avia.wikisort.org - Aeroplane

The Borel military monoplane (company designation: Bo.14)[1] was a French single-engine, two-seat aircraft designed shortly before World War I in response to a French Army requirement for an aircraft to seek and destroy enemy balloon airships.

Borel Military Type Monoplane
Role	Anti-balloon fighter Type of aircraft
Manufacturer	Etablissements Borel
First flight	1913
Number built	1

Design and development

The Military Monoplane had an unconventional design, owing to its unique mission requirement. The pilot and observer sat side by side in an open cockpit within a pod or nacelle that also carried a high monoplane wing and the engine driving a pusher propeller. The pod also featured windows on each side, near the crew members' feet to facilitate downwards visibility when hunting balloons. A cruciform empennage was carried on an open truss of triangular cross-section, the upper longeron of which passed through the propeller hub. Despite reportedly good flying characteristics, the idea never passed beyond the construction of a single prototype.

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: two, pilot and observer
• Length: 7.52 m (24 ft 8 in)
• Wingspan: 11.58 m (38 ft 0 in)
• Height: 3.00 m (9 ft 10 in)
• Wing area: 19.1 m² (205 sq ft)
• Powerplant: 1 × Gnome air-cooled rotary piston engine , 37 kW (50 hp)

Performance

See also

References

Bibliography

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 193.
• "Flightglobal Archive"., archived at: The Wayback Machine
• Aero and Hydro September 13, 1913

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