| Wibault 220 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Role | Night reconnaissance aircraft |
| National origin | France |
| Manufacturer | Société des Avions Michel Wibault |
| Designer | Michel Wibault |
| First flight | May 1930 |
| Number built | 2 |
The Wibault 220 or Wibault R.N.3 220 was a twin-engined French night reconnaissance aircraft. Two were built in 1930 to a government contract.
Michel Wibault was one of the pioneers of all-metal aircraft, along with Hugo Junkers and Claudius Dornier. [1] The Wibault 220, designed for the night reconnaissance role and with a crew of three (hence the R.N.3 designation), had both metal structure and covering, the latter longitudinally corrugated for stiffness where required. Its high, cantilever wing had a rectangular plan centre-section and trapezoidal outer panels. The latter also tapered in section, mostly on the underside, providing a little dihedral. [2] High aspect ratio, unbalanced ailerons filled the outer panels' trailing edges. The wing was built around two І-section spars. [3] Like other Wibault aircraft built before the Wibault 280, the ribs projected through the wing surface, which was constructed from metal strips with turned up edges. [3] [4]
The Wibault 220 was powered by two 450 hp (340 kW) Gnome-Rhône 9Ac Jupiter nine-cylinder radial engines, each wing-mounted under the outer centre-section. They were attached at three points on the front and rear spars by a system of duralumin plates and steel tubes and were enclosed in teardrop cowlings with their cylinder heads exposed for cooling. [2]
Its flat-sided fuselage was dural framed, with all sides covered in corrugated dural sheet. The upper- and undersides had rounded deckings. The nose was semi-cylindrical in plan and contained an open cockpit for the navigator, who was provided with a flexibly mounted pair of machine guns. The pilot was also in an open cockpit, which was built into the wing leading edge; the rear gunner/observer's position was a little behind the trailing edge, equipped with another pair of flexibly mounted guns. Its floor had an opening into which a reconnaissance camera could be fitted. The gunner also had access to a ventral gun position. Behind him the fuselage tapered slightly to a conventional, cantilever tail with its triangular tailplane mounted on top and carrying narrow chord elevators. The fin was also triangular, with a tall, trapezoidal rudder which extended to the keel. [3]
The Wibault 220 had fixed, conventional landing gear with its mainwheels on V-struts hinged to the lower fuselage frames. The wheels were positioned below the engines, to which they were connected by vertical Messier oleo legs so that the track was a generous 4.80 m (15 ft 9 in). The tailskid also had a Messier shock absorber and was steerable. [3]
The French Senate approved the order for two examples of the Wibault 220 in March 1930 [5] and both were reported as under construction in April. [6] By late May 1930 one was being tested at Villacoublay [7] and by early June Raoul Ribière had made several flights. [8] After that, nothing more about the 220 appears in the French aviation journals.
Data from L'Année aéronautique 1930-31 [9] except where noted
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
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