ww2 French Naval Aviation

The CAMS-37 (for Chantiers Aéro-Maritimes de la Seine) was the third production model of a company which from its inception in 1920 only saw limited success. Partly derived from the CAMS-33, the model 37 coincided with a change of direction, including the new chief designer Maurice Hurel, from 1923. He worked from a new design … Read more

Aéronautique Navale: 17 built total 1936 The Potez 452 was designed as a shipboard flying boat for observation on board cruisers and battleships of the Marine Nationale, in service from 1936 to 1944 in the Marine Nationale, notably to replace the loire-Gourdou Lesseure floaplanes of the 1920s. It saw service frontline until 1938-39 and was … Read more

Aéronautique Navale: 40 built total Few aircraft manufacturers have been as inextricably linked to the history of carrier-based aviation as was Levasseur in France. He focused his effort to provide the sole aircraft carrier Béarn, in service from 1927 to 1939. The “French Grumman” had largely fallen into oblivion despite some remarkable aircraft using purely … Read more

Hanriot HD.2 (1917) Naval Fighter, Marine Nationale/USN The Hanriot HD.2 was a French biplane floatplane fighter, a derivative of the Hanriot HD.1 in the late First World War that. Initially it was developed for testing the use of aircraft from warships. The idea of an on-board interceptor to deal with enemy aircraft and point defence … Read more

Aéronautique Navale: 129 built total The best French floatplane ? A Laté 298 dropping its payload during exercises A navy specification was issued in 1933 to replace the Latécoère 290 torpedo seaplane in service from 1934 in the French naval aviation (“Aéronavale”). This request concerned a new torpedo bomber and Latécoère proposed a derivative of … Read more

Aéronautique Navale: 125 built total 1934-1941 The Main French Catapulted Observation Floatplane The Loire 130 came from a request in 1933 from the French Navy for a reconnaissance seaplane that could also be used aboard French battleships and cruisers. Chosen in 1936 against five competitors, the Loire 130’s performance was considered good and production orders … Read more

Aéronautique Navale: 19 built total The French Naval Fighter A forgotten model, this French naval aircraft was the first dedicated naval fighter, also usable for reconnaissance and primarily intended to serve on the Commandant Teste. The Loire 210 was a French single-seat catapult-launched fighter seaplane designed and built by Loire Aviation for the French Navy. … Read more

Gourdou-Leseurre GL-800 HY series (1926-1938) Aéronautique Navale. L2, L3, GL-810, 811, 812, 813, 830, 831, 832 HY (108 built) The French Catapulted Plane 1930-40 The interwar saw the development of catapulted aviation throughout Europe and France was no exception. After signing the Washington Treaty, France was forbidden to built more battleships and concentrated on cruisers: … Read more