Back to Farman F.190
Engines – Power
Farman F.190 / F.191 / F.192 / F.193 / F.194 / F.195 / F.196 / F.197 / F.198 / F.199
Farman F.190 Article
Farman F.180 Oiseau Bleu
Farman F.121 Jabiru / F.3X / F.4X
The nine-passenger F.121 was originally known as the F.3X and was a high-mounted wing, deep slab-sided fuselage aircraft powered by four 134kW Hispano-Suiza 8Ac engines in tandem pairs. The F.121 won the 1923 French Grand Prix des Avions Transports and 500,000 francs. At least three different radiator arrangements were tried in attempts to cure the Jabiru’s chronic cooling problems.
Four flew on the Farman airline’s Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam route from 1926 and Danish Air Lines used a few between Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Four even uglier F.4X six-passenger aircraft followed, each with three uncowled 223.5kW Salmson Az.9 engines, two engines mounted above the landing gear on the lower stub wings and one in the upper fuselage nose. These served with Compagnie Internationale de Navigation Aerienne (formerly CFRNA) along with the more attractive Caudron 81 and Potez 32.
Passengers sat in wicker chairs angled towards the centre, and had a view from the continuous row of windows around the cabin.
Military Jabirus also appeared as prototype heavy bombers and escort fighters with stepped noses, each carrying twin Lewis guns on a Scarff ring in a nose cockpit and light bombs in a fuselage bay. Heavier bombs or, a torpedo could be carried under the fuselage.
Engine: 4 x HS 8AC, 132kW
Max take-off weight: 5000 kg / 11023 lb
Empty weight: 3000 kg / 6614 lb
Wingspan: 19.0 m / 62 ft 4 in
Length: 13.7 m / 44 ft 11 in
Wing area: 80.0 sq.m / 861.11 sq ft
Max. speed: 180 km/h / 112 mph
Ceiling: 4000 m / 13100 ft
Range w/max.fuel: 600 km / 373 miles
Crew: 1-2
Passengers: 9
Farman F.120
Farman F.90 / Farman F.91
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
Farman F.60 / F.61 Goliath / F.62 / F.63 / F.65 / F.68
The two FF.60 bomber prototypes of 1918 started a great family of passenger airliners and night bombers. The F.60 of 1915 16 was an F.40 with the more powerful 190 hp Renault; the F.61 was the 190 hp version of the F.41. The type was an equal-span biplane with a conventional monoplane-type tail unit. The landing-gear legs had trousered fairings and each supported twin wheels. Immediately above each leg was an engine set in a large nacelle on the lower wing, with minimal clearance between the propeller and the slab-sided fuselage.
Bomber versions had gunners cockpits in the nose and amidships, while the pilot and co-pilot/navigator were seated in tandem in open cockpits. Commercial transport Goliaths had a nose cabin for four passengers and an aft cabin for eight, separated by a raised open cockpit for the two pilots under the leading edge of the upper wing.
The Farman brothers commenced Paris-London flights on 6 February 1919 using an F.60 Goliath.
About 60 commercial Goliaths were built in several versions with Salmson, Renault, Lorraine, Gnome-Rhone-built Jupiter, Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar and Farman engines, among the most important being those powered by 171.4kW Salmson Z.9 radial engines operated by Air Union.
Several flew with other airlines including the Farman airline, and indeed it was this company that started the world’s first regular international passenger service, beginning on 22 March 1919 between Paris and Brussels. Of course this had not been the first international passenger service by an airline between European capital cities, this being officially recognised as the Farman flight between Paris and London on 8 February 1919 carrying military personnel. However the latter was not the start of a sustained or civil passenger service and as such does not conflict with the Paris-Brussels “first”. Versions operated by the Farman airline included the Renault-powered F.61 and Gnome-Rhone-built Jupiter-powered F.63bis. Six passenger-carrying Goliaths were also built under licence in Czechoslovakia, two going to the air force.
Thirty-six F.60 bombers (with Salmson engines and cut-down noses) served with the French 21 and 22 Regiments d’Aviation and 24 square-nosed Jupiter-powered Goliaths equipped naval escadrilles 6R1, 6B1 and 6B2, following tests with a passenger type. These could be mounted on twin floats (with stabiliser floats under the lower wings) as an alternative to the normal wheel-type landing gear. Russia purchased sufficient F.62s to equip two units which formed the embryo of its new heavy bomber force; Japan and Italy bought a single example each for testing; and Poland acquired 32 F.68 bombers. Export bombers – like the 42 F.63 for the French Army and a large batch of F.65 for the French Navy – each had a ‘balcony’-type nose-gunner’s cockpit with a ‘step’ below.
The Belgian Aviation Militaire had two squadrons of F.41s and 60s a few F.40 series were used by the RNAS and 30 were supplied to the American Expedtionary Force.
Conversions to airliner were operated by Air Union circa 1929.
Engine: 2 x Salmson CM.9, 190kW
Max take-off weight: 4870 kg / 10737 lb
Empty weight: 2500 kg / 5512 lb
Wingspan: 26.5 m / 86 ft 11 in
Length: 14.3 m / 46 ft 11 in
Wing area: 161.0 sq.m / 1732.99 sq ft
Max. speed: 130 km/h / 81 mph
Cruise speed: 120 km/h / 75 mph
Ceiling: 4000 m / 13100 ft
Range w/max.fuel: 400 km / 249 miles
Crew: 2
Passengers: 12
Farman F.50
The F.50 bomber was a large tractor machine able to carry a significant load of heavier bombs. It was normally powered by two 250/265 hp Lorraine Dietrich engines, and in appearance strongly resembled the enemy Gothas. The front gunner/ bomb aimer was in the nose and the pilot just ahead of the wings; there was no rear cockpit for a gunner to provide defence astern. There were two twin wheel landing gears, between which were racks for eight 75 kg (165 lb) bombs. Two escadrilles of the Aviation Militaire used this type, and two were supplied to the AEF. The F.50BN 2 operating as a night bomber in 1918. Several survived for some years with the French navy (as torpedo bombers), in Japan and as civil transports.
Span: 22.9 m (75 ft 1.5 in)
Length: 12.03 m (39 ft 5.75 in)
Gross weight: 3116 kg (6870 lb)
Maximum speed: 150 km/h (93 mph)
Farman F.40 / Farman F.41
The last important pusher type produced by Henry and Maurice Farman was the F.40 and F.41 reconnaissance bombers, produced by the brothers’ new joint company at the end of 1915.
It derived from the F.30, the F.40 was a more refined aircraft, again with the gunner in the nose with a Hotchkiss or Lewis and the pilot seated behind. The usual engine was the 160 hp Renault V 8. The F.41 had a shorter span, less powerful Renault engine and reduced performance. The F.40 and 41 were used in large numbers by the Aviation Militaire, equipping 47 escadrilles on the Western Front and in Macedonia. Even in 1916 they were no match for enemy scouts, and many were lost. By 1917, they were used mainly by night, and continued in use until the Bre.XIV became available in numbers late in that year.
A few F.40s (F.40P) were armed with Le Prieu rockets and used against balloons.
F.40
Engine: Renault, 130 hp
Span: 17.60 m (57 ft 10 in)
Length: 9.25 m (30 ft 4 in)
Gross weight: 1120 kg (2470 lb)
Maximum speed: 135 km/h (84 mph)
Farman F.30
Most of the F.30 were built under licence in Russia, though the French Aviation Militaire may also have used small numbers of the F.30B 2 type (B 2=bomber, two seats) with the 260 hp Canton Unne (Salmson) radial. The Russian model usually had the 160 hp version of this engine.
