Farman F.40

F.40
Portuguese Farman F.40 in Mozambique, during the East African Campaign of World War I
Role	reconnaissance/observation biplane
Manufacturer	Farman Aviation Works
Designer	Henry Farman
Introduction	1915
Retired	1922

The Farman F.40 was a French pusher biplane reconnaissance aircraft.

Development

Developed from a mix of the Maurice Farman designed MF.11 and the Henry Farman designed HF.22, the F.40 (popularly dubbed the Horace Farman) had an overall smoother outline and smoother crew nacelle. A pair of upper tail booms supported a horizontal tailplane and a curved fin. The aircraft went into production in 1915.

Operational history

Forty French Air Force escadrilles (squadrons) were equipped with F.40s. They operated for just over a year, but were replaced in early 1917.

The F.40 was also operated by the No. 5 Wing of the Royal Naval Air Service, Belgian forces in France, and also by the Russians

Italian aircraft maker Savoia-Marchetti built F.40s for use by the police force until 1922.

Variants

• F.40P - adaption to fire Le Prieur rockets
• F.41 - shorter wingspan
• F.56 - larger 127-kW (170-hp) Renault engine
• F.60 - larger 142-kW (190-hp) Renault engine
• F.61 - F.41 with 142-kW (190-hp) Renault engine

Operators

 Belgium

• Belgian Air Force

 Brazil

• Brazilian Naval Aviation

 Colombia

• Colombian Air Force

 France

• Armée de l'Air

 Greece

• Hellenic Air Force

 Kingdom of Italy

• Corpo Aeronautico Militare

 Netherlands

• Royal Netherlands Air Force One aircraft only.

 Norway

• Norwegian Army Air Service

 Portugal

• Portuguese Air Force

 Romania

• Royal Romanian Air Force

 Russia

• Imperial Russian Air Force

 Serbia

• Serbian Air Force

 Soviet Union

• Soviet Air Force - Taken over for the Russian Air Force.

 United Kingdom

• Royal Naval Air Service

 United States

• American Expeditionary Force

 Venezuela

• Venezuelan Air Force - Two aircraft only.
• Venezuelan Navy

Specifications

Data from ^[1]

General characteristics

• Capacity: 2
• Length: 9.25 m (30 ft 4.25 in)
• Wingspan: 17.6 m (57 ft 9 in)
• Height: 3.9 m (12 ft 9.5 in)
• Wing area: 52 m² (559.74 ft²)
• Empty weight: 748 kg (1649 lb)
• Gross weight: 1120 kg (2469 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Renault 12-cylinder Vee piston, 101 kW (135 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 135 km/h (84 mph)
• Endurance: 2 hours  20 min
• Service ceiling: 4,000 m (13,125 ft)

Armament

• 1 or 2 × 7.7-mm (0.303 in) machine-guns in observer's cockpit
• light bombs or 10 × Le Prieur rockets

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era De Bruyère C 1

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Farman MF40.

• Hirschauer, Louis; Dollfus, Charles, eds. (1920). L'Année Aéronautique: 1919-1920. Paris: Dunod. p. 19.
• Hirschauer, Louis; Dollfus, Charles, eds. (1921). L'Année Aéronautique: 1920-1921. Paris: Dunod. p. 27.