Aero A.42

The Aero A.42 was a Czechoslovak bomber aircraft of 1929 that was only ever produced in prototype form. For its day, it was an advanced design, with a sleek monoplane configuration. However, the Czechoslovak Air Force was not satisfied with it for a number of reasons. In particular, the aircraft's take-off and landing runs were felt to be excessively long, and crew complained about the cramped cabin. The air force suggested a set of modifications to Aero, including replacing the wooden wing with a metal one, but Aero discontinued development. On 20 September 1930, one of the two prototypes set international speed records of 253.42 km/h (157.47 mph; 136.84 kn) over a 1,000 km (620 mi) closed circuit, carrying payloads of 500 kilograms (1,100 lb) and 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). One prototype was used by the Czechoslovak Air Force until 1938, then by the Slovak Air Force. Probably it was scrapped in 1940. The A.42 was a single-engined high-wing cantilever monoplane with fixed landing gear.

Summary from Wikipedia, photo via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.