| S.61 | |
|---|---|
| Role | Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Blériot, and CWL/PZL under licence |
| Designer | André Herbémont |
| First flight | 6 November 1923 |
| Primary users | Polish Air Force Romanian Air Force |
| Number built | ca. 350, plus 30 built under licence in Poland |
The Blériot-SPAD S.61 was a French fighter aircraft developed in 1923. Designed by André Herbémont, the S.61 was a conventional biplane, abandoning the swept upper wing used by Herbémont in several previous designs. The prototype S.61 was evaluated by the French Air Force alongside the S.51 as a potential new fighter, but like its stablemate, was rejected. The Polish Air Force (which had also purchased the S.51) was impressed enough to order 250, as well as purchase licences for local production. The Romanian Air Force also ordered 100 aircraft.
Apart from their military service, S.61s were used in France for racing and record-setting attempts. On 25 June 1925, Pelletier d'Oisy won the cross-country Coupe Michelin in an S.61, and another of the type won the 1927 race and was placed second in the 1929 race. An S.61 was also used by Jean Callizo in his fraudulent attempt on the world altitude record that saw him stripped of his Légion d'Honneur. A Polish S.61 placed second in the Capitaine Echard race at the Zürich aerial meeting in 1927.
About 30 were built in Poland, by the CWL (Centralne Warszaty Lotnicze - Central Aviation Workshops, a predecessor of PZL). All S.61 (known in Poland simply as Spad S.61) had very bad opinion in Poland - there were numerous crashes, mostly due to weak wing mounting. In 1926-1931 26 pilots were killed on S.61[1].
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
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