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Aviation History
1933
1933 - 0654.PDF
FLIGHT, SEPTEMBER 28, 1933 THE FLIGHT TO MOSCOW : The new Dewoitine D.332 monoplane just before leaving Le Bourget for Moscow, with M. Pierre Cot, Air Minister, on board. THE FRENCH AIR MINISTER'S TOUR W E have already referred, briefly, to the " show-the-Flag " air tour to Russia undertaken by the very active French Air Minister, M. Pierre Cot. We are now able to give our readers a few more details of this Propaganda flight, which may be of interest. The group of French transport planes of the latest and fastest types, with the Air Minister and a number of high aviation officials on board, left the Paris District on September 12 for Moscow, making several intermediate stops on the way. This squadron was composed of the new Dewoitine D.332, the Wibault-Penhoet 282 T. and the Marcel Bloch type 120, all three-engine machines of metal construction throughout. They took off at different times during the day, the Marcel Bloch leaving from Villa- coublay, the two others from Le Bourget. The Marcel Bloch was the first to take off. It was piloted by Chief Adjutant Raynaud, of the 34th Aviation Regiment, with Capt. Dasque, of the Service Technique, as his assistant, and also carried a radio operator and four mechanics. The plane left Villacoublay at 10.50 a.m. for Lwow, Poland, via Prague, where it was joined by the other two machines on the following day. The Wibault machine took off from the Le Bourget apron at 11.17 a.m., piloted by Gaston Durmon, the chief pilot of the C.I.D.N.A. system, with Capt. Terrasson, of the Service Technique, as assistant pilot, and a radio operator and mechanic. The passengers comprised a distinguished group composed of MM. Albert Caquot, Directeur-General of the Service Tech nique, Emmanuel Chaumie, Directeur of Commercial Avia tion and Dekayser, Capt. Alamichel and Lt. Noel, of the Air Minister's Staff. The Wibault plane followed the Marcel Bloch to Lwow, where they met the Dewoitine plane with the Air Minister and his party aboard, the next day. M. Pierre Cot, the Air Minister himself, boarded the new Dewoitine plane, piloted by Marcel Doret, at the Le Bourget apron at 3.35 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, and, without any accompanying ceremony, took off for Strasbourg as his first stop, where he reviewed the 2nd Aviation Regiment. The Minister and his party left Strasbourg early Wednesday morning for Lwow, whence, in company with the two other planes, who met them there, they flew to Moscow, via Kiew and Kharkoff, arriving at the Russian capital on Friday, September 15, at 2.30 p.m. The Ministerial party were received on landing by leading Soviet officials, includ ing M. Maxim Litvinofi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the heads of the Air Force. Numerous functions were given in their honour, and inspections made of the various aviation installations and material. Two other planes also left Paris the following day to join the Ministerial group in a semi-official capacity. The B16riot machine, Joseph Le Brix, piloted by Maurice Rossi and Paul Codos, the new long-distance record holders, and the three-engine Couzinet plane, the Biarritz, piloted by Charles de Vernheilh, who has also made a number of long distance flights, took off from Le Bourget Wednesday morn ing about 8 o'clock at an interval of an hour apart. M. Pierre Cot arrived back in Le Bourget on September 22. fUmL ^* Bilh I wUmk- FLYING SAMPLES .- Three of the French commercial aircraft which were flown to Moscow to show the Russians what France can produce in this way. Top, left, the Wibault-Penhoet 282T. ; right, the new Marcel Bloch 120 and, below, C. de Vernheilh's Couzinet monoplane Biarritz. 972
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