| MS.221 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| MS.222 | |
| Role | Single seat light fighter aircraft |
| National origin | France |
| Manufacturer | Morane-Saulnier |
| First flight | Early 1928 |
| Number built | 2 |
The Morane-Saulnier MS.221 was a French fighter aircraft, built in 1928 to compete for a government contract in the "Jockey" (light fighter) programme. Two were built, one of which was progressively modified to increase its speed, but in 1930 the light fighter concept was abandoned.
In the late 1920s both France and the UK explored the possibilities of light fighters, with lower power and light armament but with rapid climb and long endurance. They were also less costly to build. The Jockey programme, as it became known, began in France in 1926 and Morane-Saulnier responded with the 1927 MS.121. This proved to be underpowered and was superseded by the MS.221, which used the same basic airframe and armament with a 30% power increase, provided by a 450 kW (600 hp) Gnome-Rhône 9Ae Jupiter nine-cylinder radial engine. Two MS.221 prototypes were built. [1] [2]
The precise date of the MS.221's first flight, flown by Fronval, is not known but it was before March 1928. [2] Despite being lighter and more powerful, it was significantly slower at altitude than its competitors, so one MS.221 prototype was re-engined with a turbo-supercharged Gnome-Rhône 9As Jupiter which could deliver full power at 3,800 m (12,500 ft). The wing struts were also revised to reduce drag. It was then re-designated as the MS.222. [1]
The MS.222 climbed faster than the MS.221 but was still slow at altitude, so a further aerodynamic clean-up in 1930 replaced the cross-axle undercarriage inherited from the MS.121 with a split-axle design, resulting in the MS.223 which first flew in April 1930. [1] [3]
By this time the failure of the "Jockey" programme was apparent and Morane-Saulnier turned their attention back to heavier, more traditional fighters. [1]
The parasol wing was in two parts, each with constant chord out to semi-circular tips and mounted with 7° of sweep but no dihedral. Each part had two duralumin spars and wooden ribs and was fabric covered apart from the leading edge which was strengthened with plywood. Narrow-chord ailerons occupied the entire trailing edge; as well as the normal, differential action for lateral control they could be operated together as camber-increasing flaps for landing. The joint between the two panels was supported over the central fuselage on a cabane of two inverted V-struts, one to each spar. Two almost parallel struts braced the wing at about 55% span to the lower fuselage. [4]
The Jupiter engines used were similarly installed on all variants under a dished cowling with piston heads exposed for cooling. [4] [2] The fighter's 265 L (58 imp gal; 70 US gal) fuel tank was separated from the engine by a firewall and could be dropped in an emergency. Behind, the fuselage was of mixed construction; the forward main frames were metal but the structure further aft had wooden longerons and frames, with formers and stringers shaping its fabric covered, polygonal section. The front of the single, open cockpit was under the trailing edge behind a pair of fuselage-mounted Vickers or Darne machine guns firing through the propeller disc. [4]
The tail surfaces had dural frames and were fabric covered. The tailplane, mounted at mid-fuselage and swept in plan, was in-flight adjustable, with split, unbalanced elevators which were narrow and had constant chord. The fighter's fin was quadrantal in profile and carried an unbalanced rudder that reached down to the keel, moving in a gap between the elevators. [4]
The MS.221 and 222 had similar fixed landing gear to the MS.121, with its mainwheels on half-axles mounted centrally on a fixed transverse V-strut from the lower fuselage and their outer ends supported by dural-faired legs with multiple rubber ring shock absorbers from the lower longerons. The track was 1.96 m (77 in). Both variants had steerable tailskids to assist ground handling. [2] [4]
In place of the cross-axle and its support, the MS.223 had simpler longitudinal V-struts, and each wheel had a vertical shock absorber leg to a reinforced forward wing strut. [3]
Data from Les Ailes, June 1929 [4] except where noted.
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
The Morane-Saulnier Type P was a French parasol wing two-seat reconnaissance aeroplane of the First World War. Morane-Saulnier built 595 for the French air force, and it was also used by the British until 1916-17.
The Morane-Saulnier M.S.225 was a French fighter aircraft of the 1930s. It was produced in limited quantities to be used as a transitional aircraft between the last of the biplanes and the first monoplane fighters.
The Morane-Borel monoplane was an early French single-engine, single-seat aircraft. It was flown in several European air races.
The Gourdou-Leseurre GL.30 was a racing aircraft built in France in 1920 which formed the basis for a highly successful family of fighter aircraft based on the same design.
The Morane-Saulnier AI was a French parasol-wing fighter aircraft produced by Morane-Saulnier during World War I.
The Latécoère 6 was a French four-engined biplane bomber of the early 1920s. It was of advanced all-metal construction and probably the first aircraft to use geodetic construction. Only one was built.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.140 was designed in France as an ambulance aircraft with the ability to operate from small fields and which could double as a trainer. Only one of these single engine, wooden biplanes was built, first flying about 1927.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.341 was a single engine parasol wing training and touring aircraft built in France in the mid-1930s. It had two open cockpits in tandem and was sold to private owners, clubs and the Armée de l'Air.
The Bernard SIMB AB 12 was a French single engine, single-seat monoplane fighter aircraft built in the 1920s. Though advanced for its time, it failed to gain a production order and only one was built.
The Dewoitine D.15 was a single-engine, single-seat biplane fighter aircraft built in France in the 1920s. Intended to offer structural simplifications when compared with monoplanes, it had a disappointing performance and was soon abandoned.
The Hanriot HD.15 was a French two seat fighter aircraft fitted with a supercharger for good high altitude performance, built in the 1920s. Three were ordered by Japan but lost at sea during delivery.
The Ponnier M.1 was an early French World War I fighter aircraft Most of those produced were operated by the Aviation Militaire Belge. They were deemed unusable by the Belgian ace Willy Coppens and rapidly retired.
The Caudron C.220 was a two-seat French biplane trainer. Only two were built, using different engines.
The Caudron 02 was a French high altitude single seat fighter that was flown in November 1917.
In October 1917 Nieuport began construction of a prototype monoplane fighter known as the Nieuport Madon, a strut braced monoplane.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.350 was a French aerobatic trainer flown in 1936. Only one was built but it had a long career, flying post-war until the 1960s.
The CAMS 52 was a twin-engined floatplane torpedo-bomber. It was not ordered by the French Navy and only one CAMS 52 was completed. It first flew in the summer of 1930.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.300 and MS.301 were French parasol wing introductory trainer aircraft, first flown in 1930. They differed only in engine type. Neither reached production but were developed into two similar trainers, the MS.230 and MS.315, which were made in large numbers.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.152 was a French multi-purpose aircraft built in 1928. It did not go into production.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.224 was a prototype fighter plane built by Morane-Saulnier in the early 1930s.
