On this day, 92 years ago, the Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.10 (a.k.a. Høver M.F.10) made its first flight. The Norwegian aircraft manufacturer based the M.F.10 on its predecessor the M.F.9.
A Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.10 in flight
While the M.F.9 was a single-seat aircraft the M.F.10 had a second (open) cockpit. Although the prototype was largely made of wood the production aircraft had a tubular structure and were powered by a radial engine. The first aircraft was powered by a 160 HP Mercedes engine, later replaced by a Hispano Suiza which gave the aircraft a top speed of ~100 knots and gave it enough power to climb to 6500 feet in under 8 minutes.
The aircraft was intended as a training aircraft, but was built so strong that it was capable of aerobatics and even dive-bombing!
The prototype went into service with the Norwegian Airforce once test flights were completed. There was only a requirement for three aircraft, so only two production aircraft were built. They were powered by Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah engines. Also, several aerodynamic improvements were made on the production aircraft in comparison to the prototype. The main one being a new rudder design that greatly improved handling characteristics. An Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah engine In 1939 one of the production
aircraft crashed and a new aircraft was built to keep the fleet at 3 aircraft. That same year the original prototype had the wooden hull structure replaced by a steel tubular one. A total of 4 aircraft were produced. During the start of the Second World War, the aircraft were flown to safety were 2 of the aircraft were disarmed by their crew before they fell in the hands of the invading forces. The third aircraft was destroyed by its crew on the 10th of April 1940. Ending nearly 11 years of Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.10 operations
Some specifications of the M.F.10
Crew: Two, pilot and instructor
Length: 8.735 m (26 ft 3 in)
Wingspan: 12.50 m (40 ft 8 in)
Height: 3.50 m (11 ft 2 in)
Wing area: 34.0 m2 (366 sq ft)
Empty weight: 1,040 kg (2,293 lb)
Gross weight: 1,415 kg (3,120 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah IIA , 224 kW (300 hp)
Maximum speed: 200 km/h (120 mph, 110 kn)
Cruise speed: 135 km/h (84 mph, 73 kn)
Range: 450 km (280 mi, 240 nmi)
Rate of climb: 5.55 m/s (1,093 ft/min)
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