The SPAD S.XIV was a floatplane version of the earlier S.XII fighter. The original S.XII was developed by way of a request by French fighter ace Georges Guynemer for a cannon-armed fighter. This was honored through the S.XII which featured a 37mm Puteaux cannon fixed into the aircraft engine mount and firing through the propeller hub by way of a hollowed out section of the engine block. A single-shot weapon, it was of limited tactical value over the battlefield and required manual reloading while producing an inordinate amount of smoke when fired. A 7.7mm machine gun was also added for a more conventional armament fit but this too proved limited at a time when most fighters carried paired guns. About 300 of the aircraft were ordered though it remains unknown how many were actually delivered as no complete French fighter group was ever made up of S.XII aircraft.
The off-shoot S.XIV floatplane fighter retained the same powerplant (with integrated cannon armament) and fuselage as the S.XII before it. A Hispano-Suiza 8Bc engine of 220 horsepower powered the aircraft. The biplane wing arrangement relied on an equal-span design with two-bay configuration. The engine was fitted at the front of the fuselage in the typical way, the pilot just aft of the engine and under/behind the upper wing assembly. The tail unit was of a conventional design featuring a single vertical fin and low-mounted horizontal planes. The most obvious difference between the S.XII and the S.XIV was the use of floatplanes taking the place of the wheeled undercarriage seen in the original. The floats were provided by Levasseur and gave the S.XIV the water landing/take-off capabilities required of the seaplane fighter.
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Specifications
Societe Pour l'Avions et ses Derives (SPAD) - France Manufacturer(s)
AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT
General ability to actively engage other aircraft of similar form and function, typically through guns, missiles, and/or aerial rockets.
MARITIME / NAVY
Land-based or shipborne capability for operating over-water in various maritime-related roles while supported by allied naval surface elements.
INTELLIGENCE-SURVEILLANCE-RECONNAISSANCE
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.
24.3 ft (7.40 meters) Length
32.2 ft (9.80 meters) Width/Span
13.1 ft (4.00 meters) Height
1,698 lb (770 kilograms) Empty Weight
2,337 lb (1,060 kilograms) Maximum Take-Off Weight
+639 lb (+290 kg) Weight Difference
1 x Hispano-Suiza 8 Bc engine developing 200 horsepower and driving two-bladed wooden propeller. Propulsion
1 x 37mm Puteaux cannon firing through the propeller hub
1 x 7.7mm Vickers fixed, forward-firing machine gun synchronized to fire through the spinning propeller blades.
0 Hardpoints
S.XIV - Base Series Designation; 39 examples plus one prototype completed.
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