Morane-Saulnier L
| Type L | |
|---|---|
| |
| RFC Morane-Saulnier L | |
| Role | scout |
| Manufacturer | AéroplanesMorane-Saulnier |
| First flight | August 1913 |
| Introduction | 1914 |
| Primary users | Aéronautique Militaire Royal Flying Corps Royal Naval Air Service |
| Number built | 600 |
TheMorane-Saulnier L,orMorane-Saulnier Type L,or officiallyMoS-3,was a Frenchparasol wingone or two-seat scoutaeroplaneof theFirst World War.The Type L became one of the first successfulfighter aircraftwhen it was fitted with a singlemachine gunthat fired through the arc of thepropeller,which was protected byarmoureddeflector wedges. Its immediate effectiveness in this role launched anarms racein fighter development, and the Type L was swiftly rendered obsolete. The original Type L usedwing warpingfor lateral control, but a later version designatedType LAwas fitted withailerons.[1]
Built byMorane-Saulnier,large numbers of the Type L were ordered by the FrenchAviation Militaireat the outbreak of the war. In total about 600 Type Ls were built and, in addition to the French air force, they served with theRoyal Flying Corps,Royal Naval Air Serviceand theImperial Russian Air Service.
The type was also produced under licence in Germany byPfalz Flugzeugwerkeas the unarmedA.IandA.IIscouts (with 80 HP and 100 HP Oberursel engines respectively).[2]About 60 were built for Bavarian air service. A few were later modified as theE.IIIfighters.[2]A few Type Ls captured by Germany were fitted with a single GermanSpandau LMG 08 machine gun.These captured and converted aircraft are often mistaken for Pfalz E.IIIs.[3]
About 450 aircraft were licence-built in Russia by Duks and Lebed works.[4]
The Morane-Saulnier L was also built under licence inSwedenwith some minor improvements as theThulin D.
Operational history[edit]
In December 1914 the famous FrenchaviatorRoland Garros,then serving withEscadrille 23,worked withRaymond Saulnierto create agun synchronizer,using the gas operatedHotchkiss light machine gun.However the firing rate fluctuated too much for the synchronizer to function properly.[5]As an interim measure, they then designed a "safety backup" in the form of braced "deflectors" (metal wedges) fitted to the rear surfaces of the propeller blades at the points where they could be struck by a bullet.[5]Garros took his Type L fighter into combat with the deflectors in March 1915 and achieved immediate success, shooting down threeGermanaircraft in April, a noteworthy feat at the time. The bullets that the French used were not likely to damage the harder steel of the wedges themselves. On 18 April 1915, Garros' deflector-equipped Type L force-landed behind German lines and was captured before he could destroy it.
Three two-seat Morane Type L aircraft were also the first victims of the first German fighter aircraft. LeutnantKurt Wintgens,flying theParabellum machine gun-armedFokker Eindecker M.5K/MGprototypeE.5/15,a copy of theMorane-Saulnier Hwith a wire-braced welded steel tube fuselage and fitted with the FokkerStangensteuerungsynchronized gun,downed the first on July 1, 1915, followed by two similar victories on July 4 and 15.
About 50 Type Ls were delivered toBritain'sRoyal Flying Corps,which used them as reconnaissance aircraft during 1915,[6]with a further 25 being operated by theRoyal Naval Air Service.On 7 June 1915 one of these aircraft, flown byFlight Sub-LieutenantReginald Alexander John Warnefordof1 Squadron RNASintercepted theDeutsches Heer-flownZeppelinLZ.37,destroying it, the first Zeppelin to be destroyed in the air. Warneford received theVictoria Crossfor this achievement.[7]
Cecil Lewisserved with the RFC's Squadron Number 3 in 1916 through theSommeoffensive. He flew the Type LA "Parasol" (as it was known) operationally, for over three hundred hours and was awarded the Military Cross. Most of that flying was conducted on a single airframe, RFC serial 5133. In his book "Sagittarius Rising" he recalled of the LA:
- "I had a look over her, and the more I saw of her the less I liked her. It was certainly not love at first sight... the elevator was as sensitive as a gold balance; the least movement stood you on your head or on your tail. You couldn't leave the machine to its own devices for a moment... the Morane really was a death trap... Subsequently I flew every machine used by the Air Force during the war. They were all child's play after the Morane... but I did come to love the Morane as I loved no other aeroplane."[8]
Three Pfalz A.II's were used by the Ottoman Empire in an attempt to combat the growing threat of the Arab Revolt[9]
A Morane-Saulnier "Parasol" was used for the first flight by an airplane across theAndeson April 13, 1918, when the Argentine aviatorLuis Candelariaflew fromZapala,Argentina, toCunco,Chile; the flight lasted 2 hours 30 minutes and reached an altitude of 4,000 meters.[10]
Variants[edit]
- Lcompany designation for basic model
- MoS-3official government/STAe designation for L
- LAcompany designation for improved L with faired fuselage and ailerons
- MoS-4official government/STAe designation for LA
- LHfighter developed from LA
- MoS-20official government/STAe designation for LH
- Pfalz A.IwithOberursel U.0engine[3]
- Pfalz A.IIwithOberursel U.Iengine[3]
- Pfalz E.III- A Pfalz A.II armed with single synchronisedlMG 08 machine gun[3]
- Thulin Dmodified L built under licence in Sweden.
