Létord LET 4
The Letord LET 4 was a French military plane in the First World War .
development
The French aircraft designer Émile-Louis Letord had already started building Maurice Farman biplanes in his Ètablissements Létord in Meudon near Paris in 1910 , which were supplied under the company name Letord et Niepce . Létord built several aircraft on behalf of Colonel Dorand, director of the French Aviation Authority ( Section Technique de l'Aéronautique, STAé ) in Chalais-Meudon. After the outbreak of war, Létord also manufactured Nieuport fighter planes in addition to its own designs under license . In 1916, under the guidance of Colonel Émile Dorand, the Létord 4 was built. In 1916, Létord designed the LET 4, a twin-engine 1½ decker with a conventional fuselage, backward-staggered wings and a three-man crew. This should be able to be used both as a reconnaissance aircraft and bomber and replace the outdated Farman F.40 , Caudron G-III , G-IV and Caudron R-4 .
War effort
In April 1917, the Letord 4 A.3 reached the front squadrons of the Aéronautique Militaire . However, LET 4 did not show any outstanding performance. It was mainly used as a reconnaissance aircraft.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| Length: | 11.30 m |
| Wingspan: | 17.68 m |
| Height: | 3.55 m |
| Empty weight: | 1,543 kg |
| Takeoff weight: | 2,186 kg |
| Standard engine: | two Lorraine-Dietrich in-line engines |
| Starting power | 2 * 160 hp |
| Top speed: | 132 km / h |
| Climbing speed at 2,000 m: | 13 min 40 sec |
| Summit height: | 4,270 m |
| Armament: | 2-3 MG |
| Crew: | 3 men |
swell
Individual evidence
- ↑ Information in Angelucci, Enzo; Matricardi, Paolo: Airplanes - from the beginnings to the 1st World War , Falken-Verlag, Wiesbaden ISBN 3806803919 , p. 163; In contrast, Aviation Magazine 425 of August 15, 1965 gives a length of 14.35 m
literature
- Angelucci, Enzo; Matricardi, Paolo: Airplanes - from the beginnings to the 1st World War , Falken-Verlag, Wiesbaden ISBN 3806803919 , p. 163.
- Nowarra, Heinz: The development of the aircraft 1914-1918 , Munich 1959.