[SIZE=3]
Q2/1941 SUMMARY[/SIZE]
April 3
The French Army has released a number of RFPs to the French defense industry for new military equipment as part of the recent army reorganization. Also released is a summary of (unclassified) equipment currently on order by the Army.
Read more...
April 4
The amphibious landing ships
Jacara and
Gerboise, along with the accompanying tanker
Cap Corse and the destroyer
Valmy, have arrived at Port Vila with elements of the 1er
Demi-Brigade du génie naval. These units are deployed on a training exercise, and will construct a civil airfield for the city of Port Vila.
April 4 -
Paris-Soir
Prime Minister Édouard Daladier and Minister of National Economy Raymond Patenôtre have traveled to Vienna to attend the 1941 meeting of the PETA heads of state.
April 5
The first three production Char-8 Montbrun tanks were displayed at the
École d'application de l'arme blindée cavalerie at Saumer alongside four preproduction VCI-41 motor carriers. The new Montbrun tanks will be handed off soon to the 1er Brigade de reaction rapide to begin operational conversion training.
April 4 -
Paris-Soir
Prime Minister Édouard Daladier and Minister of National Economy Raymond Patenôtre have traveled to Vienna to attend the 1941 meeting of the PETA heads of state.
April 5
The first three production Char-8 Montbrun tanks were displayed at the
École d'application de l'arme blindée cavalerie at Saumer alongside four preproduction VCI-41 motor carriers. The new Montbrun tanks will be handed off soon to the 1er Brigade de reaction rapide to begin operational conversion training.
April 7 -
Toulon-Matin
Major elements of the Mediterranean Fleet, including the battleships
France,
Republique,
Provence,
Bretagne, and
Lorraine, the battlecruisers
Dunkerque and
Strasbourg, and their escorts, have departed Toulon on a goodwill cruise of the Mediterranean.
April 10
The
Ecole guerre aérienne des Alliés (Allied Aerial Warfare School) has announced that it will take delivery of twenty-five American P-51 Mustang fighters. The aircraft will supplement the School's extensive collection of international aircraft, which are used to train FAR allied pilots in air-to-air combat. The Mustangs will be used by the
Escadron de agresseur, a group of instructor pilots who are responsible for teaching vital air-combat skills to the pilot trainees.
April 14
Société Clerget-Blin et Cie has announced that it has acquired the assets of the defunct
Le Groupe d’études de moteurs à huile lourde (GEMHL), an aero-diesel development firm. Under the terms of the acquisition, GEMHL will produce parts for Clerget aviation turbo-diesels, and will help Clerget meet the increasing demand for their fuel-efficient engines.
April 16
Renault celebrated the production of the forty thousandth model of the Renault 4CV today.
April 17
Four doctors have created the
Association Médicale de Afrique de l'Ouest, a charitable organization to assist in the development of medical clinics in French West Africa. The organization is supported by the French Catholic church. The founders have announced that they will seek to use aircraft to fly into remote areas in order to help provide better services to African people.
April 21
The first production Bloch MB.970 Transatlantique, painted in the colors of Air France, took off today from the airfield at Déols to undertake its acceptance flight. Three more aircraft are scheduled to enter service before the end of June, when Air France hopes to initiate Paris-to-Cleito and Paris-to-New York service. Still hidden in the Déols factory is the prototype for the MB.972, the so-called "Super-Transatlantique", which will carry several more passengers and be capable of much greater range.
April 23
The newly-formed Électricité de France has announced that to meet the rising demand for electricity production in France, it has started design work for a new 350 MW hydroelectric plant on the Rhone, the
Barrage de Donzère-Mondragon. Accompanying the project will be a 24km-long diversion channel to power the plant and improve river navigation on the Rhone, permitting the passage of 11.4m x 190m river traffic.
April 26
Two people were treated for minor injuries and shock today when lightning struck the Eiffel Tower.
April 29
A final composite flight of the Leduc O.10 was carried out today. The next flight, scheduled for May, will launch the (unpowered) O.10 aircraft for free-flight glider trials.
April 30
The new airfield at Port Vila was opened for service today. The airfield was constructed as part of a military exercise by the 1er
Demi-Brigade du génie naval, but will handle civilian air-travel into this important island city.
May 2
The Leduc O.10 prototype made its first unpowered free-flight today. The Bloch MB.161 mothership carried the aircraft to 3,200 meters before beginning a full-power dive. As the airspeed reached 450 kph, the crew detached the Leduc from its carrying cradle, and the aircraft soared away. The Leduc, under the skillful control of test pilot Jean Seigner, glided back down to the runway, tracked by the photographic chase planes of the CEM.
This first flight, though an excellent step forward, is not yet a landmark occasion, as the novel ramjet engine is not yet installed. Further composite flights with the installed engine will be necessary before the Leduc can fly independently under ramjet power.
May 5
Amiot and Arsenal de l'Aéronautique announced today that they have concluded an agreement for Amiot to license-build the VG.60 Revenant. Read more
here.
