Nieuport-Delage Ni-D 62

Истребитель Ni-D 62, созданный в 1927 году одновременно с Ni-D 52, сохранил деревянную конструкцию более раннего Ni-D 42. Он являлся дальнейшим развитием своего предшественника с несколько усиленной конструкцией, крылом увеличенного размаха и уменьшенными элеронами. Но основным внешним отличием был стабилизатор увеличенных размеров. С 1928-го по 1931 год французские ВВС получили 265 истребителей Ni-D 62, а авиация ВМС приобрела 50 таких машин. Учебный Ni-D 621 был построен в количестве трех экземпляров, а еще три Ni-D 62 оснастили поплавковым шасси для подготовки французских пилотов к Кубку Шнейдера.
   Ко времени постройки в 1931 году нового варианта, Ni-D 622, базовый проект уже полностью устарел. Ni-D 622 был оснащен облегченным мотором Hispano-Suiza 12Md с турбонагнетателем и получил элероны по всему размаху крыла. Всего построили 248 истребителей для ВВС и 62 - для ВМС. К 1933 году эти самолеты компании "Nieuport" составляли основу истребительной авиации Франции, но вскоре их недостатки стали очевидны. Когда Ni-D 622 пытались сопровождать над Страсбургом группу итальянских летающих лодок Savoia-Marchetti S.55, возглавляемую генералом Бальбо, они с трудом могли угнаться за этими большими двухкорпусными машинами. Варианты Ni-D 622 включали три конверсии: Ni-D 623, предназначенный для установления рекорда скорости, гоночный моноплан Ni-D 624 и Ni-D 625 для экспериментов с парашютом. Двенадцать экспортных Ni-D 626 были проданы Перу в 1933 году. Созданный в 1932 году Ni-D 629 оснащался 500-сильным (373 кВт) ПД Hispano-Suiza 12Mdsh с турбонагнетателем для улучшения высотных характеристик и шасси с масляно-пневматическими амортизаторами. Но когда в 1935 году завершились поставки 50 машин в истребительные эскадрильи Франции, самолет полностью устарел.


ТАКТИКО-ТЕХНИЧЕСКИЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ

   Nieuport-Delage Ni-D 629

   Тип: одноместный истребитель
   Силовая установка: один рядный ПД Hispano-Suiza 12Mdsh мощностью 500 л. с. (373 кВт)
   Летные характеристики: максимальная скорость 260 км/ч; потолок 8850 м; дальность полета 900 км
   Масса: пустого снаряженного 1385 кг; максимальная взлетная 1880 кг
   Размеры: размах крыла 12,00 м; длина 7,64 м; высота 3,00 м; площадь крыла 28,95 м2
   Вооружение: два синхронизированных пулемета Vickers калибра 7,62-мм

