ever heard of the Nu-200 Sikumbang

Apparently the aircraft at Bandung has been taken inside for restoration;
http://www.chappyhakim.com/2010/10/30/nurtanio-dan-si-kumbang-dalam-kenangan/

Regards,
Hans

.
A recent post elsewhere:

10/31/2009. Remarks by Bob Cieslak: In 1993-94, I had the opportunity to work in Indonesia on the engineering development of their N-250 turboprop commuter aircraft. I worked in Bandung at IPTN – Industrie Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (Indonesian Aircraft Industry). Right there at the entrance to the facility was the NU-200 in its’ own display area. In the flight photos I have seen of this aircraft, I never saw any wheel fairings on the main landing gear. Maybe they were added later in the flight test program to gain a few extra knots. I understand this aircraft had a top speed of 256 kmh, and a range of 960 km. The Indonesians were very proud of this aircraft, and still are to this day. A friend of mine who just got back from Indonesia told me that the airplane is still sitting in the same spot where it was in 1993.

An old photo of the aircraft at Bandung.

From November 1954 Flight Magazine

http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1954/1954%20-%203020.html

INDONESIAN FIRST BORN – Ground-attack, single-seater for I.A.F.

The first aircraft to be designed and built in Indonesia was
constructed by die Aero-technical Branch of die Indonesian
Air Force and is now completing its flight test schedule.,- It made
its first flight on August 1st last at Husein SastranajgSra A.F.B.,
Bandung, Java.

Significantly this first venture, called NU-200
Sikumbang (Bee), was designed to fulfil an operational role similar
to that of the Fletcher Defender in die U.S.A. and Japan. It is,
in fact, a light ground-attack single-seater with a maximum all-up
weight of 2,400 lb; it is powered by a 200 h.p. D.H. Gipsy Six
driving a two-blade fixed-pitch woodert airscrew.

The accompanying photograph shows it to be a low wing monoplane
of conventional configuration with a fixed tricycle undercarriage.

The pilot sits just above the leading edge under a sliding
cockpit canopy which, together -with the distinctive fuselage upper
contours, should provide an excellent view; the engine is slung
quite low forward of a Hartfard-like hump in the cockpit coaming.
No details of armament are released, but it would appear that
mountings are provided” for two machine guns in the wings with
other stores such as rockets, bombs or napalm slung beneath the
wing.

Construction is composite. The wing is a single-piece wooden
structure with plywood covering, having an aspect ratio of 6.5, a
N.A.C.A. 23012 aerofoil section and an area of 182 sq ft. Its split
flaps are electrically operated.

Two sets of fixed slots are positioned
opposite the ailerons in each wing. The tail surfaces are
likewise cantilever wooden structures with trim tabs on rudder
and elevator.

The fuselage, on the other hand, is of welded steel
tube with metal covering. The undercarriage is fixed and
employs oleo shock-absorbers, and the nose wheel is not steerable.

Span, length and height are, respectively, 34.8ft, 26.75ft and lift.
Maximum and cruising speeds at sea level are quoted as 160 m.p.h.
and 140 m.p.h. and landing speed as 55 m.p.h.; initial rate of climb
is “over 1,000ft a minute” and service ceiling 16,500ft. Range,
with a total fuel capacity of 40 Imp. gallons, is stated to be 600
miles.

Flight’s caption for the photo attached below:

Indonesia’s first home-designed and built aircraft, the single-seat
light ground-support NU-200 Sikumbang (Bee) is here seen airborne
over lava during a test flight.

The Flight magazine advises the wing to be wooden, but it still seems surprising the prototype is successfully displayed outdoors in the tropics, a certain death sentence for wooden winged aircraft in Australia?, and the preserved examples wing looks decidedly metal clad?

More interesting comparisons

Wackett NU-200
Length 26′ 10″ 26.75′ (@26′ 9″)
Height 37′ 0″ 34.8′ (@34′ 9.6″)

Hopefully some detailed photos of the aircraft at IPTN at Bandung will be forthcoming.

Regards

Mark Pilkington