Описание
Страна: Бельгия
Год: 1917
W.Pieters The Belgian Air Service in the First World War (Aeronaut)
Belgian Aircraft
Farman-Nelis GN1 - GN6 Series
Capitaine Georges Nelis, who was in charge of the Calais-Le Beau Marais (France) maintenance and repair center of the Aviation Militaire Beige during World War I, started experimenting with refined versions of Farman pusher aircraft as early as 1916. Because no official documents are available on the GN aircraft produced, most available information comes from study of the remaining photographs. Nelis was assisted with design work by engineer Lt. Mathieu Demonty. The first two GN types were powered by a Le Rhone rotary engine, while the last four GN types had more powerful Hispano-Suiza water-cooled V-8 engines. All GN designs replaced the Farmans original undercarriage with a simpler, lighter design of reduced drag, the crew nacelle was generally more streamlined than the Farman original, and the wings were equal span, giving more agility than the Farman’s long-span upper wing.
On 1 November 1916 there was one GN, powered by a 150 h.p. Hispano-Suiza, flying with Iere Escadrille de Chasse. Jacquet & Robin were the crew; they apparently flew this GN (a GN4?) in addition to the GN2.
Six more GNs were expected to be built in 1917 at the Parc de Calais, but it is not known if all were completed. On 2 November 1916, 20 150 h.p. Hispano-Suiza engines were ordered for the BEs and the GNs, the latter under construction. For the first trimester of 1917, three GNs were expected at the front and one at the Parc de Reserve at Calais. It is thought that only six GN aircraft, one of each type, were constructed, but this is not confirmed and it is possible more were built; GN4 photos show more than one configuration, indicating the possibility that more than one GN4 was built.
In addition to the GN2 flown on operations by Jacquet & Robin, it is likely the GN3 was flown operationally (probably by Prosper Georges), at least two crews flew the GN4 operationally, and the notable observer/photo crew of Wouters and Jaumotte flew the GN5 on operations.
The following GN types have been identified:
Type Distinguishing Characteristics
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GN3 Single-seat night fighter, Hispano-Suiza engine, two forward-firing Lewis machine guns.
GN4 Two-seat reconnaissance airplane, Hispano-Suiza engine, side radiators.
GN5 Two-seat reconnaissance airplane, Hispano-Suiza engine, front-mounted radiator.
GN6 Two-seat reconnaissance airplane, Hispano-Suiza engine, grill radiator.
- W.Pieters The Belgian Air Service in the First World War (Aeronaut)
Фотографии
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
GN3, Georges, Parc d'Aviation
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
GN4, Galler/Crabbe, 2me Escadrille
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
GN4, Schuermans/Delelienne, 2me Escadrille
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
GN5, Jaumotte/Wouters, 2me Escadrille
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The single-seat GN3 night-fighter mounted two Lewis guns and was powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8 engine. The radiators were mounted on the sides of the nacelle and a searchlight with 30cm reflector was fitted to the front of the nacelle to illuminate the target. Of course, using the searchlight would also give a defending bomber gunner a good target to shoot back at! Together with its generator/dynamo, the searchlight weighed 100 kg & cost 4,000 francs. It was effective up to 1,500-2,000m distance. The GN3 was likely flown on operations by Prosper Georges during attempts to intercept Gotha night bombers.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
After the GN3 night fighter, the next GN design was the GN4 reconnaissance airplane, shown here during testing. The additional power from the GN4’s Hispano-Suiza engine compared to a standard 135 h.p. Farman F40, coupled with reduced drag from the refined under-carriage, should have given it somewhat greater speed and climb, both useful qualities for a combat aircraft. Although the Hispano-powered GN types were an improvement over the Farman F40, aircraft of tractor configuration were the real answer to the Farman’s limitations.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The two men in front of the GN4 are Sergent Robert Galler (R) & Lieutenant Edmond Crabbe (L) of 2me Escadrille. They flew together between 28 April until 29 August 1917, which means the GN4 was at the front sometime during that period.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
Lt Georges Laporte & I Sgt Lucien Hallet, 3me Esc, fought off two hostile aircraft on 12 August 1917.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The GN4 was a two-seat reconnaissance aircraft powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8. Twin radiators were mounted on the sides of the nacelle. Yet another derivative of the ubiquitous Farman F40, it is seen here at le Beau-Marais on 2 September 1917.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
S/Lt Maurice Schuermans & Lt Andre Delelienne, 2me Esc, crashed their GN4 on 24 September 1917. Delelienne was seriously injured. By this time either the GN4 had been modified with a fairing for a larger camera or the photo is of another GN4.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
Crash of a GN, probably the GN4 that was destroyed in a crash on 24 September 1917 while being flown by S/Lt Maurice Schuermans & Lt Andre Delelienne.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The GN5 reconnaissance aircraft powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8 is shown during testing. The rear view shows a nacelle distinctly different than that of the GN4 in the crash photo.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The GN5 reconnaissance aircraft powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8 is shown during testing. A row of Sopwith Triplanes is in the background of the photo.
Другие самолёты на фотографии: Sopwith Triplane - Великобритания - 1916
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The GN5 two-seat reconnaissance aircraft powered by a Hispano-Suiza V-8 is shown with Jaumotte and Wouters, the crew that flew it on operations. Wouters demonstrates the camera. The unusual front-mounted radiator was likely an attempt to reduce drag by eliminating the external block radiators of the GN4. Wouters and Jaumotte teamed up in April 1915 and were a team until October 1917. They crashed twice: on 19 July 1916 their F40 was destroyed and on 25 September 1916 they crashed on landing. Their second crash may have been in the GN5.
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W.Pieters - The Belgian Air Service in the First World War /Aeronaut/
The GN6 featured a different radiator design than the earlier GN4 and GN5 but was powered by a similar Hispano-Suiza engine. Eliminating the external block radiators of the GN4 was an attempt to improve speed by reducing drag. The odd appearance of the nacelle may be because it was not completely painted yet. The presence of a mechanic on the nacelle in both photos is an indication that both were taken on the same occasion. It is not known if the GN6 was flown on operations.