy extended aft, until it was nearly parallel with the leading edge and wing root.
  To test the design, the Do 17S and Do 17U were produced, both to be powered by the DB 600 power plants. However, a call for all DB 600 series engines to be reserved for fighters led to the variants being fitted with Bramo Fafnir 323 A radial engines. The bomb load was increased to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) and a fourth crew member was added. It proved to be underpowered, so Bramo 323 P engines were then fitted. Only three Do 17S and 15 Do 17Us were built. With the updates, the Dornier, with a full bomb load, had a combat radius of 322 km (200 mi). Later variants, in the Do 17 Z-3, Z-4 and Z-5, which were fitted with cameras, dual trainer controls and flotation aids (for maritime operations) respectively, still could not solve the problems with range and bomb load.
  At first, a batch of Z-0s were built with the Fafnir for testing, the DB 600 again proving to be too hard to obtain. These were quickly replaced with the Z-1 model, which added another gun for the bombardier, but the additional weight of the nose and guns meant the bomb load was reduced to 500 kg (1,100 lb). The Luftwaffe, not being satisfied with the test outcome of the Z series, immediately ordered performance and design studies to increase the overall performance of the bomber. These resulted in very optimistic speeds and altitudes for all future Z variants, especially for the Z-5 aircraft. Planned performance altitudes of up to 7,620 m (25,000 ft) at a maximum speed of 418 km/h (260 mph) with an aircraft weight of 8,100 kg (17,900 lb) were planned. Unfortunately, production aircraft never reached these optimistic performances during the service career of the Do 17Z. At 7,740 kg (17,060 lb), the heavy Do 17Z-1 used two Bramo 323 A-1 engines with self-sealing fuel cells in the fuselage and wings. The crew of four consumed approximately 20 bottles of oxygen during long flights above 3,700 m (12,100 ft). The Do 17Z-1 had a speed of 352 km/h (219 mph) at 1,100 m (3,600 ft). However, the performance of the Bramo 323s did not permit the Do 17 to reach 416 km/h (258 mph) at 3,900 m (12,800 ft) and level flight when fully loaded. Range of the Z-1 at ground level was 635 nmi (1,176 km) while at 4,700 m (15,400 ft) this increased to 850 nmi (1,570 km). This gave an average range of 400 nmi (740 km). The introduction of the Bramo 323P increased subsequent performance in the following sub variants.
  This was addressed in the major production model, the Do 17 Z-2. The Z-2 mounted the new 323P-1 version of the Fafnir with 746 kW (1,000 hp), which was specifically tuned to the performance needs of the Do 17 by decreasing supercharger power at lower altitudes and thus improving low-level performance. The increase in takeoff power allowed the bomb load to be increased from 500 to 1,000 kg (1,100 to 2,200 lb). However the combat range with a full 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bomb load was a very short 330 km (210 mi). The armament was further upgraded by adding another pair of guns firing out of the sides of the upper part of the pod, but as the three guns were all fired by a single gunner, only one of them could be fired at a time. From May 1940, 422 Do 17 Z-2s flew with Kampfgeschwader 2, Kampfgeschwader 3, Kampfgeschwader 76 and Kampfgeschwader 77. The upgrades of the Z-2 had its overall weight increased from 17,600 to 17,920 lb (7,980 to 8,130 kg). After heavy losses of Do 17s during the Battle of Britain it was decided to replace the MG FF cannon with the more powerful MG 151/15. Losses had mounted in spite of an increase of up to eight machine guns in some Dorniers.
  The Z-3 formed part of the bomber versions of the Z series, it was, how
caption: Dornier Do 17Z-10 night fighter with FuG 202 Lichtenstein B/C UHF radar
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