Bréguet XIX
The Bréguet XIX was designed by chief design engineer Vuillerme as the successor model of the Bréguet 14 from 1920 on. It was developed as a two-seated day bomber (B.2) and as a reconnaissance aircraft (A.2). After eleven pre-series aeroplanes with different types of engines the series production started in 1923. As one of the most successful metal-biplanes it was put in service in 1925 and even fifteen years later a small number of them were still employed. Until 1927 about 2,000 Bréguet XIX were delivered; 1,100 of the machines were built in France itself, the rest was manufactured under licence. In addition about 20 long-range aircraft "Grand Raid" (GR) were built, as well as various types without engines. Further some few conversions to seaplanes are known.
From 1923 on the aggressive advertising campaign of the manufacturer Bréguet resulted in large-scale export deliveries to numerous nations of Europe, South America and the Near and Far East as well as licence manufacturing in Belgium, Spain, Yugoslavia and Greece. The last aeroplanes were taken out of French operational units in the thirties. In the Spanish civil war the Bréguet XIX was employed on both sides. In other foreign air forces it was still employed until the forties. Two Bréguet XIX are exhibited at the Air and Space Museum in Le Bourget.
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The fuselage of the light-weighted two-seated Bréguet XIX consisted of a duraluminium frame that was aluminium covered for the most part and covered with fabric in the other parts. The wings of unequal span were formed by two spars and ribs out of duraluminium. The simple fixed landing gear had a continuous axle with tail skid and rubber shock-absorber. The open pilot's cockpit was equipped with two seats arranged behind each other and was located immediately under a cutaway in the trailing edge of the upper wing.
The Bréguet XIX of French origin were powered by different liquid-cooled 12-cylinder engines with up to 550 HP (404.5) kW (either the Renault 12K- or the Lorraine-Dietrich 12D- or 12E-engine). It attained top speeds of 230 km/h and an operational range of 800 km. It could take up to 440 kg of bombs; and the four machine guns served for attack as well as for defence purposes.
The Bidons variant was a form of the G.R.'s that was especially developed for long-range flights. It comprised a higher interior tank capacity, rounded wing ends, a newly designed rudder unit and covers for the main wheels. With an average speed of 188.1 km/h over 5,000 km it attained a new world record in 1928.
A peculiarity was the slightly modified Bréguet XIX Super TR "Point d'Interrogation" that was re-equipped with a Hispano-Suiza 12Nb engine with 650 HP (478 kW) and repeated the Lindbergh-flight in the opposite direction with Dieudonné Costes as Pilot and Maurice Bellonte as navigator. It travelled the distance from Le Bourget near Paris to Curtis Field near New York in 37 hours and 18 minutes on September 2nd 1930. Costes, together with the navigator Navigator Joseph le Brix, had already made a world round flight of 56,330 km starting from Paris on a "Point d'Interrogation".
In this time period of first long-range flights with the type Bréguet XIX many long-range records were hit by French, Japanese, Polish, Spanish and Belgium pilots. For example Pelletier d'Oisy and Bésin flew from Paris to Shanghai with additional tanks mounted at the bomb mounts of a Bréguet XIX. In October 1927 the first crossing of the South Atlantic succeeded with a Bréguet XIX. The French record breaker Dieudonné Costes flew together with Joseph Le Brix in less than 20 hours the 3,420 km long distance from the Senegal estuary to Brazil. In 1929 a Spanish crew covered the 6,880 km long distance across the South Atlantic from Seville to Bahia.
Technical data
Bréguet XIX A.2
| Type | two-seated reconnaissance biplane |
| Power plant | 1 Lorraine 12Ed in-line engine with 450 HP (336 kW) |
| Year of construction | from 1923 on in series |
Perfomance
| Maximum speed | 214 km/h (sea-level) |
| Ceiling | 7,200 m |
| Operational range | 800 km |
Weight
| Empty weight | 1,387 kg |
| Take-off weight | 2,500 kg |
Dimensions
| Length | 9.61 m |
| Height | 3.69 m |
| Span | 14.83 m |
| Crew | 2 persons | |
| Useful load/armament |
one fixed forward firing Vickers 7.7 mm machine gun, synchronized; two Lewis 7.7 mm machine guns on rotating mount in the rear cockpit; mountings for light bombs. |
Technical data
Bréguet XIX B.2
| Type | two-seated fighter bomber |
| Power plant | one Hispano-Suiza 12 Hb with 500 HP |
| Year of construction | from 1923 on in series |
Perfomance
| Maximum speed | in 3,000 m altitude up to 230 km/h |
| Ceiling | 6,700 m |
| Operational range | 800 km |
Weight
| Empty weight | 1,390 kg |
| Take-off weight | 2,200 kg |
Dimensions
| Length | 9.51 m |
| Height | 3.39 m |
| Span | 14.83 m |
| Wing area | 34.70 qm |
| Crew | 2 persons | |
| Useful load/armament |
one fixed, forward-firing machine gun 7.5 mm Darne (or 7.7 mm Vickers) above in the engine hood, one or two rotating machine guns 7.5 mm Darne (or 7.7 mm Vickers) for the observer, one rearward-firing machine gun in C-stand, weapon load (interior) up to 440 kg |
Technical data
Bréguet XIX G.R.
| Type | two-seated long-range aircraft |
| Power plant | one liquid-cooled Lorraine-Dietrich 12-cylinder-V-engine with 450 HP (330.9 kW) |
| Year of construction | 1929 |
Perfomance
| Maximum speed | 245 km/h |
| Ceiling | 6,700 m |
| Operational range | 9,500 km |
Weight
| Empty weight | 2,190 kg |
| Take-off weight | 6,700 kg |
Dimensions
| Length | 10.72 m |
| Height | 4.06 m |
| Span | 18.30 m |
| Crew | 2 persons |
