Morane-Saulnier G. Part Three. More users

 

The Morane-Saulnier G was a French two-seat racing and sport aircraft that was produced before the outbreak of World War I. It was employed by various countries, among them, the following ones:

• Ottoman Empire: The Ottoman Empire ordered 40 Type G just before the beginning of the war. They were never delivered. However, that wasn't an impediment for us to draw an hypothetical-looking airplane.
• Switzerland: One Type G was obtained by the Sweizerische Fliegertruppe (Swiss Army Air Corps) in 1914. It was given the serial number 24 and was employed to train pilots in aerial combat. It served in that role until 1919 and was eventually scrapped in the 1930s.
• Spain: Three Type G were bought by the Spanish Count of Artal in 1913. He donated the machines to the Aeronáutica Militar (Military Aeronautics) where they were found to be lighter and more maneuverable than the Nieuport IV which was in service before. Two Type Gs were assigned to Escuadrilla de Tetuán (Tetuán Squadron) which were used to support the Spanish military presence in Northern Morocco. They were later assigned to Escuela Nacional de Aviación (National Aviation School) in Getafe, close to Madrid, where they served until September 1919.
• Sweden: Thulins Aeroplansfabrik produced a total of three copies of the Type G under license in Stockholm. Two were made for the Danish Army Air Service and a third one was delivered to the Flygkompaniet (Swedish Army Aviation Service) where it was given the serial 5, though it was later changed to 405.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_G

2. Flying Machines Press -  French Aircraft of the First World War

3. https://aeropinakes.com/wordpress/1913/02/10/el-regalo-del-conde-de-artal/ (translated)

Morane-Saulnier G, part two. Various Users

 

The Morane-Saulnier G was a two-seat sport monoplane with shoulder mounted wings. It was produced in France just before the outbreak of World War 1. Both crew-members sat in an elongated cockpit located in the center of the fuselage between the wings. This position was later found to be unsatisfactory as it seriously limited downwards vision. Every Type G was powered by a single engine, but those powered by a 60-hp Le Rhône were designated internally as Type GA and those powered by a 80-hp Gnome engine were designated as Type GB. A total of ninety-four Type Gs were ordered by the Aéronautique Militaire (Military Aeronautics - French Army Air Corps) and they were given the official designation of Morane-Saulnier MoS.2. 

The Type G was also developed in two variants, one of them served as a testbed for the Garros-Hue version of the Morane-Saulnier bullet deflector device. The second one was a pure fighter variant with a fully faired fuselage, fixed vertical fin, reinforced landing gear struts, removal of the observer's position an 8-mm Hotchkiss machine gun placed on the nose, bullet deflectors and the same engine that powered the Type H: an 80-hp Le Rhône 9C. It was built in summer 1915. At least one Type G aircraft was fitted with the Type H wings. However, these were not adopted because both Morane-Saulnier Type L and Type N (which were more effective in the fighter role) were entering service. Various trainer sub-variants with de-rated Anzani engines were also made.

The Type G saw service with various countries:

• Argentina: The Argentinean aviation pioneer Jorge Newbery had a Morane-Saulnier G as his personal aircraft. Apparently, in 1912, he donated at least two Type Gs to the Argentine Army. 
• Cuba: The Morane-Saulnier G constituted the second airplane in the Cuban Army Air Corps which was founded in 1913. Jaime Gonzalez, a Cuban pilot who had a Type G as his personal aircraft, was promoted by the Cuban House of Representatives as Captain in order to have him as an instructor. 
• Denmark: The Haerens Flyvertropper (Danish Army Air Service) bought two Type G (though some sources state they were Type H) in 1915. These were Swedish license-built Thulin B. In Danish service they were assigned the names of M.S.1 "Hugin" and M.S.2 "Munin". Initially they were both powered by 50-hp Gnomes. Munin was written off service in 1917 and Hugin served until 1919 with his engine being replaced by am 80-hp Gnome in 1917.
• United Kingdom: One Type G was pushed into British Military Service just at the outbreak of the Great War. It received the serial number 482 and was assigned to No.1 Reserve Aeroplane Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). Later it was re-assigned to the No.60Squadron. Twelve additional aircraft were ordered, a combination of Type G and Type Hs in 1915.
  Apparently the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) had also two Type Gs in strength. These were labelled with the serials 941 and 1242. The 941 was an impressed aircraft and served in Eastchurch airfield and was later assigned to No.2 Squadron. The second was license-built by Graham-White Aviation Co. and was delivered to Eastchurch in December 1914 and later sent to Hendon airfield.
  We couldn't find graphic information about the Type G serving with both the RFC and the RNAS, so the drawings should be considered as speculative.
• France: According to some French documents of the time both MS 23 and MS 26 were almost entirely composed of Type L, however, some few Type Gs may served alongside the recon plane. In any case, the placement of the cockpit and the inadequate downwards field of view of the Type G got the types quickly replaced by the better Type L. 
  Most of the Type Gs were assigned to trainer units which were powered by the de-rated Anzani engines and had the denomination of Morane-Saulnier 16E1 with the letter "E" meaning standing for "École" ("School" in French).
• Mexico: Back in 1912 the Mexican Government sent five army officers to the Moissant International Aviation School at Long Island, in New Jersey. These men returned to Mexico bringing with them two Morane-Saulnier monoplanes, most probably of the G Type. Those five officers, together with foreign mercenaries, formed the "Escuadrilla de Ébano" (Ebony Squadron) in 1915 which was assigned to the Nort-Eastern Army and saw action during the Mexican Revolution in Tamaulipas, Veracruz and Yucatan.

