Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du sud-est
Encyclopedia
SNCASE or Sud-Est was a French aircraft manufacturer. The company was formed on February 1, 1937 by the nationalization and merger of Lioré et Olivier
, Potez
, CAMS
, Romano and SPCA.
of French heavy industry, the government of Léon Blum
introduced an act to nationalize the French war industry. The act provided for the creation of seven nationalized aeronautical manufacturing companies: six for aircraft (SNCASE, SNCASO, SNCAN, SNCAO
, SNCAM
, SNCAC
), and one for aircraft engines (SNCM - Lorraine-Dietrich
).
SNCASE incorporated the facilities of Potez in Berre-l'Étang
, CAMS in Vitrolles
, Romano in Cannes
, SPCA in Marseille
and Lioré et Olivier
at Argenteuil
and Marignane
. SNCASE became the largest of the aeronautical , with of space in six factories and employees. ( of the workforce came from Lioré et Olivier, along with 90% of then-current manufacturing contracts.)
In 1941, during the Second World War, the Paris design bureaus of both the nationalized and the private aircraft firms were relocated to avoid capture. SNCASE acquired the failing SNCAM
and moved its engineering operations to SNCAM's headquarters at the former Dewoitine
factory in Toulouse
.
During the rationalisation of the nationalised Aircraft Industry during the 1950s, SNCASE merged with SNCASO to form Sud Aviation
on March 1, 1957, which in turn was later amalgamated into Aérospatiale
and eventually the EADS
group.
bomber. The first aircraft produced under the Sud-Est marque was the Sud-Est SE 100 (formerly Leo 50) fighter.
As well as fixed winged aircraft work, SNCASE carried out research into rotary-winged aircraft capitalising on the experience gained from absorbing the Liore et Olivier team which had license-built the Cierva C.30 design (as the LeO C.30 and C.301 to C.305 variants), and designing and building the LeO C.34 (derived from Kellett designs). After World War II further work on autogyro's produced the SE.700
and SE.700A multi-seat Liaison autogyros, which were quickly over-shadowed by the rapid development of helicopters.
SNCASE continued experimenting with helicopters with the help from a team from Focke Achgelis building the SE.3000, which was a French version of the twin-rotor Focke Achgelis Fa 223 Drache, and the smaller, more conventional, SE.3101. With this experience SNCASE went on to design the SE.3110 and eventually the SE.3120 Alouette which first flew on 21 July 1951 and broke the helicopter distance and speed records in July 1953
. Production versions of the Alouette emerged as the commercially successful Alouette II and Alouette III
, resulting in production runs of several hundreds, with many exported.
Fixed wing aircraft were also developed post World War II, with several jet research aircraft and two significant airliners: The SE-2010 Armagnac
and the SE-210 Caravelle
airliners. Production licences were also obtained from de Havilland for the D.H. 112 Sea Venom
to provide all-weather and day fighters for the Aéronautique Navale., with 121 two-seat and single-seat Aquilon 20 / 201 / 202 / 203 / 204 built from 1952.
Lioré et Olivier
Lioré-et-Olivier was a French manufacturer of aircraft of the 20th century, founded in 1912 by Fernand Lioré and Henri Olivier.The company was nationalized in 1936, becoming a part of SNCASE.-Aircraft designs:* Lioré et Olivier LeO 7...
, Potez
Potez
Potez was a French aircraft manufacturer founded as Aéroplanes Henry Potez by Henry Potez at Aubervilliers in 1919. The firm began by refurbishing war-surplus SEA IV aircraft, but was soon building new examples of an improved version, the Potez VII...
, CAMS
Chantiers Aéro-Maritimes de la Seine
Chantiers Aéro-Maritimes de la Seine, most usually known as CAMS was a French manufacturer of flying boats, founded in Saint-Ouen in November 1920 by Lawrence Santoni...
, Romano and SPCA.
History
Following the resolution of the 1936 general strikeGeneral strike
A general strike is a strike action by a critical mass of the labour force in a city, region, or country. While a general strike can be for political goals, economic goals, or both, it tends to gain its momentum from the ideological or class sympathies of the participants...
of French heavy industry, the government of Léon Blum
Léon Blum
André Léon Blum was a French politician, usually identified with the moderate left, and three times the Prime Minister of France.-First political experiences:...
introduced an act to nationalize the French war industry. The act provided for the creation of seven nationalized aeronautical manufacturing companies: six for aircraft (SNCASE, SNCASO, SNCAN, SNCAO
SNCAO
Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques de l'ouest was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer, which originated on November 16, 1936, from the merger of the factories of Breguet in Bouguenais, and Loire-Nieuport in St Nazaire and Issy-les-Moulineaux.The company had been formed as one...