Flight, July 1924

THE NIEUPORT-DELAGE TYPE 42
600 H.P. Hispano-Suiza Engine

   THE French Coupe Beaumont, for which the Gloucestershire Aircraft Co., Ltd., had entered a machine, was competed for on June 23 by French machines only, the Gloucestershire machine not being ready in time for the race. As recorded in FLIGHT at the time, the race was won by Sadi Lecointe on a Nieuport-Delage Sesquiplan with 600 h.p. Hispano-Suiza engine. The following article and illustrations dealing with the new Nieuport-Delage machine are based upon illustrated descriptions that have appeared in our French contemporaries, Les Ailes and L'Aeronautique, to whom we wish to express our indebtedness for the information concerning the latest successful French racing machine.
   The Coupe Beaumont Nieuport-Delage carries the type No.42. Like previous machines designed by this firm during the last few years for racing purposes, the 42 is of the type known as a sesquiplan, or one-and-a-half 'plane, i.e., essentially a monoplane with a small plane added which encloses the wheel axle of the undercarriage, and to which the main wing is braced by a single strut on each side. As the general arrangement drawings will show, the type 42 is of very clean outline, made possible mainly by the fact that wing radiators are employed. These, it will be seen, extend over nearly the whole of the wing area, and the fact that Sadi Lecointe was able to cover the 500 km. distance at record speed seems to indicate that the radiators performed their work satisfactorily.
   The wing section employed is, it will be seen, of the biconvex type, with probably a relatively low maximum lift coefficient but high L/D, especially at high speeds. That the landing speed is extremely high is scarcely to be doubted in view of the fact that the wing loading is as high as 21 lbs./sq. ft. Assuming a maximum lift coefficient of 0-5 - and it seems unlikely that it will be more for a section of this type - the landing speed with this wing loading would be approximately 91 m.p.h. Although this figure is certainly high, it is not, perhaps, as excessive as might appear at first glance, if it is remembered that the space available at Istres, where the Coupe Beaumont was held, is very vast and leaves a pilot ample room to land, even at such high speeds and with very long runs after touching the ground.
   From a constructional point of view, the Nieuport-Delage 42 follows normal Nieuport practice in that the fuselage is of the monocoque type, associated with the Nieuport firm for many years, and the wing is the usual wood structure. Certain detail innovations have, however, been introduced in the 42, such as building the fuselage in two halves and covering most of the wing with ply-wood.
   The monoplane wing is in one piece, the spars being bolted to specially strengthened bulkheads inside the fuselage. The two main spars are of the built-up box-section type, and are made from spruce, afterwards wrapped in fabric. The ribs are of three-ply, and the compression struts for the internal drag bracing are in the form of steel tubes. The outer covering is fabric, but in view of the fact that wing-surface radiators are fitted there is an inner covering of three-ply extending from the leading edge back to the auxiliary spar to which the ailerons are hinged. The radiators themselves, as already pointed out, cover almost the entire wing surface. They have their inlets and outlets inside the wing, with piping running to the engine water jackets. No detail information is, unfortunately, available concerning the construction of the radiators, but it appears likely to be somewhat similar to the system employed on the Curtiss Navy racers at the Schneider Cup race at Cowes last year, the sole British licensees for which are the Fairey Aviation Company.
   The monoplane wing is braced by a single streamline steel tube strut on each side, bolted at the top to the wing spars, and at the lower end to the rear spar of the axle fairing. Provision is made for adjustment of length and incidence. The axle fairing, or auxiliary wing, is of duralumin construction, and is also covered with duralumin. The divided axle is supported by the front spar of the fairing. The chassis struts are built up from several laminations of beech and whitewood, and are then covered with sheet duralumin.
   The fuselage, as previously mentioned, is of the monocoque type, with planking laid on in diagonal strips of whitewood over formers and longerons. The thickness of these strips is only 0-9 mm., and the number of layers, each crossing the previous one at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, varies from 5 or 6 in front to three at the stern. The two halves of the coque are built complete with longerons on their respective moulds, and are not assembled until after the engine bearers, bulkheads, etc., have been secured in place. The whole is then covered with fabric and doped.
   The engine installation is somewhat unusual, and marks a change in usual Nieuport practice. An extremely strong structure of backbone is formed by two longitudinal bearers of duralumin, which extend aft to behind the pilot's cockpit. Forward these bearers carry the engine cradles and the bulkheads supporting the wing spars and the chassis struts, while farther aft they support the pilot's seat, controls, etc. Thus, the direct loads from engine, chassis, wing, and pilot are taken by the bearers, and the only loads not directly transmitted to them are the tail loads, which are taken care of by the monocoque fuselage. The Hispano-Suiza engine is a twelve-cylinder V-type, with a bore of 140 mm. and a stroke of 150 mm. The power developed is stated to be 600 h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m. An aluminium cowl entirely encloses the engine, and a spinner over the propeller boss completes the streamline nose. The petrol tanks are mounted in the fuselage between the wing spars, and in front of them is the oil tank. An oil radiator is fitted in the floor of the fuselage, under the engine, and serves also for heating the air on its way to the carburettors. The fuel is pressure-fed to the carburetors by two A.M. pumps.
   The tail of the Nieuport-Delage 42 is of usual form and construction, with the exception that there is a one-piece elevator with the rudder placed wholly above it. The tail skid is in the form of a laminated steel leaf spring.
   Following are the main characteristics of the Nieuport-Delage type 42: Length o.a. 7-3 m. (23 ft. 11 ins.; wing span 9-5 m. (31 ft. 2 ins.); chord of top plane 1-7 m. (5 ft. 7 ins.); area of small plane 1-5 sq. m. (16-15 sq. ft.); area of main plane 14 sq. m. (150-5 sq. ft.); total lifting surface 15-5 sq. m (166-65 sq. ft.); area of ailerons 1-6 sq. m. (17-25 sq. ft.); area of fin 0-7 sq. m. (7-54 sq. ft.); area of rudder 0-4 sq. m (4-31 sq. ft.); area of tail plane 1-8 sq. m. (19-4 sq. ft.); area of elevator 0-75 sq. m. (8-07 sq. ft.). Weight of machine empty, but including water 1,170 kgs. (2,575 lbs.); useful load 100 kgs. (220 lbs.); weight of fuel 170 kgs. (374 lbs.); total loaded weight 1,440 kgs. (3,169 lbs.); wing loading 21 lbs./sq. ft., power loading 5-3 lbs./h.p.
   In the Coupe Beaumont, it will be remembered, Sadi Lecointe averaged 311 km. (194-3 m.p.h.) over the 300 km. (187-3 miles) circuit, which was by no means a high speed for the machine being used, although it should be remembered that the course consisted of six laps of a 50 km. circuit, which fact would naturally detract considerably from the speed, considerable time being lost on the turns. Instead of landing after completing the 300 kms. in the Coupe Beaumont, Sadi continued until he had covered the 500 kms., the time for which was improved from 270 kms./hour (168-5 m.p.h.), the previous record, to 306 kms./hour (191-2 m.p.h.). The fact that Sadi was able to fly very nearly as fast over the 500 kms. as over the 300 kms. appears to indicate that he was probably not going all out, but was merely flying fast enough to make sure that he would beat the previous record. Perhaps he may have his eyes on the Pulitzer trophy; who knows? At any rate the speed put up at Istres was scarcely what might be expected from a machine of such clean lines as the Nieuport-Delage 42, especially when it is remembered that the Hispano develops about 600 h.p. Doubtless, later on we shall hear of considerably greater speeds being put up by Sadi on this machine.

