Caudron C.440
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| C.440 Goéland | |
|---|---|
| Type | Civil utility aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Caudron |
| Designed by | Marcel Riffard |
| Maiden flight | 1934 |
| Number built | 1,702 |
The Caudron C.440 Goéland ("seagull") was a six-seat twin-engine utility aircraft developed in France in the mid 1930s. It was a conventionally-configured low-wing cantilever monoplane with tailwheel undercarriage. The main undercarriage units retracted into the engine nacelles. Construction was wooden throughout, with wooden skinning everywhere but the forward and upper fuselage sections, which were skinned in metal. As usually configured, the cabin seated six passengers with baggage compartments fore and aft, and a toilet aft.
Apart from private buyers, the C.440 was also bought by the Armée de l'Air, Aéronavale, Air France, and Aeroput. Production of the C.440 and its subtypes continued until the outbreak of war, at which time many C.440s were impressed into military service. Following the fall of France, some were operated by the German Luftwaffe and Lufthansa.
Production was restarted briefly following the war, with post-war operators including SABENA, Aigle Azur, and Compagnie Air Transport (CAT).
[edit] Variants
- C.440 - prototype (3 built)
- C.441 - version with Renault 6Q-01 engine and dihedral added to outer wing panel (4 built)
- C.444 - first version with counter-rotating propellers, adopted on all later versions (17 built)
- C.445 - similar to C.444, but dihedral of outer wing panels increased (114 built)
- C.445/1 - 2 built
- C.445/2 - 3 built
- C.445/3 - postwar production version (510 built)
- C.445M - militarised version (404 built)
- C.445R - long-range version (1 built)
- C.446 Super Goéland - 1 built
- C.447 - air ambulance version (31 built)
- C.448 - version with supercharged engines (7 built)
- C.449 - final production version (349 built, including subtypes below)
- C.449/1
- C.449/2
- C.449/3
- C.449/4 - photographic survey version
- C.449/5
[edit] Specifications (C.445M)
General characteristics
- Crew: Two pilots
- Length: 13.68 m (44 ft 11 in)
- Wingspan: 17.59 m (57 ft 9 in)
- Height: 3.40 m (11 ft 2 in)
- Wing area: 42.0 m² (452 ft²)
- Empty weight: 2,292 kg (5,053 lb)
- Gross weight: 3,500 kg (7,716 lb)
- Powerplant: 2 × Renault 6Q, 220 kW (164 hp) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 300 km/h (186 mph)
- Range: 1,000 km (620 miles)
- Service ceiling: 7,000 m (22,965 ft)
- Rate of climb: 3.3 m/s (650 ft/min)
[edit] References
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions, 240.
- World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing, File 891 Sheet 15.
[edit] See also
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