Voisin Hydro Canard 1
The French Voisin Hydro Canard was the marine variant of the duck plane Voisin Canard from 1909.
history
The Voisin Hydro Canard became the first seaplane of the French Navy and was used as a naval reconnaissance aircraft. a. also used in Russia . Gabriel and Charles Voisin bought some airplane floats from Henri Fabre in 1910 . He was the builder of the world's first seaplane, the Hydravion . He put the swimmers under the land version Voisin Canard. The machine had four Fabre floats and 6 wheels. In October 1910 the first flight took place on the Seine near Billancourt .
From March 24th to March 31st, 1912, two Voisin Hydro Canards took part in the seaplane meeting in Monaco . The pilots were Maurice Colliex and Paul Rugère.
Aircraft mother ship Foudre
By converting the torpedo loading areas in hangars , the Foudre mine ship was transformed into the world's first aircraft mother ship in 1912 on behalf of the French Navy . The aircraft were placed on the surface of the water by crane for use and hoisted back onto deck after use.
On November 29, 1911, the first naval aviation base was established in Fréjus Saint-Raphaël . The foudre was rebuilt for this in Toulon . The Voisin Hydro Canard was acquired by the Navy in December 1911 and the converted Foudre was transferred to Fréjus Saint-Raphaël on April 15, 1912. Then testing began with the Voisin Hydro Canard.
Test flights took place all summer long; in August 1912 the Voisin Hydro Canard was badly damaged. It was followed by a modified version with a 100 hp Gnome Rhône star engine. The aircraft was in competition with two 80 hp Nieuport seaplanes and a 130 hp Breguet U-1 .
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 2-3 men |
| length | 8.00 m |
| span | 12.00 m |
| Wing area | 40.00 m² |
| Empty mass | 550 kg |
| Takeoff mass | 820 kg |
| Wing loading | 20.50 kg / m² |
| Power load | 16.40 kg / hp |
| Top speed | 70 km / h near the ground |
| Landing speed | 60 km / h |
| Engine | an air-cooled Gnome rotary engine , 50 HP starting power |