Flight, December 1924

The Paris Aero Show 1924

SOCIETE NIEUPORT ASTRA

   A VERY interesting stand this year is that of the French Nieuport firm. Not only is an entirely new type of aeroplane exhibited, but a metal propeller with adjustable pitch, and of unusual design and construction, is shown as well. At the time of writing it has not been possible to obtain particulars of the performance, etc., of the new Nieuport-Delage Sesquiplan, type 42 C2, but we hope to be in a position to publish these on a future occasion. In the meantime a few notes on the general design of the machine may be of interest.
   The Nieuport-Delage type 42 C2 is, as the title implies, a two-seater fighter. It is also of the sesquiplan type which M. Delage has done so much to develop, and incidentally the machine provides a very striking example of the advantages of designing, constructing and flying racing machines. It may be recollected that a couple of years after the War the Nieuport firm entered a sesquiplan for the Coupe Deutsch, and that ever since they have continued to develop this type, at first side by side with their now famous type 29, and gradually to greater and greater extent until now it appears that the sesquiplan will entirely supersede the biplane.
   The 42 C2, while obviously belonging to the sesquiplan family, and being readily traceable back to the original sesquiplan racer, is a direct development of the 42 C 1, the main difference being the addition of a second cockpit for a gunner. Exactly how the presence of a gunner, with the fuselage swelling for gun mount, and the gun-ring and guns themselves, affects the performance is not known, but judging from appearances it would seem that a vast amount of resistance has been added and that the performance must have been seriously reduced. This is, of course, one of the reasons why the racing machine cannot be directly adopted as a fighter without loss of performance, but at the same time the beneficial effect of racing experience is obvious.
   In the 42 C2 the pilot is seated immediately aft of the rear spar, nearly on a level with the wing, and the usual machine-guns for firing through the propeller are, of course, provided. It was noticed that a small mirror was placed on the cabane struts so that without turning his head the pilot can see what his gunner is doing. The rear cockpit is raised somewhat, the support for the gun-ring being built integral with the monocoque fuselage and forming a swelling or bulge on it. This, in conjunction with the two guns exposed to the air, naturally somewhat spoils the otherwise very clean lines of the fuselage, but is one of those necessary evils inseparable from military machines. The field of fire from the rear cockpit is particularly unrestricted, and as the machine is small and, presumably, very manoeuvrable, the 42 C 2 should be a very useful two-seater fighter.
   The monoplane wing, is supported in the centre by cabane struts, and some distance out by single "Y" struts, the upper limbs of which support the top plane spars, while the lower, single, end passes through the small bottom plane and to the undercarriage. Lamblin radiators are fitted on the underside of the small plane, so that the nose of the fuselage, the engine cowling and the spinner form a very clean entry for the air. The engine fitted is a 450 h.p. Hispano-Suiza, of Vee type. The 42 C2 is illustrated by a photograph, and the, undercarriage, as well as the wing bracing, etc., by a sketch.
   A separate "Nose," with top wing spars in position, is also exhibited. This, it is stated, represents the 42 C 1, but whether the same principle applies to the entire structure of the 42 C2 is not quite certain. The engine is mounted on an all-metal cradle, so designed as to slip into the open forward end of the wood monocoque fuselage. This is a form of construction recently developed by M. Delage, but in the 42 C1 he has gone a step farther and adopted metal wings. At least the two spars shown on the all-Duralumin fuselage portion are of Duralumin. No ribs are in place, but it is assumed that these will be of Duralumin also. The wing bracing struts, of the "Y" type, are also of Duralumin, with riveted leading and trailing edges. The general design of the metal engine cradle may be seen in one of our photographs. The whole forms a complete unit, and is slipped into the monocoque fuselage and riveted in place. The engine cradle also provides the support for the seat, so that the monocoque fuselage is called upon to carry tail loads only. In the two-seater, the 42 C2, it is doubtful whether the metal structure can be carried sufficiently far aft to support the gunner's seat, and presumably this, therefore, is carried by the wood fuselage.
   The Duralumin wing spars of the 42 C1 are of box section, and a form of laminated construction, similar to that of a laminated spring, has been employed to provide extra thickness of metal at the points of maximum stress. The spar construction itself does not seem to be particularly good, as the top and bottom flanges are perfectly flat, but zig-zag rows of rivets appear to indicate that the flanges are stiffened against secondary flexure by some internal members which cannot be seen and whose precise nature we were unable to ascertain.
   The all-metal propeller to which we have referred is of very unusual form. Briefly, the principle is that the propeller is made in two halves, from circular-section steel tubing. The tube, in manufacturing the propeller, is cut through lengthwise in such a manner as to leave the full semi-circle at the root, and progressively less and less as the tip is approached. By suitably arranging the paths of the cut the propeller blade gradually grows narrower and narrower towards the tip, and the two cuts are so arranged as to give the required angle of incidence at any point along the radius. It will be seen that near the boss the section of each blade is semi-circular, while everywhere the section is an arc of a circle, except for such small changes as are made while grinding down the thickness, when, presumably, it is possible to change the outer sections into something approaching a proper aerofoil shape. The roots of the two blades have shoulders left on their forward face so as to take centrifugal stresses, and the two halves of the propeller are locked by the propeller boss and by a plate on the front, as shown by our sketches. By undoing the nuts it is possible to rotate the blades and set them to any angle required, and then locking them in place.

