It was a lightly built aircraft, possessing a twin tail, "shoulder wing" and typically powered by a pair of Bramo 323P radial engines.

Sometimes referred to as the Fliegender Bleistift ("flying pencil") or the Eversharp,[4] the Do 17 was a relatively popular aircraft among its crews due to its handling, especially at low altitude, which made the type harder to hit than other German bombers of the era.

The type was not withdrawn at this point; instead, the Do 17 continued to serve with the Luftwaffe during the latter years of the conflict in various secondary roles, including as a glider tug, research, and trainer aircraft.

In 1932, the Ordnance Department (Heereswaffenamt) issued a specification for the construction of a "freight aircraft for German State Railways", and a "high speed mail plane for Lufthansa".

The Ministry of Aviation designated the new aircraft Do 17, and on 17 March 1933, just three months after taking office, Milch gave the go ahead for the building of prototypes.

[8] It has been suggested that it was rejected by Luft Hansa, as the cramped cabin was too uncomfortable for passenger use and the operating costs were too high for a mail plane.

By this time, bomber squadrons of the Luftwaffe were already being equipped with the first two productions models, the Do 17E and F. During 1938, both these versions were flying combat missions in the Spanish Civil War.

As a result of the lessons learned in the Spanish Civil War, the cockpit roof was raised and the lower, or bottom half, of the crew compartment was a typical under-nose gondola or "Bodenlafette" (abbreviated Bola): this inverted-casemate design ventral defensive armament position was a common feature of most German medium bombers.

One of the gunners sat on the right seat, which was set further back to provide room for the 7.92 mm (0.312 in) MG 15 machine gun to be traversed in use.

The radio operator manned the two 7.92 mm MG 15 machine guns within a B-Stand pod in the rear cockpit; they had 750 rounds of ammunition.

Several E-1s were rebuilt as E-2 or E-3, at least three E-2 and one E-3 were used by DVL and Hansa-Luftbild GmbH (Hansa Aerial Photography Ltd) in a secret military reconnaissance role prior to the war.

[28] The first prototype of the revised version, the Do 17M V1 (D-ABVD) was powered by two DB 600s, and demonstrated impressive performance, including a maximum speed of 425 km/h (264 mph).

[29] At the International Military Aircraft Competition at Zürich, Switzerland, in 1937, the Dornier Do 17M V1 proved a leader in its class and was faster than the fastest foreign fighter, the French Dewoitine D.510.

Therefore, production versions of the basic Do 17M model airframe were fitted with the new Bramo 323A-1 Fafnir engines of 670 kW (900 hp), which gave reasonable performance and raised the bomb load to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb).

[35] The L version would not be able to enter production with the DB 600 owing to its use in the Bf 109, and the Bramo engine was rather thirsty on fuel and left the M models with too short a range for reconnaissance use.

[36] In earlier variants the B-Stand (the gun position in the upper rear cockpit) was open to the elements, but the P-1 now provided an enclosed bulb-shaped mount protecting the radio operator from the weather.

An additional 15 Do 17 U-1 pathfinder models were built, similar to the S-0 but adding another crewman (taking the total to five) to operate the extra radio equipment.

Later variants, in the Do 17Z-3, Z-4 and Z-5, which were fitted with cameras, dual trainer controls and flotation aids (for maritime operations) respectively, still could not solve the problems with range and bomb load.

[14][42] Usually the flotation devices took the form of inflatable bags stored in the rear of the engine nacelles and in bulges on either side of the nose, just behind the front glazing.

Add-on armour in the form of heavy steel plates was bolted to the nose bulkhead to protect the crew against frontal fire.

At least one Z-10, coded CD+PV, was used as a flying test bed to help developing the early low-UHF band B/C version of the Lichtenstein radar system in late 1941–1942.

Until 2007 none of the Dornier twin-engined bomber variants were thought to have survived intact, but various large relics of the Do 17 and Do 215 are held by public museums and private collectors.

The aircraft had been discovered in September 2008 on the Goodwin Sands, a large sandbank six kilometres (3.7 mi) off the coast of Kent, but the discovery was kept a closely guarded secret.

The Dornier Do 17Z-2, Werknummer 1160, built under license by Henschel with the full Geschwaderkennung (combat wing aircraft ID code) of 5K+AR, was operated by 7 Staffel, III Gruppe, Kampfgeschwader 3.

While flying over clouds, the aircraft became separated from the bomber formation and lost its bearings; it was then attacked by Boulton Paul Defiant fighters of No.

One of the Dornier's engines was disabled and the other damaged, so the wounded pilot, Feldwebel (flight sergeant) Willi Effmert, elected to make a crash landing on the Goodwin Sands.

[74] The port rudder, starboard stabiliser, forward nose glazing, undercarriage doors and engine cowling were missing, but the discovery of a small debris field associated with the wreck indicates that some or all of those parts may still be present at the site.

[74] Some items, including two of the Dornier's six MG 15 machine guns, are missing and are believed to have been removed by unauthorized divers sometime after the aircraft's discovery.

[76] It was then taken to the Michael Beetham Restoration Centre at the Royal Air Force Museum's Cosford site, where metallurgists from Imperial College London have a significant role in the post-recovery conservation of the aircraft.

Data from Aircraft of the Third Reich,[79] Fighters and Bombers of World War II[80] and Do 17 Z-2 Baubeschreibung, April 1938General characteristics Performance Armament