Monoplane

Arsenal VB.10

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Designed by Ingenieur-General Vernisse and M Badie, the VB 10 was an all-metal single-seat fighter powered by engines mounted in tandem fore and aft of the pilot’s cockpit and driving contra-rotating co-axial propellers. Thirty VG 10s were ordered off the drawing board in May 1940, and work continued under the Vichy government. The first prototype with two 860hp Hispano- Suiza 12Y31 12-cylinder liquid-cooled engines was flown on 7 July 1945. The second prototype with 1150hp HS 12Z12/13 engines and an armament of four 20mm Hispano-Suiza cannon and six 12.7mm Browning machine guns flew on 21 September 1946. A contract for 200 aircraft had been placed on 22 December 1945 (this later being cut back to 50 aircraft), and the first production VB 10 flew on 3 November 1947 with 1150hp HS 12Z Ars 15/16 engines and an armament of four 20mm cannon. Production was cancelled on 21 September 1948 after completion and testing of four series aircraft.

VB 10
Take-off weight: 8860 kg / 19533 lb
Empty weight: 6230 kg / 13735 lb
Wingspan: 15.49 m / 50 ft 10 in
Length: 12.98 m / 42 ft 7 in
Height: 5.20 m / 17 ft 1 in
Wing area: 35.50 sq.m / 382.12 sq ft
Max. speed: 700 km/h / 435 mph
Range: 1700 km / 1056 miles

Arsenal-Delanne 10-C2

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Designed by Maurice Delanne, the Arsenal-Delanne 10-C2 two-seat fighter was built by the Arsenal de l’Aeronautique. Of so-called Nenadovich biplane configuration, the tandem-mounted wings provided a continuous slot effect and offered a large C of G range. Of metal stressed-skin construction and powered by an 860hp Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs 12-cylinder liquid-cooled engine, the Arsenal-Delanne 10-C2 prototype was virtually complete at Villacoublay when German forces occupied the factory in June 1940, work on the aircraft continued and the first flight test was made in October 1941. After completion of the initial test programme, the aircraft was ferried to Germany for further trials. The intended armament comprised an engine-mounted 20mm Hispano-Suiza cannon, two wing-mounted 7.5mm MAC 1934 machine guns and two further 7.5mm weapons on a flexible mounting.

Arsenal-Delanne 10-C2
Engine: 860hp Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs 12-cylinder liquid-cooled
Take-off weight: 2880 kg / 6349 lb
Wingspan: 10.11 m / 33 ft 2 in
Length: 7.33 m / 24 ft 1 in
Height: 3.06 m / 10 ft 0 in
Wing area: 22.5 sq.m / 242.19 sq ft
Max. speed: 550 km/h / 342 mph

Arsenal VG.90

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The VG.90 naval prototype was developed from the VG.70 as part of a single-seat shipboard interceptor and strike fighter development programme in competition with the Aerocentre NC 1080 and the Nord 2200.
Designed by Vernisse and Galtier, the first two VG.90 prototypes were built of wood, and the first of these made its maiden flight on 27 September 1949 and the second in June 1951: both aircraft were lost in accidends.
Powered by a 2268kg Rolls-Royce Nene turbojet, the VG 90 had an all-metal fuselage, and the wing and tail surfaces were metal structures with plywood skinning.
Planned armament comprised three 30mm Hispano-Suiza cannon and provision was made for underwing ordnance loads, such as two 500kg bombs. The second prototype had provision for two 20mm cannon, two 7.7mm machine guns and 36 RAC 50 rockets internally, plus 16 T10 or 80 RAC 50 rockets on wing racks. A third all-metal prototype, which was to be powered by a 4000kg SNECMA Atar 101F turbojet, never flew and was abandoned. Full performance trials were not completed and the following data are manufacturer’s estimates for the VG 90 with a 2850kg version of the Hispano-Suiza-built Nene.

