JOSEPH S. AMES. PH. D_ OiAmm DAVID W. TAYLOR. D. ENS,. VxE CnAiRmAN FS G. A000ri Sc. D.

WM. P. MAC CRACKEN, JR.. PH. B. 1 1. BRIGGS. PH. D. BRIG. GEN. HENRY C. PRATT. U.S.A. EN. BENJAMIN D. FOULOIS. U. S. A. EUGENE L VIDAL, C. E. RAY GREGG. R. A. EDWARD P. WARNER. M. S. P. GUGSENHEIM, M. A. COMDR. R. D. WEYERBACHER. U. S. N. WMIRAL ERNEST J. KING, U. S. N. ORVILLE ES A. UNDBERGH. U. WR DOC

NAT t^NAL ADVISORY COM ITTEE D EYMIR AERONAUTICS MM AND EACH AND Source PACE HEREIN IS HEREBY RECLASSIRM NAVY BUILDING

of Acquisition

TELEPHONE: NATIONAL

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CASI Acquired

ASHJNGTON, D. C.

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REFER TO NO.

OFFICZ OF THE TROINICAT, ASSISTANT IN EVROPS

2, Avenue Gabriel
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From; To

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November '

Technical Assistant in Europe, N.A.C.A. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, Washington, D. C.

Subject: Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

design, results of wind--tunnel tests on high-lift devices (from which slotted flaps appeared. to give the best results) , wall charts showing the French civil-aviation system with meteorological maps kept up to date during the duration of the Salon, models of the various 20-ton transatlantic seaplanes (Latecoere 300, Bleriot 5190, Lior4--01ivier 27), and the high--speed 30--seaters now building for Air France. In another room were charts which revealed that, thanks to the government paying about 40 percent of the purchase price, the number of touring airplanes sold to private owners in 1933 was 112 as compared with 64 in 1932, while the purchases by Clubs increased to 78 from 44. Potez and Caudron proved the most popular makes, with Farman a poor third. A depressing series of dioramas snowed the progress of air invasion of France with models of the ruins of the Place de 1 1 Opera and the directions for evacuation and the use of shelters and gas masks following the warning sirens. These scenes merely disturbed the visitors, especially as effective shelters are as yet practically nonexistent. The total number of aircraft exhibited was 68. Of these, France showed 38, Germany 8, Italy 7, Great Britain 5, Poland 4, Czechoslovakia 3, and Russia 3. While it is unnecessary to list the names of all the French exhibitors, it may be noted that the German Reichs-verband. der Luftfahrt Industrie showed p roducts of the Arado, B .F.W. , Bucker, Fi.aseler, Fock-en-Wulf, , heinkel, and Junkers firms; the Italian Air I1inistry displayed Breda, Fiat, 1 ,Aacchi, 11agni, and Savoia aircraft; Great Britain was represented by A. V. Roe & Co, Arrzstrong--Whitworth, Bristol, and Hawker; Polish prestige was upheld by P.Z.L. and R.W.D.; Czechoslovakia sent Avia and Letov; and the U.S.S.R., 3 airplanes including the rescuer of the Chelyuskin expedition. Previous Salons generally afforded some amusement by the obviously impractical nature of a few of the machines shown. This year, however, with the exception of a couple of small aircraft stowed away in an upper gallery (Fauvel flying wing and I.4ignet monoplane), none was highly unconventional although many of the French prototypes have yet to prove their qualities in flight. Although light alloy construction including stressed skin covering dominated the scene as far as war airplanes were concerned, many of the touring and training airplanes

