The SAB-SEMA 10 was a single-engine advanced trainer, designed and built in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

as the SEMA 10, in the 1930s. It failed to win a French production contract and only one was built. Re-engined, modified and redesignated SAB-SEMA 12, it served with the

Spanish Republican Air Force The Spanish Republican Air Force was the air arm of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939. Initially divided into two branches: Military Aeronautics ('' Aeronáutica M ...

at the beginning of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

Design and development

The SAB-SEMA 10 was designed by the ''Societé d'Etudes de Materiel d'Aviation'' (SEMA) and built by the ''Société Aérienne Bordelaise'' (SAB) to compete for a 1933 French government contract for an intermediate and advanced military trainer. It was a conventional

biplane 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 ...

, metal framed and fabric covered, powered by a 240 hp (180 kW) Lorraine 7Mc Mizar seven-cylinder radial engine. Instructor and pupil occupied open tandem cockpits. The SAB-SEMA 10 failed to gain a production contract when the competition was won by the

Romano R.82 The Romano R-82 was a two-seat intermediate and aerobatic trainer designed by Etienne Romano with production aircraft built by Chantiers aéronavals Étienne Romano. Design and development The prototype Romano R-80.01 was a private venture de ...

. It was then re-engined with a more powerful 300 hp (224 kW)

Lorraine 9Na Algol The Lorraine 9N Algol was a French 9-cylinder radial aeroengine built and used in the 1930s. It was rated at up to , but more usually in the range. Design and development The Algol was a conventionally laid out radial engine, with nine cylind ...

nine-cylinder radial with a

Townend ring A Townend ring is a narrow- chord cowling ring fitted around the cylinders of an aircraft radial engine to reduce drag and improve cooling. Development The Townend ring was the invention of Dr. Hubert Townend of the British National Physica ...

cowling A cowling is the removable covering of a vehicle's engine, most often found on automobiles, motorcycles, airplanes, and on outboard boat motors. On airplanes, cowlings are used to reduce drag and to cool the engine. On boats, cowlings are a cove ...

. At the same time wing and tail modifications were made and the aircraft redesignated the SAB-SEMA 12. This was a single-bay biplane with N-form

interplane 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. The lower wing had a smaller chord than the upper one but both carried

ailerons An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in Flight dynamics, roll (or ...

, externally connected. 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 ...

was flat sided and the tailplane was mounted on top of it. The

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 ...

was tall and the

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 ...

extended to the bottom of the fuselage, moving between separate

elevators An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They are ...

. It had a

conventional undercarriage Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...

with mainwheels in spats.

Operational history

In October 1936 the SAB-SEMA 12 was sold to the

for use as a trainer for military pilots in the

. It was based at the

Los Alcázares Los Alcázares () is a municipality and a coastal spa town and former fishing village on the western side of the Mar Menor in the autonomous community and province of Murcia, southeastern Spain. The Mar Menor (little sea) belongs to three other ...

flying school in

Murcia Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...

Variants

;SAB-SEMA 10 *Competitor for trainer contract, with

Lorraine 7M Mizar The Lorraine 7M Mizar, also called the Lorraine 240CV Mizar, was a seven-cylinder air-cooled radial engine designed and built in France during the 1920s and 1930s. Nominal power was given as at 1500rpm (maximum continuous power), with a maximum ...

engine. ;SAB-SEMA 12 *Modified SAB-SEMA 10 with

engine and wing and tail modifications.

Operators

; *

Specifications (SAB-SEMA-12)

References