Kārlis Irbītis (October 14, 1904, in
Lāde parish,
Governorate of Livonia
The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a province (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, Baltic Governorate-General until 1876. Governorate of Livonia bordered Governorate of E ...
– October 13, 1997, in
Saint-Laurent,
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
, Canada) was a
Latvia
Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
n aeroplane designer.
His greatest successes, for the
VEF factory, were the sports plane
VEF I-12
The VEF I-12 was a tandem, two-seat Latvian trainer aircraft designed by Kārlis Irbītis and produced by VEF in Riga.
Design and development
The single engine, tandem, two seat I-12 was a development of the similarly laid out I-11, strengthe ...
(1935) and the monoplane
VEF I-16
The VEF I-16 was a prototype Latvian fighter aircraft designed by Kārlis Irbītis and produced by VEF in 1939. Development was halted by the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 and the subsequent purge of VEF personnel.
Description
The I ...
(1939), used as a fighter aircraft. After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, when he had emigrated to Canada, he was the designer of the experimental Canadian
vertical landing and take-off aeroplane, the
CL-84 (1950).
Aircraft designed by Kārlis Irbītis
*
Irbītis I-1 ''Sprīdītis'' – sport, single-seat / Nikolajs Pūliņš & Kārlis Irbītis (P.2, I.1) 1925
*
Irbītis I-2 ''Ikars'' / N. Pūliņš & K. Irbītis (P.3, I.2)
*
Irbītis I-3 – by Herberts Runka
*
Irbītis I-4 ''Vanadziņš'' / A.S. ″Christine Backman″
*
Irbītis I-5 ''Ikars II'' – trainer 2-seat by Nikolajs Pūliņš
*
Irbītis I-6 ''Gambija'' – trainer single-seat by Nikolajs Pūliņš
*
Irbītis I-7 ''Zilais Putns'' – trainer single-seat by Nikolajs Pūliņš
*
Irbītis I-8 ''Zilais Putns II'' – trainer 2-seat / Nikolajs Pūliņš & Kārlis Irbītis
*
Irbītis I-9 ''Kaija'' – monoplane / Valsts Daugavpils Arodskola
*
Irbītis I-10 ''Vanags'' – by Riga Aviation Club / Valsts Daugavpils Arodskola 1935
VEF Factory
*
Irbītis VEF I-11 – sport (low-wing distance racer)
*
Irbītis VEF I-12 – trainer 2-seat, converted to single-seater
*
Irbītis VEF I-14 – sport (low-wing racer)
*
Irbītis VEF I-15a – trainer military single-seat
*
Irbītis VEF I-15b – bomber
*
Irbītis VEF I-16 – fighter
*
Irbītis VEF I-17-1 – trainer military 2-seat
*
Irbītis VEF I-17-2 – trainer military 2-seat (engine
Shvetsov M-11
The Shvetsov M-11 is a five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, radial aircraft engine produced in the Soviet Union between 1923 and 1952.Gunston 1989, p.158.
Design and development
The Shvetsov M-11 was designed under a 1923 competition in the S ...
)
*
Irbītis VEF I-18 – sport trainer by Latvia Aeroclub
*
Irbītis VEF I-19 – fighter project
Other
*
CL-84 – world's first successful tilt-wing aircraft /
Canadair
Canadair Ltd. was a Canadian civil and military aircraft manufacturer that operated from 1944 to 1986. In 1986, its assets were acquired by Bombardier Aerospace, the aviation division of Canadian transport conglomerate Bombardier Inc.
Canadai ...
1965
References
External links
*
Latvian Academy of Sciences: Inventors of Latvia — Karl Irbitis
1904 births
1997 deaths
People from Limbaži Municipality
People from Valmiera county
Aircraft designers
20th-century Latvian inventors
20th-century Canadian inventors
Latvian World War II refugees
Latvian emigrants to Canada
{{Latvia-bio-stub