Blériot 11

Blériot 11
Role	Reconnaissance
Manufacturer	Blériot
Designer	Louis Blériot
First flight	1909
Introduction	1909
Primary users	France Italy U.K. (RFC/RAF) Russia Ottoman Empire
Wingspan	8.89 m (29 ft 2 in) to 9.70 m (31 ft 10 in) to 10.3 m (33 ft 11 in)
Engine	50-100hp Gnome, Clerget, or Le Rhône rotary
Armament	none or 23 kg (50 lb) of bombs
Max Speed	90 km/h (56 mph) to 95 km/h (59 mph)
Ceiling	1,000 m (3,280 ft)
Endurance	3:30

Both before the war started and into its early months, the Blériot 11 was an important plane for French aviation. Benefiting from Louis Blériot's famous flight across the English Channel in 1909, orders for the design were high during the pre-war years, and at the start of the war eight escadrilles were equipped with the type. Though it was easy to fly, when used in war the Blériot 11 showed its limitations: limited power led to poor climb, and the observer was seated in front of the pilot where his view was greatly obscured by the wings.

Nevertheless, the Blériots served in large numbers (for the time) until they could be replaced with M.F.11s, Caudron G.3s, and Morane-Saulnier Type Ls in the first few months of 1915. When the war started, seven of the twenty-three French escadrilles were Blériot 11U units.

On 7 Aug 1914, Capitaine Langlois was acting as an observer in a Blériot 11 when he took a bullet in the thigh from ground fire and became the first casualty of the war in the air.

Evidently a high-wing version was built, aka the "Blériot-Gouin" and they served for a short time with three Blériot escadrilles.

In Italy, license-built Blériots equipped six squadriglia, but they were withdrawn by winter of 1915. Russia both purchased and built many of their own, including two versions by Dux. The few that served at the front were withdrawn by 1916 but continued in a training role. Turkey likewise used a handful of Blériots for reconnaissance. The RFC used a handful of Blériot 11s early in the war by four squadrons, as did the RNAS with Number 1 Wing, where they served until mid-1915. Unarmed Bulgarian Blériots found themselves outmatched by armed Romanian counterparts. Serbia flew a couple Blériots before purchasing MF.11s.

For more information, see Wikipedia:Bleriot XI.

Timeline

Game Data

Wings of Glory

Unofficial Stats

Availability	Maneuver	Damage	Dmg Points	Max Alt.	Climb
14Q3-15Q2	XB	- or B	8	8	5

Card Links

• French Parasol
• 2 Sqn RFC - Burke
• 2 Sqn RFC - Burke
• 2 Sqn RFC - Burke
• Russian
• Serbian

Miniatures and Models

1:144 Scale

• Shapeways:
  • Two-seater: Kampfliegger, Reduced Aircraft Factory, wwwitalik
  • Armed Serbian version: Kampfflieger
  • Parasol: Kampfflieger

1:200 Scale

• Shapeways: wwwitalik

1:285/6mm/1:288 Scale

• Shapeways: Reduced Aircraft Factory, wwwitalik

1:300 Scale

• Shapeways: Kampfflieger

1:350 Scale

• Shapeways: wwwitalik

Resources

Orthographic Drawings

• 

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

• Enzo Angelucci, ed. The Rand M^cNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft, 1914-1980. New York: The Military Press, 1983 edition. ISBN 0-517-41021-4.
• Dr. James J. Davilla and Arthur M. Soltan. French Aircraft of the First World War. Flying Machines Press, 1997. ISBN 0-9637110-4-0.
• Alan Durkota, Thomas Darcey, and Victor Kulikov. The Imperial Russian Air Service. Flying Machines Press, 1995. ISBN 0-9637110-2-4
• Vital Ferry. French Aviation During the First World War. Paris: Histoire and Collections, 2014. ISBN 978-2-35250-370-5
• W.M. Lamberton and E.F. Cheesman, Reconnaissance & Bomber Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War. Great Britain: Harleyford Publications Ltd., 1962. ISBN 9780900435027
• Kenneth Munson, Bombers: Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft, 1914-1919. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1968, Blandford Press Ltd. ISBN 978-0753721711
• Ian Philpott, The Birth of the Royal Air Force. Great Britain: Pen & Sword Books Limited, 2013. ISBN 978-1-78159-333-2