A Bleriot XI displaying at Biggin Hill International Air Fair 2008
A Bleriot XI displaying at Biggin Hill International Air Fair 2008. Designed by Louis Blériot and Raymond Saulnier (of Morane-Saulnier), the Blériot XI was a light and sleek monoplane constructed of oak and poplar. The flying surfaces were covered with cloth. The aircraft's original configuration included a engine spinning a four blade metal propeller which proved to be unsatisfactory. Blériot decided to use a basically simple 25 horsepower Anzani 3 cylinder radial engine with much better results. Blériot could be assured of the Anzani 3W engine running continuously for an hour. The Blériot XI also had some ground-breaking technologies such as castering landing gear, allowing for crosswind landings. Wing warping (instead of ailerons) controlled the plane's roll. The tail section of the Blériot XI included a horizontal stabilizer with an elevator, and a rudder, but no vertical stabilizer. Unintentionally, Blériot added lateral stability to the plane by leaving the aft section of the fuselage uncovered. This created enough drag to add stability to the aircraft's flight characteristics. This aircraft is fitted with an original restored 1908 seven-cylinder Gnome-Omega 50hp rotary engine.
Size: 5050px × 3360px
Location: Biggin Hill Airport, Biggin Hill, Kent TN16 3BN, UK
Photo credit: © John Gaffen 2 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1910, aeroplane, air, aircraft, airport, airshow, biggin, bleriot, blériot, fair, hill, historic, internationsal, louis, monoplane, pilot, plane, tail, undercarriage, warping, wing, wing-warping, wings, xi