Flight, December 1926

The Paris Aero Show 1926

NIEUPORT-ASTRA.

   THE Nieuport-Astra Company, which originated in 1915 the single-seater fighter type of military aeroplane with its Bebe Nieuport, is the largest purveyor of fighting machines to the French Military Air Service, where the majority of escadrilles de chasse are equipped with the Nieuport 29 C.I type (300 h.p. Hispano-Suiza). The replacement of this type by a more powerful machine caused the French Under-Secretariat of Aeronautics to hold in 1924 and 1925 a competition for single-seater fighters, as a result of which orders were let to several manufacturers, including the Nieuport-Astra Company, Loire-Gourdou-Leseurre, and Michel Wibault.
   The Nieuport-Delage fighter adopted by the French Military Air Service, type 42 C.I (500 h.p. Hispano-Suiza), will be exhibited at the Salon de l’Aviation, as will be a new category of military aeroplane, called a "light fighter," in the form of type 48 C.1 (400 h.p. Hispano-Suiza). The principal military difference between the two types is that the light fighter only carries two synchronised machine guns, whereas the heavy fighter mounts two wing guns besides.
   Constructionally the two types are almost identical. The fuselage is of the monocoque type, and is built in two halves, split along the horizontal, of strips of glued tulip wood and spruce longerons. In the forward portion the fuselage is reinforced by a framing of riveted sheet duralumin which is bolted to the monocoque skin. This framing gives the machine great rigidity and resistance against torsional stresses, for it not only serves as the engine mounting, but also forms the central structure to which the upper wing and the undercarriage are fixed. The framing extends as far back as the pilot's cockpit.
   The top wing has duralumin box spars and plywood ribs, while the bottom winglet is entirely timber-built. The axle fairing is in the shape of an aerofoil, and thus contributes to the sustentation. The top wing is braced to the undercarriage by means of Y-type struts. In the type 48 C.1 there is no bottom winglet. The wing bracing struts as well as the undercarriage struts are built of riveted sheet duralumin. The cabane struts are duralumin tubes.

   Specification of Nieuport-Delage 42 C.A. Fighter Aeroplane
   Engine, 500 h.p. Hispano-Suiza; span, 12-00 m.; length, 7-50 m.; height, 3-00 m.; area, top wing, 25-25 sq. m.; area bottom wing, 4-25 sq. m.; area, axle fairing, 1-75 sq. m.; total wing area, 31-75 sq. m.; weight, equipped, 1,379 kgs.; fuel load (for 2 hours), 268 kgs.; disposable load, 161 kgs. weight-loaded, 1,808 kgs.
   Official Performances (S.T.Ae.)
   Altitude. Climbing Time. Maximum Speed.
   Metres. Mins. Secs. Km.p.h.
   1,000 2 6 266-5
   2,000 4 1 266-5
   3,000 6 15 266-3
   4,000 9 13 265-3
   5,000 13 3 262-3
   6,000 18 12 251-5
   7,000 25 31 238-0
   Ceiling, 8,000 m.; unstick run, 106 m.; landing run, 150 m.; safety factor, 15.
   The disposable load includes 2,000 rounds of ammunition for the four guns, as well as signalling apparatus. The weight equipped includes all the non-dischargable weights which form the standard equipment of French fighting aeroplanes, namely, instruments, machine guns, gun sights, heating apparatus, parachute, fire extinguisher, self-starter, oxygen inhalator, 64 litres of water and 42 kgs. of protective material for the fuel tanks.
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