Retribution: Nieuport 17

The Nieuport 17

The Nieuport 17 - Painting

The Germans made sure that none of their Eindeckers flew over hostile territories where there was a possibility for them to be shot down, captured and their technology copied.  However this defensive tactic failed to protect a German pilot who became lost in a thick fog and landed on French soil. Upon capture, the pilot and plane were studied by the Allies. As a result, the Nieuport 17 became airborne.

The Nieuport 17 was designed to meet an optimum combination of the best characteristics between monoplanes and biplanes. This amounted to it being configured as one and one-half wing, or termed as a “sesquiplane”. The large top wing of the Nieuport 17, with the wing span of 26 feet, was joined to the smaller and narrower lower wing by a V-shaped strut. Its height was approximately 8 feet and weighed 1232 lbs. Flying at 107 mph, with a Le Rhone Rotary/120 heart, it had high visibility, low drag – common for parasol monoplanes, and supported by the structural sturdiness and bracing of a biplane.

The pilot, fuel system, engine and weaponry was centralised to allow easy handling. It possessed excellent maneuverability, giving it the upper hand in dogfights. A Lewis machine gun was mounted on the top wing as the French had yet to perfect a synchronizing device that would allow the bullets to be fired through the empty spaces between the blades of the propeller. However, soon after a synchronized gun was produced and implemented.