Flight, May 1934

FRENCH REPLY TO THE "DRAGON"
Imitation the sincerest Form of Flattery

   AT the Farman Works at Billancourt (Seine) a machine, whose appearance is being eagerly awaited in France, is nearing completion. It is the Farman Company's reply to the "Dragon" - a product of the epidemic of the "Dragonmania" which has existed on the Continent since the production of the de Havilland "Dragon" with its large payload per h.p. - and bears the type number F.430. Test flight should begin within a month. The machine is of wooden construction and is a low-wing cabin monoplane fitted with two de Havilland "Gipsy Major" engines. It is expected that the price will be about ?3,560. A second machine of similar type is to be fitted with a retractable undercarriage and two D.H. "Gipsy Six" engines.

FARMAN F. 430
2 "Gipsy Majors"

   Span 50 ft. 9 in. (15,5 m)
   Length 38 ft. 8 in. (11,8 m)
   Height 9 ft. 2 in. (2,8 m)
   Wing Area 377 sq. ft. (35 m'').
   Disposable load 1,102 lb. (600 kg)
   Gross flying weight 4,520 lb. (2 050 kg)
   Wing loading 12 lb./sq. ft. (58,5 kg/m2)
   Power loading 16-75 lb./h.p. (7-6 kg/h.p.)
   Maximum speed 127-3 m.p.h. (205 km/hr.)
   Cruising speed 99-4 m.p.h. (160 km/hr.)

Flight, November 1934

THE FOURTEENTH PARIS AERO SHOW

THE EXHIBITS DESCRIBED

Large Civil Machines

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   The Farman 431, with Gipsy engines, has already been illustrated in Flight. At the Salon the latest version is fitted with Renault "Bengali Six" engines of 190 h.p. each, and is certainly one of the most beautifully finished machines exhibited. The fuselage, in general shape, is peculiarly reminiscent of the "Dragon," but, as it is a low-wing monoplane, the resemblance ends there.
   With a top speed of 245 km.p.h. (152 m.p.h.) the 431 has a performance which should make it a fairly attractive proposition to commercial users. The construction is mainly of plywood, and the fuselage has very large windows running the whole length of the cabin and giving considerably more light than is usual. The undercarriage is of the conventional three-strut type, and it is rather surprising to find that it is not retractile in standard form.
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