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Nieuport 15
	Nieuport 15 prototype circa 1916
Role	Bomber
National origin	France
Manufacturer	Nieuport
First flight	November 1916
Status	abandoned
Number built	At least 4
Developed from	Nieuport 14

The Nieuport 15 (or Nieuport XV in contemporary sources) was a French World War I bomber aircraft. Due to disappointing performance the type was rejected and never entered service.^[1]

Design and development

Scaled up from the Nieuport 14, the new bomber was built in the summer of 1916 and the first prototype was ready for testing in November of that year.^[1]

The Nieuport 15 was a two-bay sesquiplane with V-struts and a newly designed tailplane including a heart shaped elevators.^[1] It was powered by a 220 hp (160 kW) Renault 12F V-12 engine.^[2] with Hazet modular radiators mounted on each side of the fuselage.^[1]

During limited flight testing the controls and landing gear were found to be unsatisfactory and the French quickly abandoned the bomber.^[1] In December 1916 it was declared obsolete but the British showed some interest and had ordered 70 aircraft but after the tests proved disappointing, all orders were eventually cancelled.^[1]

Specifications

Data from History of War^[1]

General characteristics

Crew: 2
Length: 9.6 m (31.4 ft)
Wingspan: 17 m (55 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 47.85 m² (515.1 sq ft)
Empty weight: 1,330 kg (2,932 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 1,900 kg (4,189 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Renault 12F V-12 water-cooled piston engine, 160 kW (220 hp)
Propellers: 2-bladed Chauvière 1665, 2.95 m (9 ft 8 in) diameter wooden fixed pitch propeller.^[3]

Performance

Maximum speed: 155 km/h (96 mph, 84 kn)
Endurance: 3 hours
Service ceiling: 4,000 m (13,000 ft)
Time to altitude: 7 min 20 sec to 3,280 ft

Armament

Guns: 1 x .303 in (7.70 mm) Lewis Gun on an Etévé gun ring.
Bombs: Fourteen 120 mm (4.72 in) calibre 10.0 kg (22 lb) Anilite bombs - 140 kg (308 lb) total

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Rickard, J (8 January 2015). "Nieuport 15". historyof war.org. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
^ "Nieuport 15 French Air Force". 1000aircraftphotos.com. 31 May 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
^ Hartmann, 2015, p.20

Bibliography

Davilla, Dr. James J.; Soltan, Arthur (1997). French Aircraft of the First World War. Mountain View, CA: Flying Machines Press. ISBN 978-1891268090.
Hartmann, Gérard. Les NIEUPORT de la guerre (PDF) (in French). Paris. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
Hartmann, Gérard (6 January 2015). "Les héliciers français" (PDF) (in French). Retrieved 5 August 2019.