AEKKEA-RAAB
Encyclopedia
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, is connected with the fascinating history of a talented German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
aircraft designer, Antonius Raab (his first name alternatively known as Antonios, in Greek, and Antonio, in Spanish after his involvement in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
).
Establishment
In Germany, Raab was the co-founder of Raab-KatzensteinRaab-Katzenstein
Raab-Katzenstein was a 1920s German aircraft manufacturer based in Kassel.The main character of the company was its designer Gerhard Fieseler. Following World War I, he returned to printing, but yearned to return to flying...
, an aircraft manufacturing company. A devoted anti-Nazi, Raab was forced out of his homeland, and after attempts to establish his company in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
and Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
, ended up in 1935 in Greece, where he had the support of a high-ranking Air Force officer (Gen. Gazis). With this support, he and his Greek partners founded a company called AEKKEA (which stood for "Anonymos Etaireia Kataskevis Kai Ekmetallefseos Aeroplanon", or, in French, the "international" language employed in Greece at the time "Societe Anonyme Pour la Fabrication et l'Exploitation des Avions Raab"). The company was legally established on October 20, 1935, by Antonius Raab, Apostolos Agnidis, Konstantinos Bitzios and Georgios Sarigiannis, with headquarters in Piraeus
Piraeus
Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....
(to be moved it in 1937 to nearby Phaleron). Construction was undertaken by Pyrkal
Pyrkal
Founded in 1874, Pyrkal is one of the oldest Defence Industries in Greece and the main producer of ammunition and explosives in the country. Throughout its history it has been one of the largest Greek companies, in fact a reflection of the history of Greek Industry itself...
defence industry until AEKKEA's own factory in Moschato
Moschato
Moschato , is a suburb in the south southern part of Athens, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Moschato-Tavros, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit....
started operation in 1937.
Original activities
The company employed Greek staff (including management and engineers like Greece's best known aircraft engineer, Georgios Pangakis), but a number of German technicians had also followed Raab to Greece. Its first reported prototypes were (or were related to) models from Raab’s previous company, including the Pelikan trainer and touring plane, the R-26V trainer and light fighter, the R-27 single-seat fighter, the Schwalbe (I/II) and the Tigerschwalbe IV multi-role military aircraft. The first company "construction" was actually an old Raab-Katzenstein Schwalbe Kl 1c upgraded to Schwalbe II, and at least one complete Schwalbe II was also constructed. Except for the Schwalbe, and, possibly, a Pelikan, no production is verified for any other of the particular types; the company nonetheless possessed the designs and production rights. The first "job" of the new company was an order from AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
for two Schwalbe and two Tigerschwalbe, which were built under licence by Pintsch in Vienna. No further Austrian orders were made, under German pressure. At least one Schwalbe II was active with the Austrian Air Force
Austrian Air Force (1927-1938)
The Austrian Air Force of the interwar period began as a paramilitary organisation and was secretly built up by the government before union with Germany .- History :...
when that country was annexed by Germany. The Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
government had also at some point expressed interest in the Schwalbe.
Development and production of new aircraft types; sales to Spain
In 1936, Raab's design division in the Greek company designed some new types, such as the R-29AEKKEA-RAAB R-29
The R-29 fighter belongs to a number of plane types that were developed in Greece by AEKKEA-RAAB, a company founded in this country by Antonius Raab, a German airplane designer, and his Greek partners. Other reported models of the new company were related to earlier products of the Raab-Katzenstein...
and Tigerschwalbe 33 (although the latter type is most probably a renamed R-26V) type military aircraft, and the R-52 bomber and transport plane. Of those, the first two were to be produced for the Republican forces in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, which Raab supported, while the third probably remained a design. Raab had to deal with the complications of supplies to Spain in that period (non-intervention treaty); a commercial office of the Greek company was set up in Paris, while a subsidiary was created in Spain. The main and more complex parts and equipment of the aircraft were built in Athens (parts of the construction were undertaken by Pyrkal
Pyrkal
Founded in 1874, Pyrkal is one of the oldest Defence Industries in Greece and the main producer of ammunition and explosives in the country. Throughout its history it has been one of the largest Greek companies, in fact a reflection of the history of Greek Industry itself...
, while KEA
KEA (aircraft)
The State Aircraft Factory of Greece, usually known through the acronym KEA is the most historic Greek aircraft manufacturer, originally known as the EAF .- History :...
equipment were also used) and shipped to Spain. Residents of Moschato
Moschato
Moschato , is a suburb in the south southern part of Athens, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Moschato-Tavros, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit....
described seeing truckloads of aircraft parts leaving the factory, obviously heading to ships destined for Spain, while others complained for the continuous noise made during testing of aircraft engines in the factory. Once in Spain, the local subsidiary undertook assembly and fitting of certain parts, in a former textile factory in Sabadell
Sabadell
Sabadell is the second largest city in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the comarca, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona...
under Raab's supervision (according to some reports, a number of planes were shipped from Greece almost completely finished, the only remaining step being fitting of engines and machine guns). According to Raab, a total of 60 (i.e., 30 of each type) aircraft were almost finished, when they were shipped, along with the construction plans, to the USSR. Raab was arrested as a "German spy", but managed to escape and returned to Greece in 1938.
Activities immediately before WWII and company dissolution
AEKKEA produced dozens of gliders on modified GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
designs (Gruene Post, Grunau Baby and Zoegling types, sold and used locally), as well as a large number of spare parts for other aircraft and a variety of specialized equipment for the Greek armed forces, some exports also being made.
A proposal to sell aircraft to the Greek Air Force was rejected, as the AEKKEA types were considered "not up to the desired standards". This rejection, however, was probably more connected to politics than technology. Nonetheless, one aircraft (probably a Schwalbe) was being built for a Greek customer when the country was invaded by the Germans and the factory ceased operations, and could be seen, unfinished, in the site of the factory for years after the end of the war. During the German invasion, Raab escaped the country and eventually ended up in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, where he set up a short-lived aircraft factory (it built 2 gliders). In 1949, he returned to Europe, living in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
until 1985.
AEKKEA was formally dissolved in 1951.