The Farman David was a light sport biplane introduced to the aviation world via the 1919 Paris Salon. Power was provided by a 37 kw (50 hp) Gnome rotary engine and the type was quite successful. Although publicised as a single-seater, it had accommodation for a pilot and passenger in cramped conditions. It was placed in production by Farman and soon became known as the Farman Sport, the name by which it was usually known. The 1920 model became available with a 45 kw (60 hp) Gnome engine, but eventually the Anzani engine seems to have become the norm.

A number were exported to Australia. The first of the type was imported by Shaw-Ross Engineering & Aviation Company Ltd of Port Melbourne, VIC. This aircraft G-AUBV (c/n 8 – later VH-UBV) arrived on 4 March 1921 and was registered from June 1921 but was destroyed by a fire at Essendon, VIC on 7 August 1931, the same fire which destroyed VH-UDL (c/n 24).

A further aircraft VH-UFX (c/n 7085) was registered to Industrial Indent Pty Ltd of Melbourne on 29 June 1927. It was damaged when it undershot landing at Essendon on 24 November 1930.

Another aircraft VH-UDC (c/n 25) was registered on 28 June 1921, also to Shaw-Ross Engineering & Aviation Company Ltd of Port Melbourne. It was destroyed in a crash at Cowes, VIC on 9 February 1923.

VH-UDL (c/n 24) was registered to Shaw-Ross Engineering & Aviation Company, also on 28 June 1921. Ownership was transferred to Shaw Aviation on 27 June 1930. It was destroyed in a fire at Essendon, VIC on 7 August 1931.

Two Farman Sports were obtained by Airgold Ltd in Papua New Guinea, G-AUHL (c/n 30) and G-AUHM (c/n 31). In May 1928 the two Farmans arrived in Port Moresby in crates. The intention was to assemble and then fly them to Lae to be operated in the freight role. However, on examination of the aircraft they were found to be too frail for the conditions prevalent in Papua New Guinea.

VH-UHL, named ‘Butterfly’, was assembled at Lae and flown to Wau. Fitted with a 34 kw (45 hp) Anzani radial engine, although Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) records indicated it, and VH-UHM, were fitted with the 60 kw (80 hp) Anzani 6A engine, the Farman Sport VH-UHL swung on landing on its first flight and a wheel collapsed. A further flight to Wau was made nine days later and on this occasion the undercarriage collapsed on landing. As well, many problems were experienced with the engine and VH-UHL was re-crated and shipped south for disposal. The second Farman Sport aircraft VH-UHM was never assembled and flown in Papua New Guinea and was also shipped back to Australia.

After returning from New Guinea VH-UHL had a number of owners, including L Mitchell of Wycheproof, VIC in May 1929, H Sweeney of East St Kilda, VIC in July 1930, C H Frazer of St Kilda, A H Wilkins of Blackwood, SA in November 1934, and R J Weston of North Adelaide, SA in October 1938. It was struck off the register in December 1947.

Farman Sport VH-UHM eventually ended up with Mr G N Wikner of Brisbane, QLD who loaned it to the Aero Club of NSW at Mascot for a period in 1929. He eventually rebuilt it, making various improvements to the airframe, the aircraft eventually being written off in an accident on 20 March 1930 at Dayboro in Queensland. Later a wing was used in the construction of a glider known as the Golden Arrow.

A catastrophic fire wiped out three of the Australian registered Farman Sport aircraft on 7 August 1931 when it broke out in the Shaw Aviation Company hangar at Port Melbourne, four aircraft, including three Farman Sports (VH-UBV, VH-UDL and VH-UFX) and a de Havilland DH.6 (VH-UBW) being destroyed.

Engine: Anzani 52 kw (70 hp)
Wingspan: 7.11 m (23 ft 4 in)
Wing area: 26 m² (279.87 sq ft)
Length: 6.13 m (20 ft 1¼ in)
Empty weight: 200 kg (441 lb)
Loaded weight: 400 kg (882 lb)
Max speed: 140 km/h (87 mph)
Service ceiling: 2,000 m (6,560 ft)
Endurance: 4 hrs 20 mins
Seats: 2

The Farman F.90 passenger transport first flew in 1921. It was a single engine, single bay biplane with unstaggered, rectangular wings and ailerons on the upper wings only. The interplane gap was large, with the upper plane held high above the fuselage by a set of four vertical centre section struts. The interplane struts were also simple parallel pairs. Its tailplane and elevators were fixed to the top of the fuselage; it had a triangular fin and a rudder with a tip at the same angle but vertically displaced, producing a nick in the leading edge.

The F.90 was initially powered by a 260 hp (194 kW) Salmson AZ 9 9-cylinder radial engine, neatly enclosed in a short nose. The fuselage was deep and flat sided, though with a slightly rounded decking. The passenger compartment, with four small windows on each side, began near the wing leading edge and stretched aft a little beyond the trailing edge. The pilot had an open cockpit behind the cabin with a clear forward view under the high wing. The F.90 had a conventional undercarriage with single mainwheels under the wing leading edges and a rear skid.

Flight trials began in 1921, conducted by Farman pilots Lucien Coupet and Jules Landry. By 1923 the Salmson radials had been updated from the mark AZ to CM for its appearance the Zenith Cup competition of that year. It was re-engined again, this time with 380 hp (283 kW) Bristol Jupiters, for the same competition in 1926. This change came with a new type number, F.91. Only one F.90/1 was built.

The F.90/1 won several Cups but no orders. It won the 1922 Grand Prix de Paris, the only single engine aircraft amongst five competitors, where it was flown by Louis Boussoutrot and his mechanic, Henri Carol. This contest included a 600 km (370 mi) circuit, which the F.90 completed at an average speed of 144.4 km/h (89.7 mph), and rewarded Farman with FF 80,000 and a statuette.

It appeared in the Zenith Cup, a fuel consumption competition funded by the Société du Carburateur Zenith, twice, winning it both times. This competition required the contestants to make out and return flights from Paris to Lyon and back on successive, prescribed days. The round trip distance was 770 km (480 mi). The winner was the aircraft that used the least fuel for the load it carried, measured by the ratio of weight of fuel used to weight of useful load. In 1923 there were nine entrants, though three were non-starters. On 21-22 July 1923, fitted with its new Salmson CM 9 engines and flown by Boussoutrot, it won with a fuel to load ratio of 0.475, well ahead of the 0.616 of the runner-up, a Potez VIII A two-seater.

Three years later, on 3-4 July, the same machine, now the F.91 with Bristol Jupiters and Bristol Triplex carburettors, was one of seven competitors. The Farman, flown by Maurice Drouhin, won again with a much improved fuel to load ratio of 0.253, though the runner-up, a Caudron was close behind at 0.256. Each win gained Farman the Cup plus the first prize of FF 30,000; in 1926 at least the winning pilot also got FF 3,000.

Only the one example was ever built.

F. 90
Engine: 1 × Salmson AZ 9, 190 kW (260 hp)
Propellers: 2-bladed
Wingspan: 14.03 m (46 ft 0 in)
Wing area: 66.80 m2 (719.0 sq ft)
Length: 9.30 m (30 ft 6 in)
Height: 3.86 m (12 ft 8 in)
Empty weight: 1,100 kg (2,425 lb)
Gross weight: 2,350 kg (5,181 lb)
Maximum speed: 180 km/h (112 mph; 97 kn)
Range: 70 km (43 mi; 38 nmi)
Crew: 1
Capacity: 6 passengers