FRENCH EXPERIMENTS WITH STEAM POWER PLANTS
About ten months after Langley’s results, some experiments were carried out by the French at Carquenez, near Toulon. The model used for the experiments weighed in total 70 lbs., the engine developing more than 1 h.p. As in the Langley case, twin propellers were used, but instead of being mounted side by side, they were mounted one in front and the other behind. The result of these experiments compared very poorly with Langley’s. A flight of only 462 feet was made, with a duration of a few seconds. The maximum velocity is stated to have been 40 m.p.h. The span of this model was a little more than 6 meters, or about 19 feet, with a surface of more than 8 square meters, or about 80 square feet.
An English hydroaëroplane of tractor design equipped with steam power plant. Courtesy Flight.
On the left an English 10 oz. Compressed air driven biplane. On the right, the engine shown fitted with a simple speedometer for experimental purposes. Courtesy Flight.