, SNCAM
SNCAM
Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du Midi was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer. The company was formed following the resolution of the 1936 general strike of French heavy industry, when the government of Léon Blum introduced an act to nationalize the French war industry...
, SNCAC
SNCAC
SNCAC, the , sometimes known as ', was a French aircraft manufacturer created by the nationalisation of the Farman Aviation Works and Hanriot firms in 1936. It was liquidated after World War II, with assets distributed between other nationalised firms SNCAN, SNCASO, and SNECMA in 1949....
), and one for aircraft engines (SNCM - Lorraine-Dietrich
Lorraine-Dietrich
Lorraine-Dietrich was a French automobile and aircraft engine manufacturer from 1896 until 1935, created when railway locomotive manufacturer Société Lorraine des Anciens Etablissments de Dietrich and Cie branched into the manufacture of automobiles...
).
SNCASE incorporated the facilities of Potez in Berre-l'Étang
Berre-l'Étang
Berre-l'Étang is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France.-Population:-References:*...
, CAMS in Vitrolles
Vitrolles, Bouches-du-Rhône
Vitrolles is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône département in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France. It is the largest suburb of the city of Aix-en-Provence and is adjacent to its southwest side.-Population:-Administration:...
, Romano in Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
, SPCA in Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
and Lioré et Olivier
Lioré et Olivier
Lioré-et-Olivier was a French manufacturer of aircraft of the 20th century, founded in 1912 by Fernand Lioré and Henri Olivier.The company was nationalized in 1936, becoming a part of SNCASE.-Aircraft designs:* Lioré et Olivier LeO 7...
at Argenteuil
Argenteuil
Argenteuil is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Argenteuil is a sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise department, the seat of the arrondissement of Argenteuil....
and Marignane
Marignane
Marignane is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France.-Geography:It is a component of the metropolitan Marseille Provence Métropole, and the largest suburb of the city of Marseille...
. SNCASE became the largest of the aeronautical , with of space in six factories and employees. ( of the workforce came from Lioré et Olivier, along with 90% of then-current manufacturing contracts.)
In 1941, during the Second World War, the Paris design bureaus of both the nationalized and the private aircraft firms were relocated to avoid capture. SNCASE acquired the failing SNCAM
SNCAM
Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du Midi was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer. The company was formed following the resolution of the 1936 general strike of French heavy industry, when the government of Léon Blum introduced an act to nationalize the French war industry...
and moved its engineering operations to SNCAM's headquarters at the former Dewoitine
Dewoitine
Constructions Aéronautiques Émile Dewoitine was a French aircraft manufacturer established by Émile Dewoitine at Toulouse in October 1920. The company's initial products were a range of metal parasol-wing fighters which were largely ignored by the French Air Force but purchased in large quantities...
factory in Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
.
During the rationalisation of the nationalised Aircraft Industry during the 1950s, SNCASE merged with SNCASO to form Sud Aviation
Sud Aviation
Sud-Aviation was a French state-owned aircraft manufacturer, originating from the merger of Sud-Est and Sud-Ouest on March 1, 1957...
on March 1, 1957, which in turn was later amalgamated into Aérospatiale
Aérospatiale
Aérospatiale was a French aerospace manufacturer that built both civilian and military aircraft, rockets and satellites. It was originally known as Société Nationale Industrielle Aérospatiale...
and eventually the EADS
EADS
The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company N.V. is a global pan-European aerospace and defence corporation and a leading defence and military contractor worldwide...
group.
Products
Most early Sud-Est aircraft retained their earlier designations, such as the Lioré et Olivier LeO 451Lioré et Olivier LeO 451
Lioré-et-Olivier LeO 45 was a French medium bomber used during World War II. It was a low-wing monoplane, all metal in construction, equipped with a retractable undercarriage and powered by two 1,100 hp Hispano-Suiza engines. It was a very effective bomber, but it appeared too late to give any...
bomber. The first aircraft produced under the Sud-Est marque was the Sud-Est SE 100 (formerly Leo 50) fighter.
As well as fixed winged aircraft work, SNCASE carried out research into rotary-winged aircraft capitalising on the experience gained from absorbing the Liore et Olivier team which had license-built the Cierva C.30 design (as the LeO C.30 and C.301 to C.305 variants), and designing and building the LeO C.34 (derived from Kellett designs). After World War II further work on autogyro's produced the SE.700
Sud-Est
-Places:* Sud-Est , Romania* Sud-Est Department, Haiti* Île Sud-Est, the largest island in the Egmont Islands -Companies and transportation:* Ferrovie del Sud Est, a railway company* LGV Sud-Est, a French high-speed train line...
and SE.700A multi-seat Liaison autogyros, which were quickly over-shadowed by the rapid development of helicopters.
