3 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Dornier R2 Superwal L'Année aéronautique 1926: L'Année aéronautique· Public domain
- 2. Dornier R4 Gas Superwal L'Aéronautique January,1928: L'Aéronautique magazine· Public domain
- 3. Dornier Superwal Les Ailes December 22,1927: Les Ailes newspaper· Public domain
what is it?
The Dornier Do R Superwal was a flying boat airliner designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Dornier. The Do R was a larger development of the Do J, possessing a larger high-mounted strut-braced monoplane wing and an elongated fuselage. All but the first three flying boats built were powered by four engines in place of the Do J's two; the manufacturer speculated that up to six engines could be readily installed.
How to recognise it: 4 piston engines with propellers · 28.6 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 100 years ago, in 1926.
- Top speed is 1.6× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 28.6 m: about 6 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 2 African elephants (~6 t each).
- Range of 1,500 km: 8× Amsterdam to Brussels.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1926-09
- introduced
- 1928
- number built
- 19
- role
- flying boat airliner
- makers
- Dornier
- engines
- 4× Siemens-built Bristol Jupiter VI
- passengers
- 21
- length
- 24.6 m
- wingspan
- 28.6 m
- height
- 6 m
- max take-off weight
- 14 t
- top speed
- 210 km/h
- range
- 1,500 km
- ceiling
- 1,500 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q1245897, Wikipedia: Dornier Do R Superwal (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.