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

were of wood with either plywood or fabric wing covering. The Salon gave expression to the recent amalgamation of a number of French firms into a few groups having considerable financial strength in pursuance of the policy of "concentration and decentralization." The former Societd Generale Aeronautique has all but completely disintegrated, having had to sell the shares of most of its units in order to meet financial obligations. It now consists merely of the Lorraine engine factory and S.E.C.M.-Latham firm. Of former units in the S.G.A. , Nieu-oort-Antra has been absorbed by the Chantiers de la Loire, C.A.11.S. by Henry Potez (who also has a wor?ring agreement with ?Marcel Bloch) , while Hanriot and the Societe Adrienne Bordelaise are now independent. Breguet controls Wibault, Morane--Saulnier, Mauboussin, and Couzinet, and for some time Dewoitine has been associated with Liore et Olivier. Louis Renault last year took over the Caudron firm with exceedingly happy results as regards sporting and private flying. " Absentees at the 1934 Salon included Loire-Nieuport, Latecoere, S.P.C.A., Bernard and Louis Bleriot, who has closed his doors but has made an arrangement with the Farman brothers and Mureaux to share production orders with them. C.A.II.S., Wibault, and Couzinet were represented merely by models on the stands of their controlling companies, ai;d it may be remarked that despite the ten South Atlantic crossings of the "Arc-en-ciel" Mr. Couzinet has had to close his factory. While no American airplanes were shown, their influence was strongly felt. The exploits of the Douglas and Boeing in the MacRobertson Race have brought them great European acclaim. During the Salon, two Douglas D C 2 airplanes visited Le Bourget, After piloting one of them, the Air Minis ter took occasion to laud'it highly in his speech at the Salon banquet attended by delegates of 34 nations. Attached to this report is a chart giving the characteristics and performances of the 68 aircraft shown, converted into English units of measure. It should not be overlooked that the performances given for the untested prototypes are estimates of the makers which are unlikely to err on the conservative side. For instance, Breguet claims a top speed of 239 miles per hour for his 12-passenger monoplane with 2 Gnome-Rhone 800 hp. engines. Likewise there

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

I

are many claims of speeds well in excess of 250 miles an hour for pursuit airplanes but very few of such claims have been officially proved. However, in the case of the PZL, the Polish Technical Service vouches for a speed of 258 miles per hour at 15,000 feet, a speed reached only by using a 900 hp. engine. While the exhibits are arranged alphabetically on the chart, they are grouped according to classes in the teat of this report. The various categories of aircraft (with the numbers in each class) are shown in the following list: Airplanes 12 Pursuit 2 Observation 5 Multiplace fighting-bombing 7 Training 7 Transport 1 Mail 1 Racing 22 Touring and sport 2 Experimental Sea-olanes 1 Pursuit 1 Observation 1 Torpedo-bombing 2 Transport 1 Racing 3 Touring (amphibian)

 Paris Aviation Salon, 1934 X

AIRPLANES V Single-Seat Pursuit

Armstrong-Whitworth "Scimitar" (635 hp. Siddeley Pan-

ther) .
Avia 534 (860 hp. Hispano--Suiza 12 Ybrs). Breda 27 (490 hp. Alfa Romeo Bristol Mercury IV).

Dewoitine D.500 (690 hp. Hispano--Suiza 12 Xbrs).

Dewoitine D.511 (860 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 YCrs). Fiat C.R.32 (550 hp. A.30 R A). Hawker "Fury II" (600 hp. Rolls--Royce Kestrel VI). Letov S 231 (900 hp. Gnome-Rhone 14 Kfs).

Morane-Saulnier 275 ( 500 hp. Gnome-Rhone 9 Krse) .

P.Z.L. P.11 C (605 hp. Skoda Bristol Mercury VI). P.Z.L. P.24 (900 hp. Gnome-Rhone 14 Kfs).

Tiro-Seat Pursuit Mureaux. 180 ( 690 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 XCrs) . A rr^^ st_r_ o n_t^nitlrortY^_"Scimitar!! (fig. 1).-- This airplane,
with the exception of the landing gear now of the continuous type, is identical with that seen at the S.B.A.C. display at Hendon last July, and then fully described. It is a staggered biplane, of which the structure is of high-tensile steel strip and the covering of fabric. One of its interesting features is a separate inner and outer ring cowling coincident at the forward edge. The inner cowling which forces the air through the cylinder finning need not be disturbed for adjustment of the valves while the outer cowling

can be removed in a few minutes.

