During the first half of 1917, Robert and Leon Morane, and Raymond Saulnier presented their newest fighter aircraft, the Morane Saulnier A-1 to the French military for review. It was favorably accepted and was produced in large numbers. Despite the fact that the Morane's flight characteristics were well liked by many pilots, the duration of its active service was limited to a mere three months. It was withdrawn from combat as a result of alleged structural failures and reliability problems with the 160 hp Gnome engine. Many remaining aircraft of this type were refitted with smaller, more reliable powerplants and used as advanced trainers for the duration of the war, and afterwards as well. http://www.oldrhinebeck.org/collection/airplanes/Morane Saulnier A-I.htm
Some 1200 Morane-Saulnier AI monoplanes were produced, but only one unit was fully equipped with the type: Escadrille 156, which operated them from January to March 1918. Several other units had one or two of the machines. The armed variants were designated MS 27 C-1 (one Vickers gun) and MS 29 C-1 (two Vickers guns), while the training version was the MS 30 E-1. 51 AIs were purchased by the American Expeditionary Force as pursuit trainers. After the War, several were registered as civilian aircraft, and one, piloted by Messrs Fronval and Joyce, was looped 1111 consecutive times! Gareth
I've read this before, but thinking about it: are we sure? 1111 loops would take a very long time. It would be an enormous feat of endurance for the crew: a decent loop is not just a matter of hauling back on the stick; if you lose concentration you would end up in an inverted spin or spiral dive. I know the g-forces in a loop aren't that high but you would get disorientated very quickly. Any idea of the original source of this? Adrian
Adrian It was in the reputable Fighter Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War by W M Lamberton. I trust the book on most things, but perhaps this is an error. According to the archives of Flight M Fronval's record was 962 continuous loops in 3hrs 52 min while flying a Morane-Saulnier AI with a Le Rhone engine at Villacoublay on 26 May 1920. Perhaps with just a slight touch of Francophobia, the journal described it as a 'useless record'. Cheers Gareth
