Top speed 180 km/h Length 14 m | Wingspan 25 m Manufacturer Blériot Aéronautique | |
The Blériot 115 (or Bl-115) was a French biplane airliner of the 1920s, best remembered for the part it played in the French exploration of Africa. For its day, it was a large aircraft, mounting one pair of engines on the upper wing and one pair on the lower. First flying on 9 May 1923, the prototype crashed on June 23, killing its pilot, Jean Casale.
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A refined version of the aircraft, the 115-bis was flown in June 1924.
Operational; history
The third and fourth machines built (christened Roland Garros and Jean Casale) were used in Colonel de Goÿs' attempts to create air routes to Africa. Commanded by Jean Dagnaux, they departed France on January 18, 1925, they arrived in Colomb-Béchar, Algeria, on January 28. The expedition ended in disaster on February 7 in Niamey, Niger when the Jean Casale crashed on take-off, killing its radio operator and seriously injuring its two pilots, including Dagnaux. They had covered 4,137 km (2,571 mi).
Variants
Specifications (115)
General characteristics
Performance