Potez 32 and 33 | |
---|---|
Potez 33 | |
Role | Transport monoplane |
National origin | France |
Manufacturer | Potez |
First flight | 1928 |
Primary user | French Air Force |
Number built | 102 |
Developed from | Potez 29 |
The Potez 32 and its military version the Potez 33 was a single-engine monoplane transport design and built by the French aircraft manufacturer Potez. It was the first French-built medium-sized aircraft to see active use by both domestic and foreign airlines. [1]
The Potez 32 was based on the earlier Potez 29 biplane, sharing the same fuselage, empennage, and landing gear of the Potez 29; it differed by being a high-wing strut-braced monoplane that could be configured as either a five-passenger transport or mail plane. During 1928, the first aircraft performed its maiden flight, it was followed by 54 production aircraft. The Potez 32 was marketed towards the civil market, it quickly led to a militarized version, the Potez 33.
The Potez 33, which first flown in 1928, was designed for roles such a liaison / observation aircraft or could be used as a pilot or observer trainer. The Potez 33 was fitted with dual controls and foldable seating for trainees and an instructor. The cabin featured a floor hatch and large windows that lent themselves to observation and photo reconnaissance duties. It could also be fitted with armaments, such as a dorsal machine gun and light bombs upon under-fuselage racks.
The Potez 32/33 was a relatively manoeuvrable and adaptable single-engine monoplane, suitable for performing both peacetime and wartime activities. [1] Roles that the aircraft could be readily used for included as a trainer aircraft (for both pilots and observers), a Liaison aircraft, and as an air ambulance. [2] Features such as its low landing speed enabled it to make use of austere landing strips and even unprepared fields. The Potez 33's flying characteristics remained similar to those of the commercial Potez 32. [1]
The cockpit of the Potez 33 accommodated two pilots seated side-by-side, both being furnished with flying controls. [1] In front of the pilot was an instrumentation panel with various gauges to display information such as the airspeed indicator, altimeter, turn indicator, oil temperature, and fuel level gauge. Other instrumentation, such as a compass and drift indicator were mounted in a position where they could be readily observed by both the pilot and navigator. [1] A second drift indicator was also fitted in the cabin to aid in the instruction of student observers. The aircraft was comprehensively outfitted to conduct night time flights. [3] Furthermore, the equipment fitout was designed to be customisable by the operator to make use of the space as to best suit their requirements; specifically, special fittings in the cabin enabled the aircraft's rapid conversion into an air ambulance configuration, capable of transporting two wounded personnel in a reclined position, a single wounded person sitting, and a single attendant. [4]
The Potez 33 could be equipped with various armaments. A pair of machine guns could be installed in a balanced Scarff mount fitted to the upper rear portion of the cabin; this position had a relatively small dead angle (area that cannot be seen or defended by the gunner) due to the elevated position of the wing. [5] It was also furnished with a pilot-operated Optique & Précision de Levallois gun camera gun, the controls for which being placed directly above the instrumentation panel. Bombing apparatus consisted of a Services de Technologies Industrielles Atlantique (STIA) bombsight and a vertical bomb rack that could accommodate up to twelve 10-kilogram (22-pound) bombs within the cabin. [5] For external observation purposes, the cabin features relatively large windows; engine noise is also dampened somewhat by the cabin's wooden walls, to the extent that students could readily hear the guidance delivered to them by their instructor. [6]
The cabin's size permitted many tasks to be accomplished in relatively comfortable conditions in comparison to the majority of contemporary aircraft then in military use. [5] The crew were provided with folding seats, as well as a table for use during flight. The pilots were enclosed and thus protected from inclement weather conditions. [3] Assisted by these myriad design aspects, lengthy flights could be conducted without incurring undue fatigue amongst the crew. Vertical photographs could be taken via a hatch in the cabin floor while oblique images could be taken via an orifice in the left wall of the cabin; customisable supports were provided so that all types of cameras then in use with the French Army could be used. [5] An onboard radio set was also installed in the forward portion of the cabin, messages across which could be sent either from the cabin or from the navigator's position. Alternative communication methods included the use of up to eight signal rockets via a detachable rocket discharging tube. [5]
Data fromJane's all the World's Aircraft 1928, [7] [8] N.A.C.A [9]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Avionics
radio equipment and aerial cameras
The Caproni Ca.4 was an Italian heavy bomber of the World War I era.
