Sud-Est SE 3120
| Sud-Est SE 3120 Alouette I | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Multipurpose helicopter |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: |
Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques de Sud-Est |
| First flight: |
July 31, 1952 |
| Number of pieces: |
2 |
The Sud-Est SE 3120 “Alouette” was a two-seat multi-purpose helicopter made by the French manufacturer “Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques de Sud-Est” (SNCASE) from the late 1940s and early 1950s.
Development history
Sud-Est gained its first experience in building helicopters with the SE 3000, a replica of the Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 , which was built after the Second World War under the direction of Professor Henrich Focke , and its only copy for the first time on October 23, 1948 flew. After Focke left, however, some German designers remained at SNCASE who, together with French engineers, developed a single-seat light helicopter called the SE 3101 on an order from the Ministère de L'Air. This was intended as a reduced flying model for a twelve-seat transport helicopter (SE 3100). With a 100 hp engine, the first flight on June 15, 1948, only reached an "altitude" of 50 cm.
This was followed by a further development to the Sud-Est SE 3110. SE 3101 and SE 3110 still had the twin tail rotors customary for the Focke designs at that time (see IPD BF-1 Beija-Flôr and Borgward Kolibri ). However, before a prototype of the SE 3110 was built, the design was revised. This machine was named Sud-Est SE 3120. It had a two-seater fuselage gondola, a simple, two-skid landing gear and the tail boom was a simple lattice construction. The rotor system consisted of a three-blade main rotor and a two-blade tail rotor, which were driven by a Salmson radial engine. The first flight of the helicopter took place on July 31, 1952. On July 2, 1953, the helicopter set a world record for long-distance flight with 13 hours and 56 minutes. The SE 3120 marked the beginning of the successful Alouette helicopter series.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| length | 10.45 m |
| height | 2.90 m |
| Main rotor Ø | 11.60 m |
| Main rotor area | 105.68 m² |
| Empty weight | 750 kg |
| Max. Takeoff weight | 1,250 kg |
| Top speed | 125 km / h |
| Flight duration | 2.25 hours |
| Service ceiling | 4,000 m |
| Engine | Radial engine Salmson 9NH |
| power | 149 kW (200 hp) |
literature
- AERO issue 144, p. 4031