L.Opdyke French Aeroplanes Before the Great War (Schiffer)
Deleted by request of (c)Schiffer Publishing
Barillon
Pierre Barillon designed and built several monoplanes. He was only 18 in 1908-1909 when he built his first one with his brother. Powered with a 12 hp engine, it was said to have flown for short distances.
He got his brevet in October 1909 flying his second machine, a shoulder-wing monoplane with long tapered wings like the Antoinette's, mounted at shoulder level on an uncovered rectangular box fuselage. The undercarriage was similar to that of the Bleriot XI, but with a central rocking skid under the propeller and distinctive perforated beams pivoting to hold the wheels. Controls were through large side-mounted wheels as on the Antoinette; the wings had a large dihedral angle - perhaps they warped.
(Span: 9.4 m; length: 8 m; wing area: 19 sqm; gross weight: 325 kg; 25 hp 2-cylinder incline Prini-Berthaud)
Another big monoplane appeared at Juvisy, this one with a longer uncovered rectangular box fuselage, Antoinette-shaped wings but with wingtip ailerons, a tailplane with tip elevators, and a high-set rectangular rudder. The big steering/control wheel was very apparent. The radiator was mounted above and behind the motor, tipped slightly forward.
Barillon registered his third design for the Paris-Madrid race and later for the Circuit European. Even more like the Antoinette, it had a long triangular fuselage completely covered - the front part with linoleum. The passenger sat in front of the pilot and could view the undercarriage through 2 small windows. Small trailing-edge ailerons were fitted.
(Span: 8 m; length: 9 m; chord: 9 m; gross weight: 450 kg; 2-blade Woirin propeller, said to be of variable pitch; top speed reported more than 130 kmh; 50 hp Gnome)
Sometimes described as a racer, his fourth design was so similar to the Nieuport that Edouard Nieuport threatened a suit. But Barillon was flying Nieuports at Pau by the spring of 1912 and was appointed by Nieuport as Chief Pilot by June. Shorter than the Nieuport, No 4 carried 2 side-by-side and a third, if required, behind them. The wings had curved cut-outs at the roots to "improve downward visibility and the dropping of bombs"; the wings warped and could be folded for storage. The metal parts of the frame were of nickel-chrome vanadium steel.
(Span: 7.3 m; length: 5.95 m; wing area: 8.8 sqm; empty weight: 215 kg; 40/50 hp 7-cylinder Rossel-Peugeot; Normale propeller; top speed expected to be 65 kmh)
At the time of Barillon's death from typhoid in August 1912, he was working on a 50 hp single-seater and an automatically-stabilized 6-seat machine.