Sources:

1. Flying Machines Press  - French Aircraft of the First World War

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_G

3. http://www.urrib2000.narod.ru/Mil1-1-e.html

4.https://www.facebook.com/ArchivoGeneraldelaNacionArgentina/photos/-monoplano-morane-saulnier-del-ingeniero-jorge-newbery-1914ar-agn-agas01-rg-13-3/3340549655970227/

Morane-Saulnier G. Russian users

 

The Morane-Saulnier G (AKA Type G) was a French two-seat sport and racing monoplane produced in France just before World War I. It was so successful that in 1914 Russian manufacturer Dux bought a production license to manufacture them at their Moscow factory to be employed by the Imperial Russian Air Service (IRAS).

The IRAS used their Type Gs usually as single-seaters because the accommodation for the observer (which was just a cushion placed on the fuel tank) and its location at mid-wing were considered inadequate. 

The Russian-built Type Gs were made in two versions. One had a wing with a 9.3 m span and the other had 10.2 span but otherwise, both wings were identical and were hold by the same chord arrangement, with the only difference that the smaller wing was hold by two pairs of bracing wires, while the larger one was hold by three.

Most of them were powered by the Le Rhône engine rated at 80 hp. The Russians liked the Type G as it could be transported in pieces and be assembled in just 11 minutes by two skilled mechanics.

During the Great War, the Type Gs were initially used for unarmed reconnaissance, although they were also used to ram down enemy planes. The Type Gs that were in service with the 11th Air Corps (11 KAO) were unarmed except for the pistols and rifles the pilots could carry with them. The 11th KAO's commander, P.N. Nesterov, tried, in many times, to use his aircraft to crash German aircraft into the ground. For that purpose, he attached a blade to the rear of his fuselage in order to get so close to German planes to cut their wings off. He also tried to break enemy propellers by using a grapple hung from his plane. Eventually, he devised a procedure for ramming enemy planes due to his inability to find machine guns suitable for aircraft combat. During one of those rams, his Type G and the Austro-Hungarian reconnaissance aircraft he had rammed, crashed killing both crews. Other Russian aviators were, however, more successful in their ramming attacks, like Aleksander Kozakov who used an anchor hung from the bottom of his plane to destroy enemy planes. The Type G remained in front-line service until mid-1915 when they were replaced by Type Ls and Type LA parasols. 

After their withdrawal from frontline service, they were assigned to training units. These were refitted with nose-wheels to prevent the student pilots from nosing over, while others were used only for taxying. Most of them were fitted with de-rated engines such as the 35 hp Anzanis. The trainer sub-variant saw three types of undercarriages: The Type G originally produced in France and fitted with the Kachinsky undercarriage, the Slyusarenko trainer and the Type G modified by Lieutenant Fride. 

There was also another Russian sub-variant of the Type G; the Type WR was built for the Imperial Russian Navy and had cristal panels on the fuselage sides, ahead of the wing, in order to improve crew's vision. The drawing we made on this type is based on text descriptions only and it should be considered as purely speculative.

In 1916 a single Dux-built Type G was fitted with a 100 hp Gnome-Monosoupape engine and a smaller wing. It achieved better performance rates than the standard Type G and set a Russian altitude record of 5.200 m (170.604 ft).

It's estimated that around 20 Type Gs survived both Great War, Russian Revolutions and Civil War and remained in use until as late as 1923 in various Soviet aerial military schools such as the Tashkent Military School, 2nd Higher School of Military Pilots and the 1st and 2nd Military School of Pilots.

Sources:

1. Flying Machines Press - French Aircraft of the First World War

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_G