In October 1917 Nieuport began construction of a prototype monoplane fighter known as the Nieuport Madon, a strut braced monoplane.[1]
Design and development
The tapered shoulder mounted wing was supported by lift struts attached to the landing gear, which featured an additional constant chord lifting area between the wheels. A section of wing root was cut away to improve downward visibility.[1] The fuselage and wing were fabric covered. It was armed with two synchronized 7.7 mm (0.30 in) Vickers machine guns.[2]
The first prototype made its first flight in early January 1918 while powered by a 110 kW (150 hp) Gnome Monosoupape 9Nrotary engine,[1] the same engine used in the Nieuport 28.
The second prototype first flew in late January 1918 with the slightly more powerful 130 kW (180 hp) Le Rhône 9R.[2] This aircraft had a revised wing whose inboard trailing edges were cut away and it had an elongated fin. On 1 May 1918 the second prototype was rejected in favour of the Monosoupape powered model.[1]
^ abcdefGreen, W.; Swanborough, G. (2001). The Complete Book of Fighters. Salamander Books. ISBN978-1840652697.
^ abBruno Parmentier (7 March 2006). "Nieuport Madon". aviafrance.com. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
Bibliography
Bruce, J.M. (1988). Nieuport Aircraft of World War One - Vintage Warbirds No 10. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN0-85368-934-2.
Davilla, Dr. James J. & Soltan, Arthur M. (1997). French Aircraft of the First World War. Stratford, Connecticut: Flying Machines Press. ISBN0-9637110-4-0.
Green, William & Swanborough, Gordon (2001) [1994]. The Complete Book of Fighters: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Every Fighter Built and Flown (Revised and Updated ed.). London: Salamander Books. ISBN1-84065-269-1.
Owers, Colin A. (2020). French Warplanes of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes. Gret War Aviation Centennial Series (43). Vol. 1: Fighters. n.p.: Aeronaut Books. ISBN978-1-935881-93-3.