The FMA 20 ''El Boyero'' ("Shepherd") was a light utility aircraft produced in Argentina in the 1940s. It was a conventional high-wing strut-braced monoplane with a fixed tailskid undercarriage, seating two side by side in an enclosed cabin.

Development

The

Fábrica Argentina de Aviones The Fábrica Argentina de Aviones SA (mostly known for its acronym FAdeA, officially Fábrica Argentina de Aviones "Brigadier San Martín" S.A.), is Argentina's main aircraft manufacturer. Founded on 10 October 1927 and located in Córdoba, for ...

(FMA) began design work on the El Boyero in 1939, to meet the needs of Argentine flying clubs for a training aircraft. Two prototypes were built, with the first, powered by a

Continental A50 The Continental O-170 engine is the collective military designation for a family of small aircraft engines, known under the company designation of A50, A65, A75 and A80. The line was designed and built by Continental Motors commencing in the 19 ...

flat four A flat-four engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-four engine or boxer engine, is a four-cylinder piston engine with two banks of cylinders lying on opposite sides of a common crankshaft. The most common type of flat-four engine is the box ...

engine, flying on 2 November 1940, and the second early the following year. The El Boyero was a single-engine

tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a Trailer (vehicle), trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or constructio ...

high-wing

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 ...

, with a fixed

tailwheel undercarriage Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft Landing gear, undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the Center of gravity of an aircraft, center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail ...

. Its fuselage had a steel tube structure with fabric covering, while the aircraft's wing, which was braced to the fuselage with steel tube struts, had

spars SPARS was the authorized nickname for the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve. The nickname was derived from the USCG's motto, "—"Always Ready" (''SPAR''). The Women's Reserve was established by law in November 1942 during Wor ...

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...

, with

ribs The rib cage or thoracic cage is an endoskeletal enclosure in the thorax of most vertebrates that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum, which protect the vital organs of the thoracic cavity, such as the heart, lungs and great vessels ...

of aluminium alloy. Pilot and instructor sat side-by-side in an enclosed cabin, and were provided with dual controls. As FMA was busy building military aircraft production rights were sold to the private firm but they were unable to start production due to a shortage of materials and equipment as a result of the

Second World War 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 ...

. After the end of the war, production rights were re-assigned to Petrolini Hermanos. This company received an order for 160 aircraft from the Argentine government, and commenced deliveries in January 1949.

Operational history

The aircraft, powered by Continental A65-8 or Continental A-75 engines, were distributed to Argentina's aeroclubs and to the military, which used it as a spotter and liaison aircraft. Petrolini experienced great difficulties sourcing sufficient materials to complete the order, and in 1951 ceased production, having completed 130 aircraft.

Operators

; *

Argentine Air Force The Argentine Air Force (, or simply ''FAA'') is the air force of Argentina and one of three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic. In 2018, it had 13,837 military and 6,900 civilian personnel. FAA commander in chief is Brigadie ...

Argentine Army The Argentine Army () is the Army, land force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of Argentina. Under the Argentine Constitution, the president of Argentina is the commander-in-chief of the Armed For ...

Argentine National Gendarmerie The Argentine National Gendarmerie (, GNA) is the national gendarmerie force and corps of border guards of the Argentine Republic. As at 2011, It has a strength of 30,000 The gendarmerie is primarily a frontier guard force but also fulfils othe ...

Specifications

References

* * Bridgeman, Leonard. ''Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1950-1951 edition'' New York: The Mcgraw.Hill Book Company, Inc, 1950 (No ISBN) * * * * *

External links