The FBA 17 was a training
flying boat
A flying boat is a type of seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in having a fuselage that is purpose-designed for flotation, while floatplanes rely on fuselage-mounted floats for buoyancy.
Though ...
produced in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
in the 1920s.
Design and development
Similar in general layout to the aircraft that FBA had produced during
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Type 17 was a conventional two-bay
biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
with unequal-span, unstaggered wings and side-by-side open cockpits. The
pusher engine was mounted on struts in the interplane gap. Apart from their use by the
French Navy
The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...
, a small number were sold to the
Polish Navy
The Polish Navy (; often abbreviated to ) is the Navy, naval military branch , branch of the Polish Armed Forces. The Polish Navy consists of 46 ships and about 12,000 commissioned and enlisted personnel. The traditional ship prefix in the Polish ...
, the
Brazilian Air Force
The Brazilian Air Force (, FAB) is the air branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces and one of the three national uniformed services. The FAB was formed when the Brazilian Brazilian Army Aviation (1919–1941), Army and Brazilian Naval Aviation, Nav ...
, and civil operators as well. Some versions were built as amphibians, and others had fittings to allow them to be
catapulted from warships.
In 1931, the
US Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, mi ...
purchased an example for evaluation, and being pleased with the design, arranged for the type to be built under licence by the
Viking Flying Boat Company in
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...
. Six aircraft were eventually produced and served with the Coast Guard under the designation OO until the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
Variants
;17 HE.2:(''Hydravion d'École'') 2-seat trainer,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (over 300 built).
;17 HL.1:(''Hydravion de Liaison'') 1-seat catapulatable liaison aircraft,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (1 built)
;17 HL.2:2-seat catapultable liaison aircraft,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (10 built)
;17 HMT.2:(''Hydravion Mixte de Transport'') 2-seat amphibious transport aircraft,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (37 built)
:A FBA-17HMT2 plane called ''Lubliniak'', was bought by the
Airborne and Antigas Defence League
Air and Chemical Defense League (Polish: ''Liga Obrony Powietrznej i Przeciwgazowej'', ''L.O.P.P.'') was a mass Polish paramilitary organization, founded in 1928 as a result of the merger of the ''State Air Defense League'' (Polish: ''Liga Obron ...
(LOPP) with was funds donated by the readers of ''Głos Lubelski'', for use in propaganda flights across central and eastern Poland.
;17 HMB.2:17 HMT 2s already in service with the French Navy, were redesignated HMB 2, after being fitted with a bomb rack on the port side of the hull.
;17 HMT.4:4-seat amphibious transport aircraft,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (2 built)
;17 HT.4:(''Hydravion de Transport'') 4-seat transport aircraft,
Hispano-Suiza 8A
The Hispano-Suiza 8 is a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 that went on to become the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original ...
-powered, (35 built)
;171 HE.2:2-seat trainer,
Lorraine Mizar-powered, (1 built).
;172 HE.2:2-seat trainer,
Gnome et Rhône 5B
The Bristol Titan was a British five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in the late 1920s. It had the same size cylinders as the earlier Bristol Mercury engine, (displacing ), and produced ...
-powered, (5 built).
;172 HMT.2:2-seat amphibious transport aircraft,
Gnome et Rhône 5B
The Bristol Titan was a British five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in the late 1920s. It had the same size cylinders as the earlier Bristol Mercury engine, (displacing ), and produced ...
-powered, (1 built).
;172 HT.4:4-seat transport aircraft,
Gnome et Rhône 5B
The Bristol Titan was a British five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in the late 1920s. It had the same size cylinders as the earlier Bristol Mercury engine, (displacing ), and produced ...
-powered, (1 built).
;172/2:The HT.4 was redesignated Type 172/2,
Gnome et Rhône 5B
The Bristol Titan was a British five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in the late 1920s. It had the same size cylinders as the earlier Bristol Mercury engine, (displacing ), and produced ...
-powered, after it was fitted with extra fuel tanks.
;Viking V-2:French-built HT.4s converted to 2-seaters (4 converted)
;Viking OO-1:longer-span,
Wright R-760
The Wright R-760 Whirlwind was a series of seven-cylinder air-cooled radial aircraft engines built by the Wright Aeronautical division of Curtiss-Wright. These engines had a displacement of 756 in³ (12.4 L) and power ratings of 225-35 ...
-powered version of V-2 produced for USCG (5 built)
Operators
;
*
Brazilian Air Force
The Brazilian Air Force (, FAB) is the air branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces and one of the three national uniformed services. The FAB was formed when the Brazilian Brazilian Army Aviation (1919–1941), Army and Brazilian Naval Aviation, Nav ...
*
Brazilian Naval Aviation
The Brazilian Naval Aviation () is the air component of the Brazilian Navy, currently called ''Força Aeronaval''. Most of its air structure is subordinated to the Naval Air Force Command (''Comando da Força Aeronaval'', ComForAerNav), the milita ...
;
*
French Navy
The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...
;
*
Polish Navy
The Polish Navy (; often abbreviated to ) is the Navy, naval military branch , branch of the Polish Armed Forces. The Polish Navy consists of 46 ships and about 12,000 commissioned and enlisted personnel. The traditional ship prefix in the Polish ...
;
*
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...
Specifications (17 HE.2)
See also
References
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Further reading
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{{USN observation aircraft
1920s French military trainer aircraft
Flying boats
FBA aircraft
Single-engined pusher aircraft
Biplanes
Aircraft first flown in 1923