The SNCASE SE-700 was a three-seat passenger

autogyro An autogyro (from Greek and , "self-turning"), also known as a ''gyroplane'', is a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift. Forward thrust is provided independently, by an engine-driven propeller. Whi ...

designed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Two were completed but only the first flew and the programme was soon abandoned.

Design and development

Design of the SE-700 began in 1939 but World War II delayed its completion and first flight until 25 May 1945. Compared with most autogyros of its time it had a very advanced appearance, with a sleek, streamlined

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 ...

, an enclosed central engine and a three blade

rotor Rotor may refer to: Science and technology Engineering *Rotor (electric), the non-stationary part of an alternator or electric motor, operating with a stationary element so called the stator * Helicopter rotor, the rotary wing(s) of a rotorcraft ...

on a straight edged,

aerofoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is the cross-sectional shape of an object whose motion through a gas is capable of generating significant lift, such as a wing, a sail, or the blades of propeller, rotor, or turbine. ...

section pylon. The enclosed cabin, which seated three, was ahead of the engine and behind a nose which tapered smoothly into the

spinner Technology *Spinner (aeronautics), the aerodynamic cone at the hub of an aircraft propeller * Spinner (cell culture), laboratory equipment for cultivating plant or mammalian cells * Spinner (computing), a graphical widget in a GUI * Spinner (MIT Med ...

of the two blade

propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...

. At the rear of the short fuselage was a low aspect ratio

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 ...

, externally braced to the fuselage underside and fitted with

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. It carried swept, oval tail

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 ...

s taken from the SNCASE SE-100 twin engine fighter at its tips, which were externally braced to the tailplane underside. The fins were fitted with

rudders 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 air or water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw a ...

and, more unusually, wheels; the SE.100 had fin mounted tail wheels but the SE.700 had

tricycle gear Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has a single nose wheel in the front, and two or more main wheels slightly aft of the center of gravity. Tricycle g ...

so these became the main wheels, tidily faired into the bottom of the fins. Its nosewheel retracted backwards, placing the wheel partly in the fuselage and its leg within a small ventral fairing. The first prototype, piloted by Stakenburg, flew with a

Renault 6Q The Renault 6Q, also called the Renault Bengali 6, is an air-cooled six-cylinder, inverted piston engine, producing about continuous power. It was designed and built in France and produced for more than ten years after its homologation in 19 ...

-01 six cylinder, inverted air-cooled inline engine. It proved difficult to control and crashed after a few test flights. Though the damage was not great, the SE-700 was not repaired and SNCASE decided instead to complete a more refined second prototype, the SE-701 or SE-700A. This was fitted with a more powerful

Béarn 6D The Béarn (; ; oc, Bearn or ''Biarn''; eu, Bearno or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Bas ...

-07 engine, another six cylinder, inverted air-cooled inline. However, the company then decided that the post-war market for small commuter autogyros was too limited to proceed, so the SE-700A did not fly and a proposed production series of four SE-702s or 700Bs were not begun.

Specifications (SE-700A)

References

{{SNCASE aircraft SE-0700 Single-engined tractor autogyros SNCASE SE-0700 Aircraft first flown in 1945 Autogyros