In practice, the B-35 seemed a winner for its handling characteristics were deemed good and its performance strong against contemporaries. Maximum speed could reach near 310 miles per hour with ranges out to 310 miles. Rate-of-climb was listed at 2,560 feet per minute.
The program delivered three total prototypes in all and these as the B-35/1, B-35/2 and B-35/3. During testing, the original 12Ydrs engine was superseded by the 12Ycrs series which allowed for a single 20mm cannon to be fitted firing through the propeller hub. The first prototype crashed on November 21st which spurred construction of the slightly revised (smaller ailerons, extended flaps and increased fuselage cross-section) second prototype (B-35/2) - this model took to the air on December 30th, 1938. Following the promising results, the Czech government commissioned for ten preproduction aircraft - though this was derailed with the German occupation of Czechoslovakia during March of 1939.
Despite the occupation, the B-35 product managed to continue development which led to the third prototype (B-35/3), this model earning its wings during a first flight on June 26th, 1939. By this time, the wing mainplanes were modified to feature straight edges along the leading lines (the wings losing their elliptical shape) and a retractable undercarriage was finally fitted. The complete armament suite was now made up of a hub-mounted 20mm autocannon and 2 x 7.92mm wing-mounted machine guns.
In the end, it was these three prototypes that stood for the Avia B-35 aircraft initiative for attention was soon moved to a more evolved form as the "B-135". Bulgarian Air Force pilots were able to trial the B-35/2 prototype back in November of 1939 and later got their hands on the B-35/3 prototype. With the blessings of Berlin, the Bulgarians commissioned for twelve of the type and these served solely with the Bulgarian Air Force during the war.
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