Background
-- "[Arado] was formed in 1925 ... and Ing Walter Rethel was appointed as chief designer ... By 1928 the company had built the SD I single-seat fighter [among others], but despite this, the Arado company failed to gain any large production contracts." (Smith & Kay, 8)
-- "... up to the end of 1932 only four new single-seat fighters were produced. These were the Arado Ar 64 and the Heinkel HD 43, which were little more than the Arado SD III and Heinkel HD 38 with minor refinements. They were followed by the Arado Ar 65 and Heinkel HD 49, which appeared to be fundamentally new designs, but they were still wood, steel-tube and fabric aircraft, and still armed with [2x7.9mm MG 17]. As a result of the experiments undertaken at Lipetsk these machines were equipped to carry five or six 10 kg bombs for infantry bombardment. In performance terms they differed little from their predecessors. What they had gained in higher level flying speed they had lost in climb performance, on account of their greater weight. Although the machines were now heavier, they were correspondingly stronger, better equipped ... easier to operate and maintain, and were far superior aircraft in their usefulness." (Kosin, 73)
-- "The Arado Ar 64 was a development of the Arado SD II, and indeed it was difficult to distinguish between the two, the fuselage was somewhat longer, the fin and rudder were larger but with a slightly narrower fin, in an attempt to improve the rather difficult flying characteristics. But nothing was fundamentally new. Powered by the same geared Siemens Jupiter as was used in its predecessor, with its large, 4-bladed propeller, the Ar 64 had the same unpleasant take-off and landing qualities." (Kosin, 74-75)
-- "On [01/30/1933], Adolf Hitler was summoned to meet President Hindenburg and within two hours had become Chancellor of the Third Reich." (Smith & Kay, 3-4)
-- "Early in 1933, Hugo Stinnes [the original financier] died, Walter Blume was appointed as chief engineer and on [03/04/1939], a new company was established as the Arado Flugzeugwerke GmbH." (Smith & Kay, 8)
Arado Ar 65
-- "... the first machine produced for the new German Luftwaffe." (Kosin, 74)
-- "The next Arado fighter, the Ar 65, was fitted with the BMW VI, like the HD 43. It took a practiced eye to differentiate between the two aircraft at first sight: both were staggered biplanes with slightly smaller lower wing, and a rectangular planform with rounded tips. Ailerons were fitted to both wings, and were linked by a connecting rod." (Kosin, 75)
-- "The Ar 65 had been preceded by an experimental Ar 64 fitted with a BMW VI engine, which indicated that the fuselage should be 60 cm longer, deeper at the tail end, and have a larger fin. With these modifications the Ar 65 was an extraordinarily docile, easy to fly aircraft, whose flying qualities were a marked improvement on previous developments. To a large extent these improvements were due to the work of test pilot von Schonebeck, a former [WWI] fighter pilot ... he was also a member of the Lipetsk team. In the early thirties he was director of the Rechlin test center." (Kosin, 75)
-- "... subsequently built in quite large numbers, as it was to form the cornerstone of the fighter section of the Luftwaffe, which was formed in 1933." (Kosin, 75)
-- "Intended as a successor to the Ar 64, the Ar 65 appeared in 1931 with a 750hp BMW VI 7,3 12-cylinder water-cooled engine and [2x7.9mm (S)]. 3 prototypes, the Ar 65a, 65b and 65c, which embodied equipment changes and differed in minor structural details, were followed by the initial production model, the Ar 65d, in 1933. Minor changes resulted in the Ar 65e and 65f production models, which had the vertical fuselage magazine for 6 22-lb (10kg) bombs deleted. The Ar 65 was operated, alongside the Ar 64, by both the Fliegergruppe Döberitz and Fliegergruppe Damm, and, in 1935, relegated to the tuitional role." (Green, 22)
-- "Production of the Ar 65 terminated early in 1936, a total of 85 Ar 65e and Ar65f having been delivered. The following data related to the Ar 65e. Max speed 186 mph (300 km/h) @ 5,415 ft (1,650m). Time to 3,280 ft (1,000m), 1.5min. Empty 3,329 lb (1,510kg). Loaded 4,255lb (1,930kg)." (Green, 22-23)
-- Span 11.20m; length 8.40m; height 3.42m; wing area 30.00m2. (Green, 22-23
Italy
-- As of 06/19/1933, Germany was to acquire 36 Fiat CR.30's from Italy and 36 Arado Ar 65's to form two fighter wings. The purchase was not completed. However, those CR.30's supplied to Austria 1934-1936 were eventually taken over by the Luftwaffe anyway, along with the earlier Fiat CR.20's. (Kosin, 125; Thompson, 148)
Japan
-- The same BMW VI engine was used in Japan for the Kawasaki KDA-5 (Type 92) designed by Richard Vogt (of Blohm & Voss fame) with assistance by Takeo Doi (of Ki-61 fame). The aircraft was first flown 07/1930 and ordered into production 01/1932 and served as an interceptor in Manchuria and northern China 1932-1935. It was supplanted by the Kawasaki Ki-10 (design ordered 09/1934), which used a license-built version of the BMW VI. Like Sweden, with the Svenska Aero Jaktfalken biplane that entered service 01/1930, this is a case of German aircraft engineers abroad gathering experience in the creation of military aircraft. Richard Vogt also designed the Kawasaki Ki-5 monoplane, and the similar Ha 137 (V1) after return to Germany.
Bulgaria
-- "12 aircraft were presented to the Bulgarian Air Force in 1937." (Green, 22)
Hienkel He 51
-- "When the Ar 65 proved a success, work on the Heinkel HD 43 was discontinued. Heinkel's next design was the HD 49, which broke new ground for the company. Gone were the angular lines, the box fuselage cross-section; instead the fuselage was slender, elegant and rounded. The improvement was probably more visual than actual, for a braced biplane with fixed undercarriage, crude radiator installation and open cockpit offered such high drag that the resistance of the fuselage was relatively insignificant. Incidentally, the small improvement in drag resulting from the rounded fuselage was partly nullified by the transition between the lower wing and the round fuselage, which is a very difficult area in aerodynamic terms. // The HD 49 first flew in [11/1932], but once again the expected improvement in performance did not materialize, and the aircraft was revised again. This time the standard undercarriage with its six struts and (divided) axle was replaced by a single-leg undercarriage braced to the lower wing. The result was the He 51, whose first flight took place in the summer of 1933. In other respects the two aircraft were almost identical ... // A few dozen He 51's were built initially, followed by a few hundred more once secrecy was no longer required. They were the successor to the [Ar 65] as standard equipment for the fighter squadrons of the Luftwaffe. Quantity production had to wait until 1935-1936, when larger factories had been built." (Kosin, 75-76)