With the Panther engine the "Scimitar" is credited by the firm with a speed of 225 miles per hour at 14,000 feet,

but this is understood to be below the actual performance.

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

The standard Panther VII is rated at 570 hp. at 12,000 feet but the special engine in the "Scirniitar" develops 635 hp. at that height using 87 octane fuel. On account of the double--row radial engine, the two Vickers machine guns are canted so as to fire over the cowling. A_v_ia_5_34_ (figs. 2-3).- This Czech single-seat fighter was seen at ^Prague in 1933 and then described. It bears pronounced traces of the Hawker "Fury" and Fairey "Firefly" schools of design. The fuselage is a copy of the Hawker system, being built up of tubes assembled by bolted and riveted flitch plates. Since it was last seen, the airplane has been fitted with -a coc'_Lpit cover. It was the first single-seater in Europe equipped with the larger of the two Hispano-Suiza supercharged engines now made under license by Avia and is credited with a speed of 252 miles per hour at 14,760 feet. B_reda_27 (fig. 4).- This low-wing monoplane was described folio -wing my visit to Milan in the spring of 1933. The claimed performance of 236 miles per hour at 16,400 feet is difficult to adr.lit in view of the resistance of the forest of wires bracing the wing and the ii;oderate power of the engine. The fuselage is of welded chrorie-molybdenum steel tubing while the wings are of wood covered with three-ply. Dewo_i_t_in_e D . 50.0 ._( fig. 5).- The example at the Salon is a standard production model shown by the Air Mlnist py. Following the success of the prototype in the competition, 110 examples were ordered and will equip several squadrons early in 1935. A further order of 150 has just been signed but the new one will have the 20 mm (0.787 in.) gun firing through the propeller hub and two Darne machine guns each with 300 rounds placed in the wing outside the propeller disk. The D.500 is entirely of duralumin. The wing has a single spar which traverses the fuselage immediately aft of the engine. The monocoque fuselage has an ovoid section to give maximum visibility. Dewoitihe_D.511 _(fig. 6) .- When equipped. with the larger Hispano--Suiza supercharged engine fitted with a 20-millimeter gun with 60 shells firing through the propeller axis, and with two machine guns in the wings, the D.500 becomes the D.510. The more powerful airplane now under test by the Service Technique at Villacoublay has reached the speed of

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934 r

249.3 miles per hour at 16,400 feet, the tirse of climb to that height taking exactly 6 minutes. Both the 500 and 510 have a wing area of 173 square feet but at the Salon, Pair. Dewoitine showed the D.511, identical with the D.510 except for a reduced wing area (161 square feet) and a landing gear consisting merely of two struts unbraced against side loads. The estimated speed of the D.511 is 261 miles per hour. At the patrol speed of 155 miles per hour the D.511 has a range of 800 kilometers (497 miles). Detail changes as compared with the D.500 include a Flettner balance on the rudder. Fiat _ C.R.32 (fig. 7).-- This airplane, a smaller replica of theC.R.30, was described in my Italian reports of 1933 and 1934. Fitted with an unsupercharged high-compression Fiat A.30 engine, the speed at 9,840 feet is stated to be 242 miles per hour. From conversation with the officers at Montecelio last spring, this claim is apparently justified. The fuselage is of duralumin tubing with steel joints machined from the solid while the fairing strips are duralumin channels. The wing structure comprises spars of duralumin tubes of rectangular section and duralumin lattice ribs. The covering of the ,;Dings and of the rear portion of the fuselage is of fabric. *arker_ "uru_?I'' (fig. 8).- This airplane, which was displayed at Hendon last July, is a modification of the standard "Fury" equipped with the Rolls-Royce Kestrel VI engine having "compcsite" cooling, there being a condenser in the leading edg y of the center section of the upper wing in addition to the radiator under the fuselage. The added power as combined with slightly lower drag, has resulted in a speed of 240 miles per hour at 16,400 feet. Let_ov_ 5.231 (figs. 9-10).- A report of this airplane was given after my visit to Prague in 1933. It is a normal biplane with N interplane struts which has been flown with several engines including the Bristol Mlercury IV, the Siddeley Tiger III, and the Gnome-Rhone 14 K.fs Mistral Major. It was with the last-mentioned engine that the example at the Salon was fitted as its construction rights have been acquired by the Walter Co. of Prague. In order to reduce resistance, the Letov has a landing gear with only two struts. The method of hinging these struts to the fuselage cross me_iber and the concealed oleopneumatic Pantof shock absorbers are shown in figure 10.

