The Dewoitine D.430 was a three-engine,

high-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing config ...

monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...

designed for

policing The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citizen ...

and other roles in

France's colonies The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas Colony, colonies, protectorates, and League of Nations mandate, mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "Firs ...

. It did not go into production.

Design

In 1930 the ''Direction Générale Technique'' issued a programme for an aircraft to operate in the French Colonies. It was to have three Lorraine 9N Algol engines, an all-metal structure and to be capable of reconnaissance, observation, policing and bombing as well as medical evacuations or general transport. The Dewoitine D.430 was one of nine prototypes built for this programme. It was an all-metal aircraft constructed and skinned largely from

duralumin Duralumin (also called duraluminum, duraluminium, duralum, dural(l)ium, or dural) is a trade name for one of the earliest types of age hardening, age-hardenable aluminium–copper alloys. The term is a combination of ''Düren'' and ''aluminium'' ...

. Its five-part

high wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a r ...

was straight-tapered to elliptical tips and had an

aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a geometry, geometric shape is the ratio of its sizes in different dimensions. For example, the aspect ratio of a rectangle is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side—the ratio of width to height, when the rectangl ...

of over 9, high for the time. It had a single spar at one third chord which tapered uniformly in depth outwards along the span and was reinforced with

trellising. The

leading edge The leading edge is the part of the wing that first contacts the air;Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. alternatively it is the foremost edge of an airfoil sectio ...

formed a subsidiary box spar, and the

trailing edge The trailing edge of an aerodynamic surface such as a wing is its rear edge, where the airflow separated by the leading edge meets.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 521. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. ...

had dural tube ribs and formed a false spar for high-aspect-ratio

ailerons An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

, which occupied about half the span. The D.430's outer nine-cylinder Algol

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...

s had long-chord

NACA The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency that was founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its ...

cowlings, and were mounted on bearings enclosed in long, streamlined nacelles; these were supported under the wings by four steel struts to the leading edge box spar and to the main spar. The central engine, under a similar cowling, was in the nose of the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

. The three-part fuselage was flat-sided and tapered only slightly towards the tail, proving a large interior which could be adapted to a variety of tasks. The pilots sat side by side in an enclosed

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...

ahead of the leading edge, equipped with dual control. Behind, the cabin was long, wide and high. It could accommodate observation, reconnaissance or bombing equipment or hold two wounded on couches or four passengers. At the rear of the cabin there was a position for a dorsal machine gun on a flexible mounting. Access was through a port-side door under the wing; three square windows on each side lit the cabin. The D.430's tail was conventional, with a blunted triangular

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. F ...

and a deep, round-edged unbalanced rudder. Its tapered

tailplane A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabilizer, is a small lift (force), lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters ...

was mounted on top of the fuselage, braced by two struts on each side to the lower fuselage, and carried narrow, full-span

elevators An elevator (American English) or lift (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive tracti ...

. It had a fixed

undercarriage Undercarriage is the part of a moving vehicle that is underneath the main body of the vehicle. The term originally applied to this part of a horse-drawn carriage, and usage has since broadened to include: *The landing gear of an aircraft. *The ch ...

with its main wheels on V-struts hinged from the lower fuselage and on vertical shock absorbing

oleo strut An oleo strut is a pneumatic air–oil hydraulic shock absorber used on the landing gear of most large aircraft and many smaller ones. This design cushions the impacts of landing and damps out vertical oscillations. It is undesirable for an air ...

s to the engine mountings. The wheels were under large fairings; under the tail the D.430 had a long,

leaf spring A leaf spring is a simple form of spring (device), spring commonly used for suspension (vehicle), suspension in wheeled vehicles. Originally called a ''laminated'' or ''carriage spring'', and sometimes referred to as a semi-elliptical spring, e ...

tail-skid.

Operational history

The D.430 was first flown on 2 October 1932 and by mid-December it was being officially tested at Villacoublay. The Colonial tri-motor contract was awarded to the Bloch MB.120, so no more D.430s were built. The prototype was initially registered as ''F-AKFN'' in the F-AK.. section reserved for French military prototypes but in September 1933 it was re-registered onto the commercial list, owned by the state, as ''F-AMRU''. It remained in use for several years; in 1934 it showed the flag in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and took the Minister of Aviation to the French aerobatic contest in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. A change of type to D.432 was recorded when its Algol engines were replaced with Hispano-Suiza 9Ts, (licence-built Clerget 9C diesel radial engines), in 1937. It was destroyed in a non-fatal crash on 2 June 1938 when both the wing engines failed together.

Variants

;D.430: As described. One only, ''F-AKFN'' then ''F-AMRU''. ;D.432: D.430 ''F-AMRU'' re-engined with Hispano-Suiza 9T radials in 1937.

Specifications

References

{{Dewoitine aircraft 1930s French military aircraft D.430 Trimotors Aircraft first flown in 1932 High-wing aircraft