Well friends, inspired by the work of our friend Gary (aka Rata) again, I started a series of French non-military subjects drawn by Monseiur E and Le Criquet at 1/100 scale. These models are incredible, free and generally cover a fascinating topic: the other era of French civil aviation, which had a great influence on the genesis of many airlines in Latin America through the Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, where one of my favorite writers flew and landed, including here in Porto Alegre (we are talking about St Exupéry).
The first model to be shown is from Monseiur E, it is the Farman F-190 in 1/100 scale with construction number 38 registration F-AJLL, belonging to the company Air Union Ligne D'Orient. This aircraft was involved, in addition to setting distance records in Indochia and flights over unexplored territories, in charting a commercial route through the then French colony of the Far East at the end of the 1920s. I recently read a book about St Exupéry's period at Aeropostale and in it there is a chapter that on some of these flights he would have taken part as a guest, so perhaps he flew on the F-AJLL.
The Farman F.190 was a utility aircraft built in France in the 1920s and 1930s. It was a high-wing, strut-braced monoplane of conventional configuration with a fully enclosed cabin and fixed, tailskid undercarriage. Popular both as a private aircraft and in the air taxi role, some 30 examples were also operated by airlines in France and elsewhere in Europe. Fifteen of these joined Air France's fleet in 1933 from the fleets of the smaller airlines it had absorbed. A dedicated air ambulance version was built as the F.197S (for "Sanitaire") with provision for two litters and an attendant. In 1932, a version with a slightly enlarged cabin, revised tail fin, and four-blade propeller entered production as the Farman F.390.
A few saw military use in the Spanish Civil War, with the Armeé d'l' Air in Africa and a specialized reconnaissance variant manufactured especially for Venezuela (F-195). As was common in French designs of the 20s and 30s, the project could be equipped with a huge variety of engines. However the majority of those produced were the 190 model as shown in my model. The F-AJLL has this unique color scheme painted entirely in orange so that in case of a crash or crash landing it will be easily located in the forest of Vietnam.
11-07-2024, 09:00 PM
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