Potez VIII
Potez · France · first flew 1920 · light aircraft
The Potez VIII was a French training aircraft which first flew in 1920. Originally it had a very unusual vertical inline engine and a four-wheeled undercarriage, though the production version was more conventional.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Mid-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 5.72 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Single-bay biplane with rectangular wings without stagger and marked dihedral
- Parallel airfoil-section interplane struts
- Tandem open cockpits with a cut-out in the upper wing trailing edge
A small two-seat trainer biplane with a broad-chord swept-edge fin and rounded cut-out in the upper wing trailing edge.
Specifications
- The Potez VIII has a length of 5.72 m (19 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 8 m (26 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 145 km/h (90 mph).
- Typical crew: 2.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
It was displayed unflown at the 1919 Paris Salon with a Potez A-4 engine running with its crankshaft vertical. It first flew on 19 April 1920.
Variants
The first version used the unusual Potez engine, while the production version was more conventional and used an Anzani engine.
Where you'll see it
It was operated by the French Aeronautical Service and the Imperial Iranian Air Force, which had two operational in July 1925. Only a few photographs remain.
Related aircraft
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