The Sikorsky Ilya Muromets was a class of Russian pre-World War I large four-engine commercial airliners and military heavy bombers used during World War I by the Russian Empire. The aircraft series was named after Ilya Muromets, a hero from Slavic mythology. The series was based on the Russky Vityaz or Le Grand, the world's first four-engined aircraft, designed by Igor Sikorsky. The Ilya Muromets aircraft as it appeared in 1913 was a revolutionary design, intended for commercial service with its spacious fuselage incorporating a passenger saloon and washroom on board. The Ilya Muromets was the world's first multi-engine aircraft in production and at least sixty were built. During World War I, it became the first four-engine bomber to equip a dedicated strategic bombing unit. This heavy bomber was unrivaled in the early stages of the war, as the Central Powers had no aircraft capable enough to rival it until much later.
The Breguet 19 was a sesquiplane bomber and reconnaissance aircraft which was also used for long-distance flights and was designed by the French Breguet company and produced from 1924.
Potez 25 was a French twin-seat, single-engine sesquiplane designed during the 1920s. A multi-purpose fighter-bomber, it was designed as a line aircraft and used in a variety of roles, including fighter and escort missions, tactical bombing and reconnaissance missions. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Potez 25 was the standard multi-purpose aircraft of over 20 air forces, including French and Polish. It was also popular among private operators, notably mail transport companies.
Between 1920 and 1951 the Société des Moteurs Salmson in France developed and built a series of widely used air-cooled aircraft engines.
The Potez XV was a French single-engine, two-seat observation biplane designed as a private venture by Louis Coroller and built by Potez and under licence by Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów and Plage i Laśkiewicz in Poland.
The Blériot-SPAD S.56 was a family of French airliners developed in the 1920s as various refinements of the S.33 design. All S.56 versions shared two new features: the first was a newly designed, all-metal wing, replacing the wooden wing of earlier related designs and the second was a redesigned passenger cabin, replacing the S.33's four single seats in a row with two rows of double seats. A second access door was also added.
The Potez 540 was a French multi-role aircraft of the 1930s. Designed and built by Potez, it served with the French Air Force as a reconnaissance bomber, also serving with the Spanish Republican Air Force during the Spanish Civil War. Although obsolete as a bomber, it remained in service in support roles and in France's overseas colonies at the start of World War II.
The Potez 452 was a French flying boat designed and built by Potez in response to a French Navy specification for a shipboard reconnaissance machine for use on its battleships and cruisers.
The Farman F.300 and F.310 were trimotor monoplane airliners designed and produced by the French aircraft manufacturer Farman Aviation Works.
The Hanriot H.43 was a military utility biplane designed and produced by the French aircraft manufacturer Hanriot. It was primarily used by the Aéronautique Militaire as a trainer aircraft during the interwar period.
The Potez 39 was a twin-seat single-engined parasol wing monoplane aerial reconnaissance and observation aircraft designed and produced by the French aircraft manufacturer Potez. It was the company's first all-metal aircraft.
The Morane-Saulnier Alcyon is a two or three-seat basic training monoplane designed and built in France by Morane-Saulnier.
The Potez 56 was a 1930s French executive transport monoplane built by Potez and later used as a military crew trainer and liaison aircraft.
The Potez 36 was a French two-seat touring or sport monoplane designed and built by Potez.
The Wibault 360 was a 1930s French five-passenger airliner designed and built by the Wibault company.
The Morane-Saulnier MS-700 Pétrel was a French four-seat cabin-monoplane designed and built by Morane-Saulnier, only three prototypes were built.
The Potez 40 was a French three-engine, braced high-wing monoplane designed and built in response to a French government programme for colonial transport and policing aircraft duties.
The Caudron C.101 and its variants, the C.103, C.104 and C.107 were French two seat reconnaissance aircraft flown from 1925, differing in their engines.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.250 was a crew-trainer aircraft built by Morane-Saulnier in the late 1920s.