The SNCAC NC.150 (also known as the Centre NC.150) was a prototype French high-altitude

bomber aircraft A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strategic bombing is d ...

designed and flown just prior to the start 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 ...

. It was a twin-engined

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 third engine driving a

supercharger In an internal combustion engine, a supercharger compresses the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to produce more power for a given displacement (engine), displacement. It is a form of forced induction that is mechanically ...

. Although testing was promising, and orders were planned for a modified version as a back-up for the

Lioré et Olivier LeO 45 Lioré-et-Olivier LeO 45 was a French medium bomber that was used during and after the Second World War. It had been designed for the new ''Armée de l'air'' as a modern medium bomber capable of performing independent strategic operations, unlik ...

and

Amiot 354 The Amiot 354 was the last in a series of fast, twin-engine bombers which fought with the List of aircraft of the French Air Force during World War II, French Air Force in limited numbers during the Battle of France. Development In August 1933, ...

bombers, the surrender of France in June 1940 ended development with only the single example being built.

Design and development

When the nationalisation of the French aircraft industry resulted in the creation of the ''Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Centre'' (

SNCAC SNCAC (the ', sometimes known as ) was a French aircraft manufacturer. SNCAC was created by the nationalisation of the Farman Aviation Works and Hanriot firms in 1936. The company had a manufacturing facility in Boulogne-Billancourt which was ...

) from the merger of

Farman Aviation Works Farman Aviation Works () was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard Farman, Richard, Henri Farman, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French ...

and

Hanriot Aéroplanes Hanriot et Cie. or simply 'Hanriot' was a French aircraft manufacturer with roots going back to the beginning of aviation. Founded by René Hanriot in 1910 as ''The Monoplans Hanriot Company Ltd.'', the company survived in differ ...

in 1936, the new company inherited Farman's experience in high-altitude research, and this research continued. In 1937, it proposed a pressurised transatlantic mailplane derivative of the Farman F.223.3 bomber, this being developed into the unpressurised NC.223.4 transport, of which three were built for

Air France Air France (; legally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France, and is headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. The airline is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and is one of the founding members ...

.Green 1967, pp. 151–152. SNCAC continued work on high-altitude aircraft, proposing two pressurised bombers in 1938. The first, the NC.140, was a four-engined bomber using the wings of the Farman F.223.3 but was quickly abandoned in favour of the smaller, twin-engined NC.150.Green 1967, p.152.Breffort and Jouineau 2005, p. 79. The NC.150 was a mid-winged

with a retractable tailwheel undercarriage which was designed to make maximum use of non-

strategic material Strategic material is any sort of raw material that is important to an individual's or organization's strategic plan and supply chain management. Lack of supply of strategic materials may leave an organization or government vulnerable to disrup ...

s such as wood. The wings were of mixed construction, with a metal centre-section, and wood outer wings that had metal

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 ...

, wooden

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 ...

and

plywood Plywood is a composite material manufactured from thin layers, or "plies", of wood veneer that have been stacked and glued together. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured boards, which include plywood, medium-density fibreboa ...

skinning. Similarly, the fuselage had wooden forward and aft fuselage section connecting to the metal centre section, while the

twin tail A twin tail is a type of vertical stabilizer arrangement found on the empennage of some aircraft. Two vertical stabilizers—often smaller on their own than a single conventional tail would be—are mounted at the outside of the aircraft's ho ...

was of wooden construction with plywood skinning. It was to be powered by two

Hispano-Suiza 12Y The Hispano-Suiza 12Y was an aircraft engine produced by Hispano-Suiza for the French Air Force before the Second World War. The 12Y became the primary French 1,000 hp (750 kW) class engine and was used in a number of famous aircraft ...

V12 engine A V12 engine is a twelve-Cylinder (engine), cylinder Internal combustion engine#Reciprocating engines, piston engine where two banks of six cylinders are arranged in a V engine, V configuration around a common crankshaft. V12 engines are more c ...

s, with power being maintained at high altitudes by using a single three-stage supercharger driven by a separate

Hispano-Suiza 12X The Hispano-Suiza 12X was an aircraft piston engine designed in France by Hispano-Suiza during the early 1930s. A 12-cylinder Vee, liquid-cooled design, the 12X was used on several aircraft types, some of them being used in limited numbers durin ...

engine mounted in the fuselage.Green 1967, pp. 153–154. SNCAC began work on two prototypes as a private venture in 1938. These two prototypes were not to be fitted with cabin pressurisation, although this was planned for a third prototype.Green 1967, p. 153. The French Air Ministry placed an order for the two prototypes on 24 April 1939, with the second aircraft to carry full armament.Green 1967, p. 155. The first prototype, designated NC.150.01, made its maiden flight from

Toussus-le-Noble Toussus-le-Noble () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. History In 1969, the communes of Châteaufort and Toussus-le-Noble were separated from the Essonne department and added to Yvelin ...

on 11 May 1939. Meanwhile, the French Air Ministry had become worried about possible delays to the

and

twin-engined bombers which were planned to re-equip the medium bomber squadrons of the ''

Armée de l'Air The French Air and Space Force (, , ) is the air force, air and space force of the French Armed Forces. Formed in 1909 as the ("Aeronautical Service"), a service arm of the French Army, it became an independent military branch in 1934 as the Fr ...

'' caused by shortages of light alloys, and after successful testing in early 1940, ordered a change of plans. Pressurisation was to be abandoned, and the unusual central supercharger with its dedicated engine (known as the "''bi-tri''" concept) was to be replaced by individually supercharged engines. Two production versions were planned, the NC.152, powered by Hispano-Suiza engines, and the NC.153, with imported American

radial engines The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is cal ...

.Green 1967, pp. 154–156. Development was stopped, however, by France's surrender to Germany in June 1940, both the second and third prototypes being abandoned before completion.Green 1967, p. 156.

Variants

;NC.150.01 :First prototype. Not fitted with pressurisation and unarmed. ;NC.150.02 :Second prototype. Unpressurised but to be fitted with full armament. Not completed.Green 1967, pp. 155–156. ;NC.151.03 :Third prototype, representing original bomber design, with pressure cabin and full armament. Not completed. ;NC.152 :Planned production version powered by two supercharged Hispano-Suiza 12Y engines. ;NC.153 :Planned production version powered by two supercharged 1,850 hp (1,380 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-2800 S1A4-G Double Wasp radial engines.

Specifications (NC.150 - armament planned for 150.02)

Notes

References

* Breffort, Dominique and André Jouineau. ''French Aircraft 1939–1942: Fighters, Bombers, Reconnaissance and Observation types: Volume 2: From Dewoitine to Potez''. Paris: Histoire & Collections, 2005. * Green, William. ''War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Seven: Bombers and Reconnaissance Aircraft''. London: Macdonald, 1967

External links

SNCAC NC.150
(Russian) {{SNCAC aircraft 1930s French bomber aircraft

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