J.Forsgren Swedish Military Aircraft 1911-1926 (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 68)

Fjallback Naktergalen (Nightingale)

  While learning to fly in 1912 at the Bleriot flying school at Pau, France, the engineer Lars Fjallback began to design an airplane. Upon arriving back in Stockholm, Fjallback became a part of the Svenska Aeroplankonsortiet (Swedish Airplane Consortium), which in 1913 built a Nieuport IVG.
  After the Nieuport had been completed, Fjallback formed Svenska Aeroplanfabriken (The Swedish Airplane Factory) in November 1913 together with Tord Angstrom, initiating the construction of his own airplane design. Liberally borrowing design features from Nieuport, Harlan and Hanriot, the resulting airplane was named Fjallback Naktergalen (Nightingale). This name was rarely used, though, with Fjallback’s airplane after being drafted into military service commonly being referred to as Bastarden (which roughly translates to someone being born out of wedlock).
  By late 1913, the Nightingale had been completed. The first flight was delayed due to the Gnome engine not arriving until early 1914. On April 3, the airplane made its maiden flight in the hands of Tord Angstrom. During the summer of 1914, Fjallback and Angstrom secured sponsorship from the toothpaste manufacturer Stomatol, the name of which was painted on the airplane. A tour of central Sweden, promoting Stomatol, had to be cut short due to the outbreak of war.
  On August 8, 1914, the Nightingale was purchased by the army. Transferred to Malmen, the Nightingale was issued with the serial number 9. In AFK service, the airplane was assigned to Tord Angstrom, but also flown by other pilots as well. During two weeks in July 1915, the Nightingale was used in ground-to-air firing trials. During these trials, the pilot Nils Kindberg threw small objects out of the airplane, with the objects descending slowly to the ground by parachute. The idea was to train troops in firing at aerial targets. According to Kindberg: ”How many of the brave shooters on the ground, that aimed at the airplane No. 9 Fjallback and how many that aimed at the target parachutes will never be known. No hits were recorded in either target, though.
  In November 1916, the airplane was struck off charge due to age and wear and tear.

Fjallback Bastarden Technical Data and Performance Characteristics
   Engine: 1 x 50 h.p. Gnome
   Length: 7,30 m
   Wingspan: 8,80 m
   Height: 2,40 m
   Wing area: 14 m2
   Empty weight: n/a
   Maximum weight: 450 kg (?)
   Maximum speed: 100 km/h
   Armament: -