Take-off weight: 8090 kg / 17835 lb
Empty weight: 5100 kg / 11244 lb
Wingspan: 12.60 m / 41 ft 4 in
Length: 13.44 m / 44 ft 1 in
Height: 3.55 m / 11 ft 8 in
Wing area: 30.7 sq.m / 330.45 sq ft
Max. speed: 920 km/h / 572 mph
Range: 1550 km / 963 miles

Arsenal VG.39

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The VG 39 development in the VG 30 series of fighters commenced its flight test programme on 3 May 1940. The prototype differed from the VG 33 mainly by having a 1200hp Hispano-Suiza Type 89ter 12-cylinder liquid-cooled engine with an elongated propeller shaft, a revised wing structure, and a wing-mounted armament of six 7.5mm MAC 1934 M39 machine guns.
During flight testing the prototype VG 39 attained a maximum speed of 625km/h at an altitude of 5750m. The planned production model, the VG 39bis, was to have embodied a fuselage similar to that of the VG 36 and to have supplemented the wing armament with a 20mm engine-mounted cannon, the definitive model having a 1600hp Hispano-Suiza 12Z engine.

VG 39
Wingspan: 10.80 m / 35 ft 5 in
Length: 8.75 m / 28 ft 8 in
Wing area: 14.00 sq.m / 150.69 sq ft
Max. speed: 625 km/h / 388 mph

Arsenal VG.34 / VG.35 / VG.36

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VG.34

Developments of the VG 33 under test in 1940 included the VG 34, flown on 20 January 1940 with a 910hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y45 engine, and the VG 35 with a 1000hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y51 which flew on 25 February 1940. The VG.35 attained a maximum speed of 575km/h at 6200m during tests, and the airframes and armament of both the VG 34 and VG 35 were identical to those of the VG 33.
The VG 36 flown on 14 May 1940, had the 1000hp HS12Y51 of the VG 35, but included some redesign of the rear fuselage with a shallower, wider faired radiator bath. Armament of the VG 36 comprised one 20mm HS 404 cannon and four 7.5mm MAC 1934 M39 machine guns.

VG 36
Wingspan: 10.80 m / 35 ft 5 in
Length: 8.10 m / 26 ft 7 in
Height: 3.31 m / 10 ft 10 in
Wing area: 14.00 sq.m / 150.69 sq ft
Max. speed: 590 km/h / 367 mph
Ceiling: 7000 m / 22950 ft
Range: 1100 km / 684 miles

Arsenal VG.31 / VG.32 / VG.33

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A derivative of the VG 30, the VG 31, differed by having the radiator bath moved aft to improve the C of G, and having a smaller wing of 12.00 sq.m. It was proposed to power this development with an 860hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y31 12- cylinder liquid-cooled engine, but the prototype was never assembled.
The VG 32 reverted to the original wing and was powered by a 1,040hp Allison V-1710- C15 engine, but the prototype was captured by German forces at Villacoublay two weeks before its scheduled maiden flight in 1940.
The first development of the basic design to fly was the VG 33, on 24 May 1939. A production contract for 220 examples was placed in September 1939, this contract eventually being increased to 1,000 machines, but only 19 had been completed by the Chantiers Aero-Maritimes de la Seine by the fall of France.
The VG 33 was armamed with one 20mm Hispano-Suiza 404 cannon and four 7.5mm MAC 1934 M39 machine guns, and was powered by an 860hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y31 engine.

VG.33
Engine: 860hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y31
Take-off weight: 2720 kg / 5997 lb
Empty weight: 1800 kg / 3968 lb
Wingspan: 10.80 m / 35 ft 5 in
Length: 8.55 m / 28 ft 1 in
Height: 3.35 m / 10 ft 12 in
Wing area: 14 sq.m / 150.69 sq ft
Max. speed: 558 km/h / 347 mph
Cruise speed: 487 km/h / 303 mph
Ceiling: 11000 m / 36100 ft
Range: 1200 km / 746 miles