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934 This figure likewise shows the anchorage of the landinggear bracing wires.

The speed claimed for the S 231 with the 14 Kfs engine is 251 miles per hour at 13,120 feet, an increase of 34 miles per hour over the speed given by the Mercury engine. The airplane is equipped with four Pa.ntof machine guns which, as they cannot fire between the cylinders, have all been mounted outboard in the lower wing where they traverse the front duralumin box spar. Firing and even jam clearing is accomplished by a pneumatic control, the air being supplied to a bottle by a small engine--driven compressor. The fuselage structure is of steel, the central portion having riveted and bolted joints whereas the engine mount and the rear portion are welded. Morane_Sau_l_n_ier27_5__(fig. 11).-- This airplane is merely a refinement of thetype 225 shown at the 1932 Salon, differing mainly in a lower drag landing gear and a higherpowered Mistral Major. These refinements have enabled the speed at the altitude of utilization to be raised from 205 to 225 miles per hour. The wing cor.+inues to be built of rectangular-tube duralumin spars and wood ribs, the fuselage comprising roundduralumin-tube loigerons. P.Z.L. P_110_a_nd_P_2_4_ (figs. 12--13).- Both of these airplanes are gull-wing all--metal monoplanes of a design familiar to the United States since the appearance of the :?.Z.L. at the National Air Races. They have oval-seotion fuselages and wings with I--section spars. The visibility in the new types has been improved: 1. 2. By lowering the engine 4 inches; By raising the normal position of the pilot t s seat by 2 inches and moving it aft about 1.0 inches; By mounting the wings at +2 fuselage axis; 0 in relation to the

3.

4.

By enlarging the cutout sections of the wing roots.

An interesting feature of design is the mounting within the fuselage of the oleo--pneumatic shock absorbers.

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

The P.11 C is equipped Trith four machine guns, of which two are located in the wings and the remaining two in the cockpit, firing through the propeller. The fuselage guns each have 500 rounds of ammunition and the wing guns 300, The P.24 has an even more formidable armament as added to the fuselage machine guns (which fire outside the cowling), are two 20--millimeter (0.787 inch) Oerlikon guns mounted in the wings. It is claimed that the small reaction of these guns does not unduly stress the wing structure. 11u.r_eaux_180 (figs. 14 and 14a) .-- This was the only twoseat pursuit airplane exhibited and is a direct derivation of the single--seat Mureaux 170 exhibited in 1932. The structure is entirely of duralumin and the wing covering is of the stressed type. The crew is enclosed in a glazed cockpit cover, The pilot has an Hispano-Oerlikon 20-millimeter gun firing forward, and the gunner facing aft, is provided with twin machine guns. The designer pointed out that as compared with the single-seater, the 180 has 8 percent more weight, 4 percent higher landing speed, and 4 percent lower maximum speed against which must be balanced the greater defensive power. A nose radiator has been fitted as the tunnel type on the 170 proved inadegr_ate. Observation Idureaux 113 (860 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 Ybrs.) Hureaux 115 (860 hp. Hispano--Suiza 12 YCrs( (fig. 15) Whereas the 11ureaux 113, now the standard long-range observation airplane in the French Air Force, has a 12 Ybrs Hispano--Suiza, the 115 has the 12 YCrs incorporating an Oer-likon 20--millimeter gun, Otherwise the two types are almost identical except for the position of the frontal radiator in the 115. This change, it is hoped, will raise the speed at 16,400 feet from 203 to 211 miles per hour. T The structure is entirely of duralv.min, including wing and fuselage covering,

