The Bréguet XIV or Bréguet 14 was a French biplane bomber and reconnaissance aircraft of World War I.
It was built in very large numbers and production continued for many years after the end of the war.
The Bréguet 14 was among the first mass-produced aircraft to use large amounts of aluminium, rather than wood or steel, in its structure.
This allowed the airframe to be both lighter and stronger, in turn making the aircraft fast and agile and it was able to outrun some contemporary fighters.
The Bréguet 14 was designed by aviation pioneer and aeronautical engineer Louis Bréguet.
Bréguet had already built a reputation for producing capable aircraft and for having innovative ideas, including the use of metal in aircraft construction.
The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 led to Bréguet-built aircraft being ordered by the military air services of several Triple Entente nations.
He temporarily abandoned the preferred tractor configuration for a pusher design to satisfy the French general staff, who sought a clear forward view for the observer.
In spite of the French official preference for pushers, Bréguet remained a proponent of tractor aircraft.
In June 1916, he began a new design for a military two-seater, the Bréguet AV.
The French Army’s Section Technique de l’ Aéronautique (STAé) recommended that Bréguet use the Hispano-Suiza 8A V-8 engine of 130 kW (180 hp).
Bréguet determined that the Hispano-Suiza lacked sufficient power, and instead chose the Renault V-12 engine previously used in the Bréguet Type V.
Two variants of the Bréguet AV (Type XIII and Type XIV to the French authorities) were built.
Both had a boxy shape that was complemented by a rectangular frontal radiator and the unusual negative or back stagger of its wings.
It possessed a sturdy undercarriage, along with ailerons on the upper wing only.
The lower wing featured flaps along the entire trailing edges, that were forced into their raised position by the air, as the aircraft accelerated to its normal speed, being restricted from moving freely by a set of 12 adjustable rubber bungee cords.
The airframe’s structure was constructed primarily of duralumin, an aluminium alloy which had been invented in Germany by Alfred Wilm only a decade previously.
Many sections, such as the duralumin longerons and spacers, were attached using welded steel-tube fittings and braced using piano wire.
The wing spars were of rectangular duralumin tubes with either oak or ash shims at the attachment points and wrapped in a sheet steel sheath.
The wooden box ribs had fretted plywood webs and ash flanges.
The tail unit was built up from welded steel tube, while the elevators featured large horn balances.
French officials were initially wary of the Type XIV’s innovative materials due to a lack of experience with them.
Variants
Bréguet AV 1
(Given the STAé designation Bréguet 13) Company designation of the first aircraft of the Bréguet 13/14 family.
Powered by a 263 hp (196 kW) Renault V-12 engine with short fuselage and all-flying rudder.
Bréguet AV 2
(Given the STAé designation Bréguet 14) Company designation of the second aircraft of the Bréguet 13 / 14 family.
Powered by a 263 hp (196 kW) Renault V-12 engine in a longer fuselage with fixed fin.
Bréguet 13
AV 1 the first of the Bréguet 14 family with a short fuselage and no fixed fin.
Bréguet 14 A.2
Basic production variant to the two-seat Army co-operation specification (A.2), powered by a 300 hp (220 kW) Renault 12Fcx V-12 engine.
Bréguet 14 AP.2
High-altitude, long-range reconnaissance variant, powered by a 400 hp (300 kW) Liberty L-12 engine.
One converted from an A.2
Bréguet 14 AE
A single aircraft, (F-AEEZ), converted for use in the colonies.
Bréguet 14/400
Post-war aircraft powered by 400 hp (300 kW) Lorraine-Dietrich 12Da V-12 engines.
Seventy aircraft delivered to China and Manchuria.
Bréguet 14 C
A single aircraft powered by a 450 hp (340 kW) Renault 12Ja V-12 engine for use as a postal aircraft in the United States.
Bréguet 14 H
A floatplane version powered by a 320 hp (240 kW) Renault 12Fe, with a large central float and smaller floats under each wing.
At least two were built, used in Indochina.
Bréguet 14 B.2
The two-seat bomber version.
Bréguet 14 B.1
A single-seat bomber version: two were ordered for a planned raid on Berlin.
Bréguet 14 floatplane
A twin float hydroplane version, tested at St Raphaël in 1924.
Bréguet 14 S
(S – Sanitaire) Ambulance aircraft modified to carry two stretchers in the rear fuselage.
(A later dedicated ambulance aircraft was also produced).
Nakajima B-6
Bréguet 14 B.2 bombers licence-built in Japan by Nakajima, powered by 360 hp (270 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle V-12 engines.
Yackey BRL-12 Transport
American conversion of a 14 B.2 with corrugated fuselage skins and floats.
Specifications
(14 B.2)
Crew
Two
Length
8.870 m (29 ft 1 in)
Upper wingspan
14.364 m (47 ft 2 in) with original ailerons
14.86 m (48.8 ft) with balanced ailerons
Lower wingspan
13.664 m (44 ft 10 in) with original ailerons
13.284 m (43.58 ft) with balanced ailerons
Height
3.33 m (10 ft 11 in)
Wing area
50.2 m2 (540 sq ft) with original ailerons
48.5 m2 (522 sq ft) with balanced ailerons
Airfoil
Eiffel 4.6%
Empty weight
1,017 kg (2,242 lb)
Gross weight
1,769 kg (3,900 lb)
Powerplant
1 × Renault 12Fcx V-12 water-cooled piston engine,
220 kW (300 hp)
Alternative engines
Renault 12Fcy 230 kW (310 hp)
Renault 12Fe 240 kW (320 hp) with Rateau turbocharger
Renault 12Ff 260 kW (350 hp)
Renault 12K 300 kW (400 hp)
Fiat A.12 190 kW (260 hp)
Fiat A.14 450 kW (600 hp)
Lorraine-Dietrich 12Da 280 kW (370 hp)
Lorraine-Dietrich 12E 290 kW (390 hp)
Liberty L-12 300 kW (400 hp)
Panhard 12C 260 kW (350 hp)
Panhard 12D 250 kW (340 hp)
Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII 270 kW (360 hp) (Nakajima B-6)
Propellers
2-bladed Ratier série 34 fixed-pitch wooden propeller,
2.940 m (9 ft 8 in) diameter with Renault 12F engines
(2-bladed Ratier série 34 fixed-pitch wooden propeller with Liberty L-12 engine)
Performance
Maximum speed
195 km/h (121 mph, 105 kn)
Endurance
2 hours 45 minutes
Service ceiling
6,200 m (20,300 ft)
Rate of climb
4.867 m/s (958.1 ft/min)
Time to altitude
2,000 m (6,600 ft) in 9 minutes 15 seconds
3,000 m (9,800 ft) in 16 minutes 30 seconds
5,000 m (16,000 ft) in 47 minutes
Wing loading
32 kg/m2 (6.6 lb/sq ft)
(At max. take-off weight)
Power/mass
0.15 kW/kg (0.09 hp/lb)
(At max take-off weight)
Armament
Guns
1 × fixed 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Vickers machine gun
+
2 × flexible 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Lewis Gun on T.O.3 or T.O.4 mount for the observer
Bombs
Up to 355 kg (783 lb) of bombs, typically 32x 8 kg (18 lb) 115mm bombs.