Arsenal VG.30

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The VG 30 had a wooden stressed-skin construction and was intended to be powered by a Potez 12 Dc “flat-twelve” air-cooled engine of 610hp at 1000m and mounting a 20mm Hispano motor cannon.
Designed by Ingenieur-General Vernisse and Jean Galtier the VG 30 single-seat fighter was built by the Arsenal de l’Aeronautique and was evolved to compete with the Caudron C.713 to meet a lightweight interceptor requirement. A full-scale mock-up of the VG 30 was exhibited at the Exposition Internationale in Paris in the summer of 1936 but development was delayed by the non-availability of the Potez 12 Dc engine. The prototype was eventually flown at Villacoublay on 1 October 1938 with a 690hp Hispano- Suiza 12 Xcrs 12-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. The VG 30 proved faster than the Morane-Saulnier 406 and, in July 1939, allegedly attained 805km/h in a dive between 4000m and 2000m. Proposed armament comprised one 20mm Hispano- Suiza 404 cannon and four 7.5mm MAC machine guns. Development was abandoned in favour of the VG 33.

VG 30
Wingspan: 10.80 m / 35 ft 5 in
Length: 8.40 m / 27 ft 7 in
Height: 3.31 m / 10 ft 10 in
Wing area: 14.00 sq.m / 150.69 sq ft

Arsenal Air SA 103 Emouchet / Air SA 104

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In the same category as the Grunau Baby, the SA 103 Emouchet (or Kestrel) single-seat elementary training glider and the very similar SA 104 was designed and built just after the war by Arsenal de I’Aeronautique and went into large-scale production at Chatillon-sous-Bagneux for the French National Gliding Centres and clubs; some were also built by Societe Roche-Aviation.

Of conventional wood and fabric construction, the Emouchet has a parasol wing with metal bracing struts and no air brakes or spoilers. The cockpit is an open one and landing gear consists of a landing skid under the forward fuselage and a tail bumper fairing. The fuselage itself is of hexagonal cross-section and the tailplane is set forward of the diminutive fin and large rudder.

SA103
Span: 41ft 2.5 in
Length: 20ft 11 in
Wing area: 178.6 sq.ft
Empty weight: 260 lb
Max weight: 385 lb
Normal gliding speed: 36 mph

Arsenal Air 100 / Air 102

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This French high performance single-seater was designed and produced just after the war by Arsenal de I’Aeronautique.

The Air 100 was designed for the French National Gliding Centres and clubs, and was a cantilever high wing monoplane of mainly spruce and plywood construction. The 18m span wing featured slotted ailerons and spoiler-type flaps, and the landing gear consisted of a central monowheel with a landing skid fore and aft of it, plus a tail skid.

An Air 100 flown by Eric Nessler set up a new French record for distance in a straight line of 311 miles (501 km) at Wichita Falls, USA, on 14 July 1947.

The final production version was the Air 102.

Air 100
Span: 59ft 0 in
Length: 26ft 4 in
Wing area: 194 sq.ft
Aspect ratio: 18.0
Empty weight: 535 lb
Max weight: 745 lb
Normal gliding speed: 39.7 mph

Arrow Model F / Sport M

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Arrow Sport F NS72

The 1934 Sport F prototype NC12581 was powered by a 82hp Arrow (dextrorotatory Ford V-8 conversion).

Arrow Sport F Cockpit and motor

Seventeen production models were built in 1936 under ATC 601, and 87 under ATC 613 and 2-531 with a redesigned wing root and optional cockpit canopy in 1938, including one Sport M.

The original price was $1,500. Other motors used were Detroit Air Cat, Anzani, Genet, Kinner, and Velie.

Arrow Sport M N18764

One Sport M prototype was built in 1938, NX/N18764, priced at $2,330, raised to $3,750. The series was discontinued.

Sport F
Wingspan: 36’7″
Length: 21’4″
Useful load: 503 lb
Max speed: 100 mph
Cruise: 90 mph
Stall: 45 mph
Range: 300 mi
Seats: 2

Sport M
Engine: 125hp Menasco C-4
Useful load: 603 lb
Max speed: 120 mph
Cruise: 105 mph
Stall: 48 mph
Range: 300 mi
Seats: 2