Close-up view of Henri Farman seated at the controls of one of his biplanes circa

Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines. ...

company founded and run by the brothers

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'stro ...

, Henri, and

Maurice Farman Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer. Biography Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers Richard a ...

. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French nationalization and rationalization of its aeronautical industry, Farman's assets were assigned to the ''Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Centre'' (SNCAC). In 1941 the Farman brothers reestablished the firm as the "''Société Anonyme des Usines Farman''" (SAUF), but only three years later it was absorbed by Sud-Ouest. Maurice's son, Marcel Farman, reestablished the SAUF in 1952, but his effort proved unsuccessful and the firm was dissolved in 1956. The Farman brothers designed and built more than 200 types of aircraft between 1908 and 1941. They also built cars until 1931 and boats until 1930.

Background

In 1907, Henri Farman bought his first aircraft from Gabriel Voisin and soon began to improve the design of the aircraft; as a result it was known as either Farman I or Voisin-Farman I. In 1908, after further modifications which included re-covering it with Continental rubberized fabric and the addition of side-curtains, the aircraft was re-designated Farman I-bis. Ailerons were fitted after Wilbur Wright's flying demonstration at

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le ...

in August 1908. A second aircraft, to be called Farman II, was built by the Voisin brothers incorporating design refinements to Farman's specification. Voisin sold this aircraft to J.T.C. Moore-Brabazon, who exported it to England, where it was renamed the ''Bird of Passage''. This episode angered Farman, who in early 1909 ended his association with Voisin and started building his own aircraft. Aircraft designed and built by Henri Farman had a HF prefix, while examples designed and built by his brother Maurice carried a MF prefix.

List of aeroplanes

Biplane Maurice Farman 7 Longhorn Preveza 1912

Farman F-430-Spanish Republican Air Force

* Farman III (1909) * Farman MF.7 Longhorn (1913) * Farman MF.11 Shorthorn (1913) * Farman HF.14 - two-seat floatplane (1912) * Farman HF.20 - reconnaissance biplane (1913) *

Farman HF.30 The Henry Farman HF.30 was a two-seat military biplane designed in France around 1915, which became a principal aircraft of the Imperial Russian Air Service during the First World War. Although it was widely used on the Eastern Front, and by th ...

- two-seat military biplane (1915) * Farman F.40 (1915) - single-engined reconnaissance aircraft * Farman F.30 - fighter biplane (1916) *

Farman F.31 The Farman F.31 was a French fighter prototype of the 1910s, the second foray into fighter design by Farman, a firm more usually associated with bombers. The project was short-lived, lasting only 3 months. Development The F.31 was a two-seat fig ...

- fighter prototype (1918) * Farman F.50 - biplane bomber (1918) * Farman F.60 Goliath bomber/airliner, development of the F.40 (1919) **Farman F.60 Torp - torpedo carrying floatplane version (1920s) *

Farman Moustique The Farman Moustique is a family of French monoplanes built by the Société des Aéroplanes Henry et Maurice Farman at Billancourt. Shortly after the end of World War I, Farman introduced a low powered single seat monoplane for sport and tou ...

- sports, touring aircraft (1919) *

Farman Sport The Farman FF 65 Sport was a French built light biplane, with a single engine and tandem seats, intended for sport and touring. First flown in 1919, it achieved modest sales at home and abroad in the early 1920s. Two unusual modifications produ ...

- sports, touring biplane (1919) *

Farman B.2 __NOTOC__ The Farman B.2 was a 1920s French biplane designed as a light day bomber. Only one was built. Development Farman Aviation Works designed and built in 1924 what was a bulky unequal span two-bay biplane for use as a day bomber. The pilo ...

- light day bomber biplane (1920s) * Farman BN.4 - long-range night bomber biplane (1922) *

Farman F.80 The Farman F.80 was a 1920s French biplane designed by Farman Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircr ...

- basic training biplane (1921) * Farman F.90 - passenger transport aircraft (1921) *

Farman F.110 __NOTOC__ The Farman F.110 was a French two-seat artillery observation biplane designed and built by the Farman Aviation Works. Development The F.110 was an effort by Farman to produce an artillery observation aircraft normally supplied to the Fr ...

- artillery observation biplane (1921) * Farman F.51 - maritime reconnaissance flying boat (1922) *

Farman F.120 The Farman F.120 and its derivatives were a family of multi-engine airliners and bombers of the 1920s built by the Farman Aviation Works in France. Design and development The Jabiru, which was named after a Latin American stork, was a fixed- ...

- 4-engined bomber/airliner (1923) * Farman F.140 Super Goliath - heavy night bomber (1924) * Farman A.2 - observation monoplane (1924) *

Farman F.130 The Farman F.130 was a 1920s French biplane designed by Farman as a long-range day bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching tor ...

- long-range night bomber (1925) * Farman F.170 Jabiru - single-engined airliner (1925) * Farman F.150 - day bomber biplane (1926) *

Farman F.160 __NOTOC__ The Farman F.160 was a heavy bomber aircraft developed in France in the late 1920s. It was essentially an attempt by Farman Aviation Works to modernise its tremendously successful F.60 Goliath design of the immediately postwar years. Th ...

