SPAD S-XIII C1.
Registration: F-AZFP.
Former military registration: S3836.
Construction number : 4377.
Owner: Jean-Baptiste Salis Association, La Ferte-Alais.
This aircraft was built in February 1918. It was flown again in 1991 after 73 years, after restoration work had begun in 1988.
The SPAD was a fighter aircraft used by all Allied forces during World War I. The aircraft had a wooden fuselage. Its first flight was on 4 April 1917.
Louis Blériot, a French aviation pioneer, became president of the company Société pour les Appareils Deperdussin in 1914, which he renamed Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés. S.P.A.D. developed several versions. Aerodynamic improvements, a more powerful engine from Hispano Suiza, larger wings and rudder made the SPAD S.XIII more successful than its predecessors.
Fast and robust for its time, the SPAD S.XIII was a successful fighter. More than 8,000 were built. The armistice of late 1918 caused the cancellation of 10,000 ordered aircraft.
This photo was taken on 18 May 2018 during the airshow at Aérodrome de Cerny - La Ferté-Alais.
I am Jaap van den Berg and photography has become a great passion of mine since 2010. Since then I travel all over the world to take pictures of military aircrafts. But besides aircraft I also love to photograph other subjects like landscapes, architecture, flowers, animals, .. Read more…