Nieuport 17, French biplane fighter aircraft of World War I manufactured by the Nieuport company, entering service 1916. At Stow Maries WWI aerodrome
The Nieuport 17 was a French biplane fighter aircraft of World War I, manufactured by the Nieuport company. The Nieuport 17 was a slightly larger development of the earlier Nieuport 11, with a more powerful engine, larger wings, and improved aerodynamic form. It was at first fitted with a 110 hp (82 kW) Le Rhône 9J engine, though later versions were upgraded to a 130 hp (97 kW) engine. The 17 had outstanding maneuverability and an excellent rate of climb. Unfortunately, the narrow lower wing, marking it as a "sesquiplane" design with literally "one-and-a-half wings", was weak due to its single spar construction, and had a disconcerting tendency to disintegrate in sustained dives at high soon as production of the new Alkan-Hamy synchronization gear permitted, the wing mounted Lewis gun of the "11" was replaced in French service with a synchronised Vickers gun. The standard Royal Flying Corps synchroniser of the period, the Vickers-Challenger gear, was unreliable, and in British Service the wing mounted Lewis was usually retained, by now on the improved Foster mounting, a curved metal rail which made it easier for the pilot to bring the gun down in order to change drums or clear jams. A few individual aircraft were fitted with both guns - but in practice this reduced performance unacceptably, and a single machine gun remained standard. The new type reached the French front in March 1916 and quickly began to replace the smaller Nieuport 11 and 16 fighters in French service. The N17 went into service with Escadrille on May 2, 1916. The Nieuport, along with the British , was crucial in ending the reign of the Fokker Eindecker - the so-called 'Fokker scourge' period, proving a severe shock to German aviation high command. Most French aces used the nimble Nieuport during their career including Georges Guynemer, Charles Nungesser, Maurice Boyau, Armand Pinsard, René Dorne, Gabriel Guerin, Alfred Duellin and Jean Navarre. The type was also used by Americans
Size: 4928px × 3264px
Location: Stow Maries Great War Aerodrome, Purleigh, UK
Photo credit: © Avpics / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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