SNCASE continued experimenting with helicopters with the help from a team from Focke Achgelis building the SE.3000, which was a French version of the twin-rotor Focke Achgelis Fa 223 Drache, and the smaller, more conventional, SE.3101. With this experience SNCASE went on to design the SE.3110 and eventually the SE.3120 Alouette which first flew on 21 July 1951 and broke the helicopter distance and speed records in July 1953
1953 in aviation
This is a list of aviation-related events from 1953:- Events :*The first year in which the world's airlines carried more than 50 million people*Argentina initiates a study of the feasibility of converting either a cargo ship or a heavy cruiser into an aircraft carrier in an Argentine shipyard....
. Production versions of the Alouette emerged as the commercially successful Alouette II and Alouette III
Aérospatiale Alouette III
The Aérospatiale Alouette III is a single-engine, light utility helicopter developed by Sud Aviation. It was manufactured by Aérospatiale of France, and under licence by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited in India as Hal Chetak and Industria Aeronautică Română in Romania.The Alouette III is the...
, resulting in production runs of several hundreds, with many exported.
Fixed wing aircraft were also developed post World War II, with several jet research aircraft and two significant airliners: The SE-2010 Armagnac
Sud-Est Armagnac
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. London: Macdonald, 1955.* The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft . London: Orbis Publishing, 1985....
and the SE-210 Caravelle
Sud Aviation Caravelle
The Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle was the first short/medium-range jet airliner produced by the French Sud Aviation firm starting in 1955 . The Caravelle was one of the more successful European first generation jetliners, selling throughout Europe and even penetrating the United States market, with...
airliners. Production licences were also obtained from de Havilland for the D.H. 112 Sea Venom
De Havilland Venom
The de Havilland DH 112 Venom was a British postwar single-engined jet aircraft developed from the de Havilland Vampire. It served with the Royal Air Force as a single-seat fighter-bomber and two-seat night fighter....
to provide all-weather and day fighters for the Aéronautique Navale., with 121 two-seat and single-seat Aquilon 20 / 201 / 202 / 203 / 204 built from 1952.
SNCASE aircraft production
- SNCASE SE-100
- SNCASE SE-116
- SNCASE SE-117 Voltigeur
- SNCASE SE-161 Languedoc
- SNCASE SE-200
- SNCASE SE-210 Caravelle
- SNCASE SE-212 Durandal
- SNCASE SE-400SNCASE SE-400|-See also:-References:* Green, William. War Planes of the Second World War:Volume Five Flying Boats. London: Macdonald, 1968. ISBN 0 356 01449 5.* Green, William. War Planes of the Second World War:Volume Six Floatplanes. London: Macdonald, 1962....
- SNCASE SE-532 Mistral
- SNCASE SE-535 Mistral
- SNCASE SE-700
- SNCASE SE-700A
- SNCASE SE-1010
- SNCASE SE-1200
- SNCASE SE-1210
- SNCASE SE-2010 Armagnac
- SNCASE SE-2100
- SNCASE SE-2300
- SNCASE SE-2310
- SNCASE SE-2410 Grognard ISud-Est Grognard|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Green, William, ed. "Facts by Request: Mighty Grumbler." Royal Air Force Flying Review, September 1968.* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. London: Macdonald, 1955....
- SNCASE SE-2415 Grognard IISud-Est Grognard|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Green, William, ed. "Facts by Request: Mighty Grumbler." Royal Air Force Flying Review, September 1968.* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. London: Macdonald, 1955....
- SNCASE SE-2418 GrognardSud-Est Grognard|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Green, William, ed. "Facts by Request: Mighty Grumbler." Royal Air Force Flying Review, September 1968.* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. London: Macdonald, 1955....
- SNCASE SE-2421 GrognardSud-Est Grognard|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Green, William, ed. "Facts by Request: Mighty Grumbler." Royal Air Force Flying Review, September 1968.* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. London: Macdonald, 1955....
- SNCASE SE-3000
- SNCASE SE-3101
- SNCASE SE-3110
- SNCASE SE-3120 Alouette
- SNCASE SE-3130 Alouette II,
- SNCASE SE-3131 Gouverneur
- SNCASE SE-3150 Llama
- SNCASE SE-3160 Alouette III
- SNCASE SE-3200 Frelon
- SNCASE SE-5000 Baroudeur
- SNCASE SE-5003 Baroudeur
- SNCASE Aquilon