Blériot-SPAD S.33

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S.33
Type Airliner
Manufacturer Blériot
Maiden flight December 12 1920
Primary users Franco-Roumaine, CMA
SNETA
Number built ca. 41

The Bleriot-SPAD S.33 was a small French airliner developed soon after World War I. A great success, the S.33 dominated its field throughout the 1920s, initially on CMA's Paris-London route, and later on continental routes serviced by Franco-Roumaine. The aircraft was a biplane of conventional configuration whose design owed much to the Blériot company's then-recent fighter designs such as the S.20. Four passengers could be accommodated in an enclosed cabin within the fuselage, and a fifth passenger could ride in the open cockpit beside the pilot.

One interesting development was a sole example converted by CIDNA to act as a blind-flying trainer. A set of controls was installed inside the passenger cabin, the windows of which had been blacked out.


[edit] Variants

  • S.33 -Single-engined passenger transport aircraft, powered by a 260-hp (194-kW) Salmson CM.9 radial piston engine. 41 aircraft built.
  • S.46 - Improved version of the S.33, powered by a 370-hp (276-kW) Lorraine-Dietrich 12Da engine. 38 built and sold to the Franco-Roumaine Company.
  • S.48 - A single S.33 temporarily re-engined in 1925, fitted with a 275-hp (205-kW) Lorraine engine.
  • S.50 - Luxury version with passenger cabin enlarged to six seats, fitted with a 300-hp (224-kW) Hispano-Suiza 8Fb engine. Three were converted from S.33s, plus two all-new aircraft.

[edit] Operators

Flag of France France
  • Franco-Roumaine (20 aircraft)
  • CMA (15 aircraft)
Flag of Belgium Belgium

[edit] Specifications (S.33)

General characteristics

  • Crew: one pilot
  • Capacity: 5 passengers
  • Length: 9.08 m (29 ft 10 in)
  • Wingspan: 11.66 m (38 ft 3 in)
  • Height: 3.20 m (10 ft 6 in)
  • Wing area: 42.2 m² (454 ft²)
  • Empty weight: 1,050 kg (2,315 lb)
  • Gross weight: 2,062 kg (4,546 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Salmson CM.9 radial engine, 194 kW (260 hp)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 180 km/h (112 mph)
  • Cruising speed: 160 km/h (100 mph)
  • Range: 1,060 km (670 miles)
  • Service ceiling: 3,800 m (12,470 ft)

[edit] References

  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions, 163. 
  • World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing, File 890 Sheet 42. 
  • aviafrance.com


[edit] See also

Related development S.46 - S.56 - S.66 - S.86 - S.116 - S.126

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