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SNCAC (Aerocentre) NC.1080

1949 COLD WAR X-PLANE

History

After many years of German occupation, the French aviation industry after World War II was a depressed entity. As soon as the war was over, business resumed, and engineers lost no time trying to get the industry back on its global footing.

With the jet age in full swing and French engineers eager to implement many of their designs during this time, the timing couldn't have been better.

In the late 1940s, the Soviet State Aeronautical Construction Center (also known as the "Aerocentre") was developing a single-seat, single-engine fighter (the Aeronavale) for possible use by the French Navy. The aircraft will compete with two other local fighter jets - Arsenal VG 90 and Nord 2200.

In North Carolina. In the 1080, the company's engineers relied on a Rolls-Royce "Nene" turbojet engine rated at 5,000 pounds of thrust. Crescent-shaped air intakes are made along one side of the almost plate-like fuselage, and the pilot sits above the nose under a relatively unobstructed canopy. The engine was exhausted by a port in the rear of the hull.

Above it is a vertical tail with a horizontal plane in the middle. The main-wing aircraft is mounted amidships and low along the fuselage. A slight V-shape is visible on these elements, and the recoil is only noticeable along the leading edge.

An all-metal construction is used and a fully retractable tricycle landing gear is installed to complete a very modern aircraft.

Dimensions include a length of 42.2 feet, a wingspan of 39.4 feet, and a height of 15.4 feet. The curb weight is 1,335 pounds and the MTOW is 16,975 pounds.

The proposed weapon was a set of 3 x 30mm automatic cannons, although these were never mounted.

The first flight of the prototype was recorded on July 29, 1949, showing an unstable aircraft that required modifications to some control surfaces and tail areas. The product was threatened later that year when SNCAC went bankrupt, liquidated its assets and fell into the hands of local companies such as SNCAN, SNCASO and SNECMA.

Despite this uncertainty, engineers stuck with their fighter jets, while flight tests lasted for a short period of time.

However, all hopes for a product were truly dashed when the only prototype crashed on April 10, 1950 (the cause has never been determined). After that, all development stopped, NC. The 1080 went down in history in the history of French aviation.

In 1952, the French Navy adopted the British-born de Havilland "Sea Venom" jet fighter (detailed elsewhere on this site) to meet their continuing needs.