The Caudron C.140 was a French tandem

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

sesquiplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a ...

designed in 1928 as a combination of liaison aircraft and observer and gunnery trainer.

Design and development

The C.140 was designed in the first half of 1928 to meet a French military call for a multi-purpose aircraft that could train pilots and gunners in gunnery and in photographic and radio reconnaissance work as well as fulfilling a liaison role. It was a

single bay A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

, markedly unequal span biplane or sesquiplane. The upper wing was in three parts, with easily detachable, rectangular plan outer panels joined to a central panel which included a broad cut-out over the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

to enhance the upward view from the tandem cockpits. The lower wings were similar but with the lower fuselage in place of the central panel. Both wings had two drawn, rectangular section

duralumin Duralumin (also called duraluminum, duraluminium, duralum, dural(l)ium, or dural) is a trade name for one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The term is a combination of '' Dürener'' and ''aluminium''. Its use as a tra ...

tube spars drilled for lightness, wooden

rib In vertebrate anatomy, ribs ( la, costae) are the long curved bones which form the rib cage, part of the axial skeleton. In most tetrapods, ribs surround the chest, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the ches ...

s and round duralumin tube internal drag struts. Parallel pairs of outward-leaning interplane struts, again of round tubular duralumin, linked upper and lower wing spars aided by wire bracing. Similar parallel pairs of outward-leaning

cabane strut In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of strut, which act in ...

s joined the central panel to the upper fuselage

longerons In engineering, a longeron and stringer is the load-bearing component of a framework. The term is commonly used in connection with aircraft fuselages and automobile chassis. Longerons are used in conjunction with stringers to form structural ...

. There was no stagger or dihedral. The C.140 was powered by an uncowled Salmson 9AB nine cylinder

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

, mounted on duralumin bearers. In the case of a fire, the fuel tank could be jettisoned in flight. Behind the engine the fuselage was of mixed construction and a deep oval in section, with multiple longitudinal members. The pilot sat in the forward, open cockpit under the rear of the wing with the observer was close behind, about half way to the tail where there was a shallow triangular

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

with a parallel edged

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

with a tip continuing the upper fin line and a lower edge reaching to the keel. The small

tailplane A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplane ...

was rectangular in plan and carried larger area, overhanging

balanced In telecommunications and professional audio, a balanced line or balanced signal pair is a circuit consisting of two conductors of the same type, both of which have equal impedances along their lengths and equal impedances to ground and to other ...

elevator An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...

s with a small cut-out for rudder movement. The C.140 had a tail skid undercarriage with its main wheels on a single axle, sprung to two sets of steel V-struts from the lower wing root. For gunnery training the pilot had a camera-gun and the observer a pair of Lewis machine guns. The observer also had a wide angle camera for photographic reconnaissance and radio equipment for immediate reporting. The C.140 was equipped for night flying. The C.140 first flew in the summer of 1928. It did not go into series production.

Specifications

References

{{Caudron aircraft C.140 Sesquiplanes 1920s French military utility aircraft