Émile Dewoitine
Encyclopedia
Émile Dewoitine was a French aviation industrialist.
where his Dewoitine D.27
fighter was accepted for operational service.
In 1931, Dewoitine went back to France and founded Société Aéronautique Française - Avions Dewoitine. During the 1930s, several noteworthy aircraft rolled out of the Toulouse
-based Dewoitine factories including the Dewoitine D.500, the French Air Force
's first fully metallic, monoplane fighter, as well as the Dewoitine D.338 airliner.
In 1936, part of the French aviation industry was nationalized and Dewoitine's factories were absorbed by the state-owned SNCAM
. During the Battle of France
in 1940, the Dewoitine D.520
turned out to be France's best fighter aircraft.
, Dewoitine briefly tried to start a business in the United States, which caused him to be tried for treason under the Vichy government. Dewoitine went back to work with SIPA
which, after an agreement between the Vichy government and German authorities, was manufacturing trainer aircraft intended for the Luftwaffe
, including a derivative of the Arado Ar 96
, which would later be known as the SIPA S.10.
after the liberation of France, Dewoitine moved to Spain, where he developed a derivative of the D.520 with Hispano Aviación
. He later went to Argentina
, where he worked for the Industria Aeronáutica Militar, developing the Pulqui I, the first South American jet plane. In France, Dewoitine was condemned in absentia to a 20 year forced labour term in 1948. At the end of this career, he resided in Switzerland
. Once his crimes were prescribed, he returned to France and finished his life in Toulouse
.
Prewar industrial activities
Born in Crépy-en-Laonnois, Émile Dewoitine entered the aviation industry by working at Latécoère during Word War I. In 1920, he founded his own company, but facing little success at home, went to SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
where his Dewoitine D.27
Dewoitine D.27
|-See also:-External links:*...
fighter was accepted for operational service.
In 1931, Dewoitine went back to France and founded Société Aéronautique Française - Avions Dewoitine. During the 1930s, several noteworthy aircraft rolled out of the 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...
-based Dewoitine factories including the Dewoitine D.500, the French Air Force
French Air Force
The French Air Force , literally Army of the Air) is the air force of the French Armed Forces. It was formed in 1909 as the Service Aéronautique, a service arm of the French Army, then was made an independent military arm in 1933...
's first fully metallic, monoplane fighter, as well as the Dewoitine D.338 airliner.
In 1936, part of the French aviation industry was nationalized and Dewoitine's factories were absorbed by the state-owned 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...
. During the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
in 1940, the Dewoitine D.520
Dewoitine D.520
The Dewoitine D.520 was a French fighter aircraft that entered service in early 1940, shortly after the opening of World War II. Unlike the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406, which was at that time the Armée de l'Airs most numerous fighter, the Dewoitine D.520 came close to being a match for the latest...
turned out to be France's best fighter aircraft.
World War II
After the armistice with GermanyArmistice with France (Second Compiègne)
The Second Armistice at Compiègne was signed at 18:50 on 22 June 1940 near Compiègne, in the department of Oise, between Nazi Germany and France...
, Dewoitine briefly tried to start a business in the United States, which caused him to be tried for treason under the Vichy government. Dewoitine went back to work with SIPA
Société Industrielle Pour l’Aéronautique
Société Industrielle Pour l’Aéronautique was a French aircraft manufacturer established in 1938 by Émile Dewoitine after his previous company, Avions Dewoitine, was nationalized the year before...
which, after an agreement between the Vichy government and German authorities, was manufacturing trainer aircraft intended for the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
, including a derivative of the Arado Ar 96
Arado Ar 96
-See also:-Bibliography:* Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. London: Macdonald and Jane's Publishers Ltd., 1970 . ISBN 0-356-02382-6....
, which would later be known as the SIPA S.10.
Postwar exile
Facing charges of collaborationismCollaborationism
Collaborationism is cooperation with enemy forces against one's country. Legally, it may be considered as a form of treason. Collaborationism may be associated with criminal deeds in the service of the occupying power, which may include complicity with the occupying power in murder, persecutions,...
after the liberation of France, Dewoitine moved to Spain, where he developed a derivative of the D.520 with Hispano Aviación
Hispano Aviacion
Hispano Aviación was a Spanish aircraft factory which began production in 1939, after a section of the Hispano-Suiza factory was isolated into a "Nationalist" area during the Spanish Civil War....
. He later went to Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, where he worked for the Industria Aeronáutica Militar, developing the Pulqui I, the first South American jet plane. In France, Dewoitine was condemned in absentia to a 20 year forced labour term in 1948. At the end of this career, he resided in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Once his crimes were prescribed, he returned to France and finished his life 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...
.