Evening All,
I have completed two more models of aircraft which took part in the July 1st 1911 Gordon Bennett air race at Eastchurch: The Nieuport ii. The pilots were E DeNieuport in machine no 11 and M. Chevalier in no 12.
The Nieuport II was pretty much like other machines of this period in that it could be modified or changed very quickly, so that later designations become blurred and difficult to apply. The horizontal tail surfaces varied considerably, and some aircraft had small cut-outs on the leading edge next to the fuselage, as on Chevalier's machine. The engines fitted also varied: Chevalier flew with a 28hp two cylinder flat engine, designed by DeNieuport:
Other machines were fitted with rotary engines, including 50 and 70 hp Gnome. DeNieuport's machine had a 70 hp Gnome rotary and so the nose was altered to accommodate a much larger engine:
In fact, apart from the undercarriage, E. DeNieuport's machine looked almost the same as a Nieuport IV type, one of which was flown by the American C. Weyman in the race.
Chevalier actually flew in two machines on the day, but neither completed the 24 laps, (94 miles), of the course, so he was not placed:
DeNieuport's machine was better powered but against the 100 hp machines of Weyman and Leblanc he was also too slow and only gained third place:
The differences between the two machines was most marked in the nose and engines:
Thanks for looking.
Stephen.