- torpedo bomber floatplane (1928) *

Farman F.180 __NOTOC__ The Farman F.180 ''Oiseau Bleu'' (en: Bluebird) was a 1920s French biplane airliner. The F.180 was designed to fly non-stop between Paris and New York, but when the crossing attempt was cancelled three aircraft were built as luxury tran ...

- airliner biplane (1928) * Farman F.190 - civil utility aircraft (1928) *

Farman F.200 The Farman F.200 was a civil utility aircraft produced in France in the 1930s. Derived from the F.190, it featured a revised fuselage that did away with its predecessor's enclosed cabin. Instead, it was a parasol-wing monoplane with open cockpits ...

- civil utility aircraft (1929) * Farman F.230 - touring aircraft (1930) *

Farman F.250 The Farman F.250 was a small, four passenger single engine low cantilever wing airliner built in France in 1931. The single example built was bought by an airline but was little used, owing to stability issues. Design and development The Farman ...

- passenger transport aircraft (1931) * Farman F.280 - mail plane (1931) * Farman F.211 - day/night bomber aircraft (1932) * Farman F.220 - 4-engined high-wing heavy bomber (1932) * Farman F.1000, F.1001 & F.1002 single-engined, pressurised, high altitude research aircraft (1932-5) *

Farman F.1010 The Farman F.1010 was a small, low-wing, single-seat monoplane ordered by the French government in 1931 to test in flight a large-calibre cannon. This was mounted between the cylinder banks of an inverted V-8 engine A V8 engine is an eigh ...

- experimental cannon carrier aircraft (1933) *

Farman F.1020 The Farman F.1020 was an experimental aircraft built in France in 1933 to investigate the behaviour of a semi-circular wing fitted with unconventional controls. It had a short career and only one was constructed. Design The Farman F.1020 was b ...

- experimental aircraft (1933) * Farman F.270 - bomber/torpedo bomber floatplane version (1934) * Farman F.300 - airliner (1930) * Farman F.370 - single-seat racing aircraft (1933) * Farman F.380 - single-seat racing aircraft (1933) * Farman F.400 - four-seat cabin monoplane (1934) *

Farman F.420 The Farman F.420 was a twin engine monoplane, built in France in the mid-1930s to compete in a government contest for an aircraft capable of fulfilling bomber, fighter and reconnaissance roles. Two prototypes were constructed but no production f ...

- multi-role aircraft (1934) * Farman F.430 - light transport aircraft (1934) * Farman F.460 Alizé - training, touring aircraft (1930s) *

Farman F.480 Alizé The Farman F.480 Alizé was a single engine, two seat, parasol winged monoplane built in France in the mid-1930s. Designed as a tourer and trainer, all Alizés served as training aircraft for government ( Republican) forces during the Spanish ...

- training, touring aircraft (1936) * Farman NC.470 and NC.471 - six-seat trainer and coastal reconnaissance floatplane (1938) * Farman F.500 - two-seat trainer aircraft (1952)

Cars

The Farman firm designed and built a number of , including: * Farman 12 CV (1902) * (1919–1923) *

Farman A 6 B Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...

(1923–1927) * Farman NF (1927–1929) *

Farman NF 2 Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...

(1929–1931) Vintage Farman airboat

Boats

During the 1920s, Farman Aviation briefly dabbled in building airboats (known generally by the French term "hydroglisseurs"). Farman's boat-building followed directly from its aircraft experience. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

, Farman-built aircraft engines and propellers from Farman MF.7s were used to build airboats that were successfully used during the

Mesopotamian Campaign The Mesopotamian campaign was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the Allies represented by the British Empire, troops from Britain, Australia and the vast majority from British India, against the Central Po ...

fought by Britain and her colonial subjects against the forces of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

in Mesopotamia (modern day

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

). Following the success of these improvised airboats, Britain began ordering purpose-built airboats from Farman and Charles de Lambert's company for use on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Farman Aircraft began producing civilian airboats in the 1920s. Its first non-military airboat sailed in 1920, though its first civilian airboat for sale was ''Le Ricocheur'' (pictured at right), a closed-cabin prototype capable of carrying 12 passengers at speeds of up to . Farman marketed airboats for use as

water taxi A water taxi or a water bus is a watercraft used to provide public or private transport, usually, but not always, in an urban environment. Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or o ...

s and as light cargo vessels or

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and th ...

s for French colonial governments, particularly on the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annuall ...

and

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesfreeboards, and lacked a protective cage surrounding the propeller. Farman's airboats sold for 25,000 to 50,000

francs The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' ( King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th cent ...

depending on the model, a price that proved too steep for potential buyers; the company pulled out of the boat business by the end of the 1920s.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * Opdycke, Leonard E. ''French Aeroplanes Before the Great War'' Atglen, PA: Schiffer 1999

External links

A brief introduction about Farman, and links to most of their work
{{Defunct aircraft manufacturers of France Defunct aircraft manufacturers of France