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

10

T:fiult iplac e Fighting - Bombing

Bloch 200 (two 800 hp. Gnome--Rhone 14 tKrsd) Bloch 211 (two 860 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 Ydrs) Breguet 413 (two 860 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 Ydrs) Potez 54 (two 690 hp. Hispano-Suiza Xbrs) S.E.C.M.-Amiot 142 (two 860 hp. Hispano-Suiza 12 Ybrs) The French Government has spent an immense amount of money for a number of years encouraging the development of twin--engine high--speed airplanes carrying a crew of 4 and suitable for a dumber of different functions including long-

distance, day-and--night observation, multiplace fighting and

bombing with 500, 1,000, or even 1,800 kg (1,102, 2,206, or 3,968 lb.) of bombs.

The Brd'guet, Potez, ^,-).nd S.E.C.Me aircraft are well known, and in fact a prototype of the S.E.C.M. was seen at the Salon four years ago. With the exception of the Potez 54, all the fighter-bombers may be fitted alternatively with the Gnome-Rhone 14 Krsd or the Hispano-Suiza 12 Ybrs, thus the Breguet Gnome-Rhone is designated the type 414, the S.E.C.11. Gnome-Rhone the type 143, etc. The French Government recently -taut out specifications for new high-s p eed, three-purpose airplanes (multiplace fighter - bomber - observation). done of these airplanes was shown although one, the Bloch 130 (two Gnome-Rhone 14 Krsd engines) is starting its tests. (See fig. 16.) The requirements include a speed of 211 miles per hour and a range of 860 miles with 1,760 pounds of bombs.

Bloch 200 (fig. 17).- A total of 200 examples of the

Bloch 200 high--wing monoplane will be delivered to the Air Force by the Potez and Bloch factories and are already in service in several squadrons. An interesting feature of this airplane is the simplicity of its duralumin structure.

The flanges of the two--wind; spars are merely duralumin angles about 1/2 inch thich. The flanges are connected by
duralumin sheet webs 0.04 inch thick stiffened by omega section strips.

Paris Aviation Salon, 1934

11

The ribs of thin sheet stiffened vertically by U sections are fixed to the spars by angles. The covering is composed of panels stiffened internally by omega sections and externally by T strips. The covering of the lower surface is riveted to the angle strips along the bases of the ribs. On the upper surface the panels are likewise riveted to the ribs but by angles applied externally. The fuselage has its longerons of four angles and frames composed of U sections assembled by gussets. The riveted du-ralumin sheet covering is stiffened internally by vertical omega sections and. externally by longitudinal omega sections. The fuselage is divided into three parts bolted together. The nose portion includes the quarters for the navigator and gunner, the center section, the enclosed pilot ^ s cockpit and bomb racks, and the rear section, the two gunners' stations firing above and below the fuselage and bearing the tail surfaces. The fuel tanks are contained in the inboard portion of the wing between the engines and the fuselage. The landing gear is oleo--pneumatic and while not retractable, is well faired. The airplane can be used for a number of missions but a typical one is a range of 620 miles with a ton of bombs. With four bombs of 225 kg (496 lb.) mounted in racks below the fuselage, the maximum speed is 178 m.p.h., but 186 m.p.h* can be reached if twenty 50 kg (110.2 lb.) bombs are installed vertically within the fuselage. Bloch _2_11 (figs. 18--19).-- The Bloch 210 (two Gnome--Rhone K.14 engines) and 211 are new productions of Mr. Marcel Bloch, having somewhat greater capacity than the type 200. They have low instead of high wings and retractable landing gears. The 211 may be mounted on floats for naval use and in the Salon a float was shown alongside the airplane. In view of its probable service with the Navy, much use has been made of Vedal (the French Alclad), although stainless steel tubes are likewise used. The wing surface offers less resistance than that of the 200 as the only projections are the top edges of the ribs riveted to angles. The fuselage construction remains straight-sided so that the covering requires no beating. The useful load of the Bloch 211 is over 7,000 pounds, which should enable it to have a range of 1,240 miles with a ton of bombs. It is estimated that the maximum speed is 205 miles per hour and the cruising speed 186 miles an hour.