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Type H
MS H LeB 09.05.07R
Morane Saulnier Type H on display at the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace at Paris Le Bourget airport
Role Sport aircraft
Manufacturer Morane-Saulnier
First flight 1913
Developed from Morane-Saulnier G
Variants Morane-Saulnier L

The Morane-Saulnier H was a sport aircraft produced in France in the years before the First World War,[1][2] a single-seat derivative of the successful Morane-Saulnier G with a slightly reduced wingspan[2] Like the Type G, it was a successful sporting and racing aircraft.

Operational history[]

During the second international aero meet, held at Wiener Neustadt in June 1913, Roland Garros won the precision landing prize in a Type H.[3] Later that same year, A Morane-Saulnier H was used to complete the first non-stop flight across the Mediterranean, from Fréjus in the south of France to Bizerte in Tunisia.[4]

The French Army ordered a batch of 26 aircraft, and the British Royal Flying Corps also acquired a small number, these latter machines purchased from Grahame-White, who was manufacturing the type in the UK under licence.[2] The French machines saw limited service in the opening stages of World War I, with pilots engaging in aerial combat using revolvers and carbines.[2]

The type was also produced under licence in Germany by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke, who built it as the E.I, E.II, E.IV, E.V, and E.VI, with increasingly powerful engines.[5][6] These were armed with a single, synchronised lMG 08 machine gun.[5][6]

Another German-built version, slightly longer, and featuring a steel-framed fuselage, a redesigned undercarriage integrated with the under-wing bracing pylons, and an enlarged, comma shaped rudder, entered production as the Fokker M.5. In 1915 this aircraft was fitted with a synchronised machine gun, forming the basis for the Fokker "Eindecker" monoplane fighters.[7]

Survivors[]

A Type H is preserved at the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace in Le Bourget.

Variants[]

Morane-Saulnier versions[]

  • MoS.1 H (single seater)
  • MoS.2 G (two seater)
  • MoS.3 L (parasol monoplane)
  • MoS.13 M (armoured single seater)

Pfalz versions[]

  • E.I - with Oberursel U.0 rotary engine (45 built)[8]
  • E.II - with Oberursel U.I rotary engine (130 built)[8]
  • E.IV - with Oberursel U.III rotary engine (46 built)[8]
  • E.V - with Mercedes D.I water-cooled, inline engine (20 built)[8]
  • E.VI - with Oberursel U.I engine, lengthened fuselage, enlarged tail fin and reduced bracing (20 built as trainers)[8][9]

Fokker version[]

  • Fokker M.5 - basis for the Fokker Eindecker fighters.

Operators[]

Flag of France France
Flag of Austria-Hungary 1869-1918 Austria-Hungary
Flag of Belgium (civil) Belgium
Flag of Denmark Denmark
Flag of the German Empire Germany
Flag of Portugal Portugal
Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom
Flag of Russia Russia
  • Russian Empire

Specifications[]

Data from flugzeuginfo.net

General characteristics

  • Crew: One pilot
  • Length: 5.84 m (19 ft 2 in)
  • Wingspan: 9.12 m (29 ft 11 in)
  • Height: 2.26 m (7 ft 5 in)
  • Empty weight: 188 kg (415 lb)
  • Gross weight: 444 kg (979 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Le Rhône 9C, 60 kW (80 hp)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 120 km/h (75 mph)
  • Range: 177 km (111 miles)
  • Service ceiling: 1,000 m (3,280 ft)

Notes[]

  1. Taylor 1989, p.648
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft", p.2539
  3. Hartmann 2001, 11
  4. Flying the Mediterranean Flight 27 September 1913
  5. 5.0 5.1 The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft, p.2698
  6. 6.0 6.1 Grosz 1996
  7. Brannon (1996), pp.7-9
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Herris 2001, p.10 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Herris" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Herris" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Herris" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Herris" defined multiple times with different content
  9. Grosz 1996, p.27

References[]

All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Morane-Saulnier H and the edit history here.
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