Operators[edit]
- Argentine Air Force- One aircraft
- Czechoslovakian Air Force- One aircraft
- Finnish Air Force- Two aircraft
- Royal Netherlands Air Force- One aircraft.
- Swedish Air Force- One aircraft
- Swiss Air Force- One aircraft
- Ottoman Air Force- Original and Pfalz A.II aircraft.
- Ukrainian Air Force- Three aircraft.
- Soviet Air Force- ex-Imperial Russian Air Service aircraft.
Specifications (Type L)[edit]
Data fromAeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing.)[11]
General characteristics
- Crew:2
- Length:6.88 m (22 ft 7 in)
- Wingspan:11.20 m (36 ft 9 in)
- Height:3.93 m (12 ft 11 in)
- Wing area:18.3 m2(197 sq ft)
- Empty weight:393 kg (866 lb)
- Gross weight:667.5 kg (1,472 lb)
- Powerplant:1 ×Le Rhône 9C9-cylinder air-cooled rotary piston engine, 60 kW (80 hp)
- Propellers:2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller
Performance
- Maximum speed:125 km/h (78 mph, 67 kn)
- Time to altitude:1,000 m (3,300 ft) in 8 minutes
Armament
- Guns:1 × 0.303 in (7.7 mm)Lewis gun
See also[edit]
Related development
- Morane-Saulnier Type Gshoulder wing monoplane precursor
- Morane-Saulnier Type N
- Airdrome Morane Saulnier L,a modern kit reproduction
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ^Taylor 1989, p. 684.
- ^abHerris, Jack.Pfalz Aircraft of World War I.Great War Aircraft in Profile, Volume 4. 2001.ISBN1891268155.P.4-7,20
- ^abcdThe Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft1985, p. 2698.
- ^Obuchovich, V., Nikiforov, A.Samolyoty Pyervoy Mirovoy voyny(Самолеты первой мировой войны), Harvest: 2003,ISBN985-13-1701-2(in Russian),p. 285
- ^abBruce, 1989, p.3
- ^Green and Swanborough 1994, p. 413.
- ^Lewis, Cecil,Sagittarius Rising
- ^Nicolle 1994, p. 19.
- ^Luis Casabal (13 April 1998)."A 80 años del primer cruce aéreo de los Andes"(in Spanish). Diario La Nación.Retrieved26 April2015.
- ^Bruce 1982, p. 291.
Bibliography[edit]
- Angelucci, Enzo.The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft, 1914-1980.San Diego, California: The Military Press, 1983.ISBN0-517-41021-4.
- Bruce, J.M.Morane Saulnier Type L - Windsock Datafile 16.Herts, UK: Albatros Publications, 1989.ISBN0-948414-20-0.
- Bruce, J.M.The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing).London: Putnam, 1982.ISBN0-370-30084-X.
- Davilla, Dr. James J.; Soltan, Arthur (1997).French Aircraft of the First World War.Mountain View, CA: Flying Machines Press.ISBN978-1891268090.
- Green, William and Gordon Swanborough.The Complete Book of Fighters.New York: Smithmark, 1994.ISBN0-8317-3939-8.
- Herris, Jack (2012).Pfalz Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes.Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 5. Charleston, SC: Aeronaut Books.ISBN978-1-935881-12-4.
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft.London: Aerospace Publishing, 1985.
- Klaauw, Bart van der (March–April 1999). "Unexpected Windfalls: Accidentally or Deliberately, More than 100 Aircraft 'arrived' in Dutch Territory During the Great War".Air Enthusiast(80): 54–59.ISSN0143-5450.
- Nicolle, David.The Ottoman Army 1914-1918: Disease and Death on the Battlefield.Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1994.ISBN978-0-87480-923-7.
- Taylor, Michael J. H.Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation.London: Studio Editions, 1989.
- Thetford, Owen.British Naval Aircraft since 1912.London: Putnam, Fourth edition, 1978.ISBN0-370-30021-1.
Further reading[edit]
- Lacaze, Henri & Lherbert, Claude (2013).Morane Saulnier: ses avions, ses projets[Morane Saulnier: Their Aircraft and Projects] (in French). Outreau, France: Lela Presse.ISBN978-2-914017-70-1.
