| CAMS 55 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Role | Reconnaissance flying boat |
| Manufacturer | CAMS |
| Designer | Maurice Hurel |
| First flight | 1928 |
| Primary user | French Navy |
| Number built | 112 |
The CAMS 55 was a reconnaissance flying boat built in France in the late 1920s which equipped the French Navy throughout the 1930s.
The CAMS 55 design was derived from the unsuccessful CAMS 51 and followed the familiar Chantiers Aéro-Maritimes de la Seine (CAMS) formula of a conventional biplane flying boat configuration with tandem tractor-pusher engines mounted in the interplane gap. The cockpit was open, and there were open gun positions in the bow and amidships. The bow also incorporated an observation balcony with windows sloped to afford a good downward view. [1]
A single prototype was followed by two aircraft to compare different engine installations, one with air-cooled radials and the other a liquid-cooled V engine; in the end, the French Navy ordered some of each. Eventually, 15 escadrilles were equipped with CAMS 55s of various subtypes, replacing the Latham 47 in some units, and in turn being relegated to secondary duties when the Breguet Bizerte became available in 1936. Twenty-nine remained in service at the outbreak of World War II, with the last examples serving with Escadrille 20S in Tahiti until January 1941.
France Data from Aviafrance: CAMS 55/10 [6]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Related lists
The Farman F.220 and its derivatives were thick-sectioned, high-winged, four engined monoplanes from Farman Aviation Works. Based on the push-pull configuration proven by the F.211, design started in August 1925 and the first flight of the prototype was on 26 May 1932. The definitive F.222 variant was the biggest bomber to serve in France between the world wars. One variant was designed as an airliner.
Potez 25 was a French twin-seat, single-engine biplane 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, Polish and American. It was also popular among private operators, notably mail transport companies.
The Bernard 190 or Bernard-Hubert 190 was a French airliner of 1928. It was a high-wing cantilever monoplane of conventional configuration, based on the Bernard 18. Compared with its predecessor, it kept the same basic design but featured redesigned tail surfaces, an enlarged cabin, and offered its flight crew a completely enclosed cockpit. Also like its predecessor, the basic airliner model provided the basis for a long-range aircraft to be used in record attempts, the 191GR.
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 CAMS 37 was a flying boat built in France in the mid-1920s that was originally designed for military reconnaissance, but which found use in a wide variety of roles in a large number of versions. It was the first design for Chantiers Aéro-Maritimes de la Seine (CAMS) by the company's new head designer, Maurice Hurel. The prototype was displayed at the 1926 Salon de l'Aéronautique in Paris. The prototype first flew in 1926, and after testing was ordered into service before the end of the year. It was a conventional biplane flying boat very similar to previous CAMS designs, being driven by a pusher propeller whose engine was mounted on struts in the interplane gap. The first production version was the amphibious CAMS 37A that was bought by the French Navy, the Portuguese Navy and the aeroclub of Martinique.
The CAMS 46 was a flying boat trainer aircraft built in France in the mid-1920s, essentially an updated version of the CAMS 30 that had flown in 1922. While retaining that aircraft's basic form, CAMS offered the French Navy two new versions with aerodynamic refinements over the earlier aircraft: the CAMS 46 E primary trainer, and the CAMS 46 ET intermediate trainer. Only the latter was selected for production and was built in quantity to supply one escadrille at the Naval training station at Hourtin.
The Gourdou-Leseurre GL-812 HY was a 3-seat reconnaissance floatplane, built by Gourdou-Leseurre.
The Farman F.120 and its derivatives were a family of multi-engine airliners and bombers of the 1920s built by the Farman Aviation Works in France.
The Morane-Saulnier MS.230 aircraft was the main elementary trainer for the French Armée de l'Air throughout the 1930s. Almost all French pilots flying for the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of World War II had had their earliest flight training in this machine. It was the equivalent of the Stearman trainer in the United States air services and the de Havilland Tiger Moth in the British Royal Air Force.
The Farman F.190 was a utility aircraft built in France in the 1920s and 1930s. It was a high-wing, strut-braced monoplane of conventional configuration with a fully enclosed cabin and fixed, tailskid undercarriage. Popular both as a private aircraft and in the air taxi role, some 30 examples were also operated by airlines in France and elsewhere in Europe. Fifteen of these joined Air France's fleet in 1933 from the fleets of the smaller airlines it had absorbed.
The Farman F.300 and F.310 were airliners built in France in the early 1930s. They were high-wing strut braced monoplanes with fixed tailskid undercarriage with a trimotor layout popular with several manufacturers of the time. The cockpit and passenger compartment were fully enclosed. Most saw service in Farman's own airline, whose twelve F.300 variants made up half its fleet in 1931.
The FBA 17 was a training flying boat produced in France in the 1920s.
The FBA 21 and 23 were small flying boat airliners built in France in the mid-1920s. Their development was an attempt by FBA to develop a commercial version of their FBA 19 bomber which had failed to attract orders from military buyers. Retaining the same basic design as their predecessor, the Model 21 added an enclosed cabin for four passengers. Unfortunately for FBA, they aroused as little interest as their military counterparts, and only a handful were built in a number of slight variations, including one example of a dedicated mail plane.
The Morane-Saulnier Vanneau is a two-seat basic trainer built in France by Morane-Saulnier and ordered by the French Air Force.
The Latécoère 380 was a flying boat airplane built in France in 1928 for use on Aéropostale's mail routes to South America. The plane later saw military service as a maritime patrol aircraft.
The Levasseur PL.7 was a torpedo bomber developed in France in the late 1920s. It was a development of Levasseur's PL.4 reconnaissance aircraft and intended to replace their PL.2 then in service with the Aéronavale. It was a single-bay biplane of largely conventional design, but incorporating safety features for naval operation, including jetissonable main undercarriage units, a watertight, boat-shaped fuselage, and small floats on the undersides of the lower wings.
The Lioré et Olivier H-190 was a flying boat airliner produced in France in the late 1920s. Conventional for its day, it was a single-bay biplane with un-staggered wings, its single engine mounted tractor-fashion underneath the upper wing and supported on struts in the interplane gap. Early examples had the pilot's open cockpit located aft of the wing, but this was later relocated forward of the wing.
The Lioré et Olivier LeO 25 was a bomber aircraft produced in France in the late 1920s.
The Farman NC.470 was a French twin-engined floatplane designed as a crew trainer for the French Navy. It was used in small numbers for both its intended role as a trainer and as a coastal reconnaissance aircraft at the start of World War II.
The Blériot-SPAD S.91 was a French light-weight fighter aircraft. It would be later developed into the Blériot-SPAD S.510, the last biplane produced by the French aeronautic industries.
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to CAMS 55 . |