BAJ Type IV

Single-Engine, Twin-Seat Fighter Prototype

France | 1918

"Just two prototypes made up the BAJ Type IV venture - and little information on the design exists today."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 01/16/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Firepower

Performance

Survivability

Versatility

Impact

With the end of World War 1 (1914-1918) still not a foregone conclusion in early 1918, the French Air Force continued to entertain all-new fighter designs. The B.A.J. ("Boncourt-Audenis-Jacob" of Bron, France) "Type IV" was one of the late-war entries that appeared during this time and comprised a single-engine, tandem twin-seat fighter with biplane wing configuration. However, its arrival towards the end of the war and delays during its development meant that only two prototypes were ever completed. Design of this biplane was attributed to Charles Audenis.

As with other aircraft of this period, the two seat arrangement of the Type IV had the pilot in the forward cockpit with the observer/gunner in the rear (seated back-to-back in close proximity to one another). Armament was a single, fixed, forward-firing 7.7mm Vickers Machine Gun synchronized to fire through the spinning propeller blade by the pilot and twin 7.7mm Lewis Machine Guns on a trainable mounting (T.O.3 series ring) for the rear gunner.

The fuselage was left relatively clean by the standards of the day and even the engine was shrouded over for aerodynamic efficiency. Power was pulled from a single Hispano-Suiza 8Fb 8-cylinder, water-cooled inline piston engine of 300 horsepower, this used to drive a two-bladed, fixed-pitch wooden propeller at the nose.

The biplane configuration utilized a traditional "over-under" wing arrangement of equal span and twin-bay. The interplane support struts were single pieces and cabling was used where necessary. The mainplanes were seated well-forward of midships. The tail unit was given small-area planes itself, a single vertical fin and low-set horizontal planes. The undercarriage was also traditional for the time, made up of a fixed twin-wheeled main unit under center mass and a tailskid at rear.

French authorities though enough of the Type IV design that it contracted for the aircraft on May 1st, 1918. However, the initial prototype was not delivered to Villacoublay for formal evaluations until November of that year due to requested revisions (to be handled by Hanriot) and the official Armistice to end hostilities was signed that November 18th. After a fire broke out at the Bron facility, work on the airplane was not completed until January of 1919. Trials then followed which led to additional repairs seen during the middle part of the year. By this time, a second prototype was being flown for evaluation but the project was more or less a lost cause - the war was over and any additional development of the Type IV was ended with just the two prototypes to show for the effort.

As no specifications exist on this aircraft today, estimates for this entry have been made by the author.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the BAJ Type IVC.2 Single-Engine, Twin-Seat Fighter Prototype.

1 x Hispano-Suiza 8Fb 8-cylinder water-cooled inline piston engine developing 300 horsepower and driving a two-bladed, fixed-pitch wooden propeller at the nose.
Propulsion

121 mph
195 kph | 105 kts
Max Speed

17,060 ft
5,200 m | 3 miles
Service Ceiling

199 miles
320 km | 173 nm
Operational Range

850 ft/min
259 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the BAJ Type IVC.2 Single-Engine, Twin-Seat Fighter Prototype.

2
(MANNED)
Crew

65.6 ft
20.00 m
O/A Length

85.3 ft
(26.00 m)
O/A Width

26.2 ft
(8.00 m)
O/A Height

992 lb
(450 kg)
Empty Weight

1,323 lb
(600 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the BAJ Type IV Single-Engine, Twin-Seat Fighter Prototype .

PROPOSED:
1 x 7.7mm Vickers Machine Gun in fixed, forward-firing mounting.
2 x 7.7mm Lewis Machine Guns in rear, trainable gunner's position.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the BAJ Type IV family line.

Type IV - Base Series Designation.

Type IVC.2 - Prototype designation; two completed.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the BAJ Type IV. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 2 Units
Contractor(s): Boncourt-Audenis-Jacob (BAJ - France

[ France (cancelled) ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 150mph

Lo: 75mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (121mph).

Graph Average of 113 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

2

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

1 / 1

Image from the Public Domain.

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT

RECONNAISSANCE

X-PLANE

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1

Going Further...
The BAJ Type IV Single-Engine, Twin-Seat Fighter Prototype appears in the following collections:

HOME

AVIATION INDEX

AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY

AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2025 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks U.S. DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols US 5-Star Generals WW2 Weapons by Country

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes Global Firepower, WDMMA.org, WDMMW.org, and World War Next.

©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)