Fouga Zéphyr

Infobox Aircraft
name= CM.175 Zéphyr


caption= A Fouga CM.175 Zéphyr in French Navy colours
type= Carrier-capable jet trainer
national origin = France
manufacturer= Fouga
first flight= 31 July 1956 (as CM.170M)
introduced= 1959
retired=
primary user= French Navy
more users=
number built= 32
status=
unit cost=
developed from = Fouga Magister
variants with their own articles=

The Fouga Zéphyr (company designation CM.175) was a 1950s French two-seat carrier-capable jet trainer for the French Navy. It was developed from the land-based CM.170 Magister.

Design and development

The French Navy's Aéronavale adopted a derivative of the Fouga CM.170-1 Magister as a basic trainer for carrier operations.cite book |last= Donald |first= David |coauthors = Daniel J. March |title= Carrier Aviation Air Power Directory |year=2001 |publisher= AIRtime Publishing |location= Norwalk, CT |isbn= 1-880588-43-9 |pages= 123-124 ] Originally designated CM-170M Esquif, the prototype first flew on 31 July 1956, and was redesignated as the CM.175 Zéphyr soon after. Carrier trials were conducted from HMS|Eagle|R05 and HMS|Bulwark|R08 off the French coast.

The Zéphyr differed from the Magister in being equipped with an arrester hook and a modified structure and undercarriage strengthened for carrier operations. The Zéphyr also included a nose-mounted light. As it did not have ejection seats, the Zéphyr had new sliding canopy hoods which could be locked open during carrier launchings and landings. One six-round rocket pod could be mounted under each wing for weapons training. Two guns could be fitted in the nose, but these were seldom carried. Thirty-two aircraft were delivered.

Operational history

The first production aircraft first flew on the 30 May 1959 and entered service in October 1959 with 59S the deck landing school at Hyéres. The squadron used only 14 aircraft at a time with the others being kept in short-term storage and perodically rotated to even out the flying hours. In 1962 the unit formed an aerobatic team using the Zéphyr called the "Patrouille de Voltige d'Hyéres".

Variants

* CM-170M Esquif - prototype; 2 built.
* CM.175 Zéphyr - production version; 30 built.

Operators

;FRA
* French Navy
**59 Escadrille de Servitude

pecifications (CM.175)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet

ref= Carrier Aviation Air Power Directory

crew= 2
length main= 10.06 m
length alt= 33 ft 0 in
span main= 12.15 m
span alt= 39 ft 10 in) (with wingtip fuel tanks
height main= 2.80 m
height alt= 9 ft 2 in
area main= 17.30 m²
area alt= 186.22 ft²
empty weight main= 2,150 kg
empty weight alt= 4,740 lb
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main= 3,200 kg
max takeoff weight alt= 7,055 lb

engine (jet)= Turbomeca Marboré IIA
type of jet= turbojets
number of jets= 2
thrust main= 3.92 kN
thrust alt= 882 lbf

max speed main= 715 km/h at 9,000 m
max speed alt= 444 mph at 29,525 ft
range main= 925 km
range alt= 575 miles
ceiling main= 11,000 m
ceiling alt= 36,090 ft
climb rate main=
climb rate alt=
loading main=
loading alt=
thrust/weight=

armament=
* 2 x 7.5 mm or 7.62 mm machine guns (seldom carried)
* Up to 100 kg (220 lb) of weapons on two underwing hardpoints.

ee also

aircontent
related=
* Fouga Magister

similar aircraft=
* T2V SeaStar (T-1 SeaStar)
* T-2 Buckeye

lists=

see also=

References

* Kopenhagen, W., ed. "Das große Flugzeug-Typenbuch." Stuttgart, Germany: Transpress, 1987. ISBN 3-344-00162-0.
* Jackson, Paul A, "French Military Aviation" Leicester, England: Midland Counties Publications, 1979. ISBN 0 904597 17 2.

External links

* [http://frenchnavy.free.fr/aircraft/zephyr/zephyr.htm History of the Fouga Zéphyr]
* [http://www.aviastar.org/air/france/aerospatiale_magister.php Fouga CM-170 Magister and CM.175 Zéphyr]