One of the most popular engines in Polish military aviation during the interwar period.
The engine was designed in 1922 at the Lorraine-Dietrich factory in Argenteuil by a team led by Marius Barbarou. Tested at the turn of 1923 and 1924, it received its homologation at the end of 1924. The engine’s success was determined by its selection as the powerplant for the Potez XXV aircraft.
Approximately 8,000 Lorraine-Dietrich 12 Eb units were built, and it was used, among others, in the Breguet XIX, Levasseur PL.4 and PL.8 (the record-breaking aircraft “L’Oiseau blanc,” on which Charles Nungesser and Francois Coli attempted a transatlantic flight), and the Fokker F.VII.
723 units were purchased by Poland, and subsequently produced under license by Polish Skoda Works. In total, the military aviation received 1,020 units. They were used in the SPAD 61C1, Breguet XIX B2, Potez XXV A2/B2, and PWS-10 aircraft.
| Configuration | 12-cylinder inline ‘W’ (6 blocks of 2 cylinders |
| Cooling | water |
| Displacement | 24.4 l |
| Compression ratio | 6 |
| Weight | 395 kg |
| Maximum power | 450 hp at 1850 rpm |
