Roden 446 Beechcraft D17S Staggerwing

The Beechcraft Model 17 Staggerwing was an American multi-role fixed-undercarriage biplane. The drive was provided in the basic version by a single Pratt and Whitney R-985-AN-1 engine with power 450 hp. The prototype flight took place in May 1932. In the course of serial production in the period 1933-1949, approx. 780 examples of this aircraft were made. The machine did not have a permanent armament.

The Beechcraft Model 17 was created as a private initiative of the aviation manufacturers and constructors Walter Beech and Ted Wells, who planned to create a relatively large, powerful-engine communication plane for the civilian market. Sales of the new machine were slow at first, but showed an upward trend. It was accelerated by the participation of the plane in numerous air races and the US recovery from the Great Depression of 1929. Machines of this type were also sold, even before the outbreak of World War II, to the Spanish Republic (where they served as bombers) and China (where they served as an ambulance aircraft). In 1942, an order was also received from the United States Air Force that needed a new light transport and courier aircraft. The Air Force also changed the designation of the aircraft to UC-43. The Beechcraft Model 17 Staggerwing plane has reached many foreign users, including Australia, Finland, the Netherlands and Peru.