VEF

Slagorde · Vliegtuigfabrikanten • Letland

VEF

Valsts elektrotehniskā fabrika (State Electrotechnical Factory) · Pasta un telegrāfa virsvaldes galvenā darbnīca (PTVGD)

The Riga factory that made the world’s smallest camera, two of every three Soviet telephones and, in the late 1930s, Latvia’s own fighters and trainers designed by Kārlis Irbītis.

1919Opgericht
OpgehevenStatus
6Vliegtuigen geregistreerd
1Luchtmachteenheden die met dit type vliegtuigen vliegen
LandLetlandOpgericht1919HoofdkwartierRigaStatusOpgeheven
Het verhaal

VEF: the company and the aircraft that made its name

Telephones, radios and the Minox

VEF started in April 1919 as the main workshop of the Latvian post and telegraph department, with five mechanics. By the 1930s, renamed Valsts elektrotehniskā fabrika in 1932, it made almost anything with a market: telephones, exchanges, radios that won Grand Prix awards in Brussels and Paris, light bulbs, irons and, from 1936, Walter Zapp’s Minox, then the world’s smallest camera. In 1930 it bought the Latvijas Bērzs plywood factory for radio cabinets, and from 1935 that plywood went into aircraft.

Irbītis and the aeroplanes

The aircraft were the work of Kārlis Irbītis, who designed a line from the I-11 sports racer to the I-16 fighter. The two-seat I-12 trainer, first flown on 26 June 1937, toured Britain that summer, came second in the Cinque Ports Wakefield Cup at Lympne, and was flown non-stop from London to Riga in nine hours, a record for the route. Twelve were built, and Rollasons was named British distributor.

Taken away to Moscow

Soviet occupation in June 1940 ended it. All VEF aircraft were ordered off Spilve airport and other designs were shipped to Moscow in March 1941; the single I-16 fighter prototype, left behind in Riga, was captured by the Germans and used as a trainer at Toruń until 1942. After the war VEF made two of every three Soviet telephones and employed 20,000 people by 1991, but it was broken up in the 1990s.

The Riga factory that made the world’s smallest camera, two of every three Soviet telephones and, in the late 1930s, Latvia’s own fighters and trainers designed by Kārlis Irbītis.VEF · verified 2026-10-03
In één oogopslag

VEF in numbers

Het bedrijf

Kortom
Opgericht in 1919

  • State electrotechnical factory in Riga
  • Maker of the Minox camera from 1936
  • Aircraft from 1935, designed by Kārlis Irbītis

Productie

Het meest bekend om
I-12 trainer, I-16 fighter

  • 12 I-12 trainers built
  • Designs I-11 to I-19

Vandaag

Nu
Broken up in the 1990s

  • Successor VEF un Ko has developed agricultural drones

De cijfers

Employees (peak)
20,0001991
Share of Soviet telephones
two in threejaren zestig
Radio receivers exported per year
8,000late 1930s
Het vliegtuig

Every notable VEF aircraft

Vliegtuig Rol Eerste vlucht Gebouwd Status Opmerking
VEF I-11 Sports and distance racer Gepensioneerd
VEF I-12 Tweezits trainer 1937 12 Gepensioneerd London–Riga non-stop record, nine hours; four to the Aizsargi
VEF I-14 Low-wing sports racer Gepensioneerd
VEF I-15 Military trainer (I-15a) and bomber (I-15b) Gepensioneerd
VEF I-16 Vechter 1940 1 (some sources say 3) Gepensioneerd Captured by Germany; used as trainer at Toruń until 1942
VEF I-17 Militaire trainer Gepensioneerd
Wie vliegt ermee?

VEF aircraft in the world’s air forces

1 air forces in the Order of Battle fly or flew VEF types. Geen van hen heeft er nog een in gebruik.

Luchtmacht In dienst Voorheen gevlogen
Letse luchtmacht VEF I-12, VEF I-16 (prototype)
Plaatsen, mensen, archieven

Where VEF built, who led it, what it achieved

Fabrieken

  • VEF works · Brīvības iela, Riga — 1899 assembly hall; buildings by Peter Behrens 1912–1914
  • Spilve airport · Riga — Flight testing until 1940

Mensen

  • Kārlis Irbītis · aircraft designer — 1904–1997; later in Canada, worked on the Canadair CL-84
  • Walter Zapp · camera designer — Designed the Minox

Records en primeurs

  • VEF I-12 flown non-stop London to Riga in nine hours, a record for the route, 1937
Tijdlijn

VEF, year by year

1919

Post and telegraph workshop founded in Riga

1930

Buys the Latvijas Bērzs plywood factory

1932

Renamed VEF

1935

Aircraft construction begins

1936

Minox camera launched

1937

VEF I-12 first flight

1940

I-16 fighter prototype flies

1940

Soviet occupation halts aircraft work

1941

VEF aircraft designs shipped to Moscow

1991

Employment peaks at 20,000

1999

Factory privatised and reorganised

Vragen en antwoorden

Everything people ask about VEF

What does VEF stand for?
Valsts elektrotehniskā fabrika, the State Electrotechnical Factory, in Riga, Latvia.
Did VEF build aircraft?
Yes. From 1935 to 1940 it built light aircraft designed by Kārlis Irbītis, including the I-12 trainer and the I-16 fighter prototype.
Is the Minox camera from VEF?
Yes. VEF launched Walter Zapp’s Minox in 1936; it was then the world’s smallest camera.
Does VEF still exist?
It was split into six companies in the 1990s; a few survive, including VEF un Ko, which has worked on agricultural drones.

Vervolg de rondleiding

Around VEF

De indexAlle vliegtuigfabrikantenElk bedrijf dat een vliegtuig heeft gebouwd dat door de luchtmacht is gebruikt in de huidige en historische gevechtsorde.Open de lijst
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Geverifieerd op 3 oktober 2026.