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The Salmson 2 A.2, (often shortened to Salmson 2) was a French
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. Whil ...
reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmishers ...
aircraft developed and produced by
Salmson Salmson is a French engineering company. Initially a pump manufacturer, it turned to automobile and aeroplane manufacturing in the 20th century, returning to pump manufacturing in the 1960s, and re-expanded to a number of products and services ...
to a 1916 requirement. Along with the
Breguet 14 Breguet or Bréguet may refer to: * Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer **Abraham-Louis Breguet Abraham-Louis Breguet (10 January 1747 – 17 September 1823), born in Neuchâtel, then a Prussian principality, was a horologist who made ma ...
, it was the main reconnaissance aircraft of the French army in 1918 and was also used by
American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...
aviation units. At the end of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, one-third of French reconnaissance aircraft were Salmson 2s.


Design and development

During the First World War, the Salmson factory built aircraft engines, generally 9- and later 18-cylinder water-cooled radial engines developed from the
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internatio ...
Canton-Unné design, an early stationary radial engine design used for military aircraft. The company's first aircraft was the Salmson-Moineau S.M.1, an unusual three-seat reconnaissance biplane with twin propellers gear-driven from a single Salmson engine mounted sideways in the fuselage but it was not successful although it saw limited production. The Salmson 2 came from a requirement to replace the
Sopwith 1½ Strutter The Sopwith Strutter was a British single- or two-seat multi-role biplane aircraft of the First World War.Lake 2002, p. 40. It was the first British two-seat tractor fighter and the first British aircraft to enter service with a synchronised ...
and Dorand A.R. reconnaissance aircraft in the A.2 (tactical reconnaissance) role. Salmson had built the 1½ Strutter under license, and the Salmson 2, while an original design, had more in common with the Sopwith than to the Salmson-Moineau. The aircraft was of conventional construction with a two-bay biplane configuration, powered by the company's own Salmson 9Z water-cooled radial engine. Some minor control problems were quickly resolved in early testing, but the main defect of the Salmson 2, shared with the contemporary Airco DH.4, was that the pilot and gunner were widely separated, making communication difficult. Production was ordered after trials on 29 April 1917, and deliveries were underway by October of that year. Around 3,200 Salmson 2s were built in France, 2,200 by Salmson and the remainder by the Latécoère,
Hanriot Aéroplanes Hanriot et Cie. or simply 'Hanriot' was a French aircraft manufacturer with roots going back to the beginning of aviation. Founded by René Hanriot in 1910 as ''The Monoplans Hanriot Company Ltd.'' the company survived in differen ...
, and Desfontaines, companies. Some of these were Salmson 2 E.2 dual control advanced training (''Ecole'') aircraft.


Variants

Developments of the Salmson 2 included: * Salmson 2 A.2 standard model. * Salmson 2 E.2 dual control advanced training aircraft. * Salmson 4 Ab.2 was an enlarged version fitted with armour to meet the ground attack role. Production in 1918 was limited, and was cancelled at the end of the war. * Salmson 5 A.2 was a modified Salmson 2, with no production. * Salmson 7 A.2 was a modified Salmson 2. The primary change was that the pilot and gunner were seated back-to-back in a single cockpit. Large scale production was planned, but was cancelled with the end of the war. * Salmson Limousine ex-military Salmson 2s converted into enclosed civilian passenger aircraft after the First World War. * Salmson 2 Berline ex-military Salmson 2s converted into open cockpit civilian passenger aircraft after the First World War. * Kawasaki Army ''Otsu-1'' (乙-1) Reconnaissance Aircraft was a Japanese licence-built Salmson 2 A.2.


Operational history

In addition to its service with the French army, the Salmson 2 served during the First World War with
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
air units. Some 700 were purchased, and were generally successful. Postwar Salmson 2s were purchased by
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
, and remained in service until 1924. Others were transferred to
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
, but were withdrawn by 1920, and replaced by Bristol F.2Bs.
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
undertook licensed production as the Army Type ''Otsu 1'', also known as the Kawasaki-Salmson. The number of aircraft built in Japan is unclear; 300 were built by Kawasaki, and the same quantity by the
Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
's
Tokorozawa is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 344,194 in 163,675 households and a population density of 4800 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Tokorozawa is located in the ce ...
supply depot, although the total number of aircraft produced may have been as high as 1,000. After First World War, the Salmson 2 A.2 produced by Latécoère were the first aircraft used by French pioneering airmail company '' Aéropostale''.


Military operators


Wartime

; *
French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army ...
; *
American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...


Post-war

; *
Belgian Air Force The Belgian Air Component ( nl, Luchtcomponent, french: Composante air) is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force ( nl, Belgische Luchtmacht; french: Force aérienne belg ...
- One aircraft only. ; *
Czechoslovak Air Force The Czechoslovak Air Force (''Československé letectvo'') or the Czechoslovak Army Air Force (''Československé vojenské letectvo'') was the air force branch of the Czechoslovak Army formed in October 1918. The armed forces of Czechoslovakia ce ...
; *
Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
; *
Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...
- One aircraft only. ; *
Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mi ...
; *
Spanish Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = Spanish Air and Space Force Anthem , mascot = , anniversaries = 10 December , equipment ...
- One aircraft only. ; / *
Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...


Aircraft on display

* Kakamigahara Aerospace Museum,
Kakamigahara, Gifu is a city located in southern Gifu Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,225, and a population density of 1700 persons per km2, in 59,736 households. The total area of the city was . Situated in the northern part ...
(replica) * '' L'Envol des Pionniers'',
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pari ...
, France (replica) File:かかみがはら航空宇宙科学博物館 (21174615321).jpg, Replica Salmson 2 A.2/Otsu 1 in Japan. File:Envol des pionniers.jpg, Replica Salmson 2 A.2 in Toulouse, France.


Specifications


References


Further reading

* {{Authority control 1910s French military reconnaissance aircraft Biplanes Salmson aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1917