May 6
The main body of the Force de Raid returned to Toulon today, having returned from their deployment to Indochina. Some units remain temporarily in the Pacific. The battlecruisers
Paris and
Lyon have additionally replaced the battleships
Richelieu and
Courbet as the capital ships of the Pacific Fleet, permitting those battleships to come back to France.
May 7
With one week remaining before the French elections, the four main candidates have entered the final stretch of their campaigning.
Read more here.
May 8
The French Army accepted a proposal from
Camions Bernard for a new all-terrain tank transporter. The new 8x8 DI-8B transporter weighs twenty metric tons and can tow a Char-2 Lefebvre tank on a trailer. It is powered by an Alsthom MD.8/24 diesel engine, similar to the ones used on the Char-8 Montbrun tank.
May 10
Work on the hospital ship
Paix is reportedly completed at the dockyard in Bordeaux.
May 12
The Artillery Technical Service announced that it has successfully completed trials of 132mm and 200mm rockets designed for use as artillery. While the 132mm rocket is a near-clone of those manufactured in Russia, the 200mm rocket is of a mostly indigenous design, pioneered by the rocketry experts Colonel Jean-Jacques Barre and Robert Esnault-Pelterie for the Artillery Technical Service. Several demonstration "Batterie d'artillerie de roquettes" will be formed to provide further testing, and further development work on other projects is said to be ongoing. No further details are available at this time.
May 14
From all reports, the polls received a particularly high turnout for the national elections today. Details were not available, but many newspaper commentators predicted an easy victory by Félix Gouin of the French Socialist Party. Other observers were uncertain, pointing out that none of the "straw polls" were conducted in an unbiased manner.
May 15
Although the tally of votes continues, election officials speculated that it appears Paul Theisman and his
Alliance républicaine party have triumphed in the national elections.
May 17
Election officials announced the results of the French national elections.
Read more here.
May 19
Pending three run-off elections scheduled for June 8th, the
Alliance républicaine holds 280 seats (48.5%) in the Chamber of Deputies and 173 seats (50.4%) in the Senate. Although the
Alliance républicaine lacks an absolute majority in the Chamber of Deputies, it will likely form a coalition in the Chamber with one of the minority parties.
President-Elect Theisman will be inaugurated July 7th, and is currently preparing a cabinet.
May 21 -
Paris-Soir, business section
At a joint press conference, spokesmen for Transall and Michelin announced Transall's acquisition of a significant percentage of Michelin's stock in Citroen, the result of three months hard negotiation by the various involved parties. The deals of the purchase are widely seen by auto industry specialists as favorable to Citroen, which will receive more opportunities to develop cars, as well as market them outside the country.
May 23
The spokesman for the
Centre d'Essais en Vol has announced that since the first free-flight of the Leduc O.10 ramjet aircraft, three more independent free flights have been carried out, again with an unpowered airframe. However, the second O.10 prototype is currently in the shop undergoing modification to carry the ramjet engine.
May 26
The Colas Group's
Société Anonyme pour la Construction et l'Entretien des Routes (SACER) unit was declared the low and preferred bidder for construction of the first French autoroute sections, including the planned Paris Ring Road.
May 27
President-Elect Theisman has announced the final set of nominations for cabinet positions.
Read more here.
May 29
The
Centre d'Essais en Vol announced to the aviation press that the second Leduc O.10 prototype aircraft, mounted in composite with a Bloch MB.161 mothership, completed its first composite flight with a working ramjet engine today.
Read more here.
May 30
A number of talented young fashion designers have turned out to attend a fashion show in the Paris suburb of Meudon today. The show was designed to focus primarily on younger artistic talents who are seeking to break into the fashion market, although some established fashion designers, such as Jacques Heim and his junior partner Louis Réard, attended to lend credibility and draw media attention.
June 2
The
Société Industrielle de Mécanique et Carrosserie Automobile was formed today as a partnership between unspecified French investors and the German Auto-Union group. The new company, name shortened to Simca, will serve as the general agent for AU in France.
June 3
Officials of the Armee de l'Aire inspected an improved prototype of the Nord N.1500 Normandie parked at Orly Airport today. The big four-engine transport, highly desired as a transport aircraft by the military, is the seventh prototype built to date. The Normandie has seen some challenges, with the project now entering its fifth year of development, with paper designs for the Normandie existed at Potez as early as 1936. The 1937 Rif-Atlas revolt gave more urgency to the aircraft's development. The Armee de Terre has requested that the Normandie be capable of air-dropping a light vehicle, however, which the current aircraft, with its clamshell rear door, is unable to do.
June 4
The French Army has published the responses for the April 3rd proposal for a light utility car (
"Véhicule léger tout-terrain", or VLTT). Vehicles will be tested and judged based on off-road performance, fuel economy, maintenance, ergonomics and design factors, towing capability, potential field modifications, cost, manufacturing capabilities, and a number of other factors. The purchasing commission will narrow the field to the three most valued contenders in July, whereupon extended field trials with prototypes shall begin.
June 5
Berliet has announced the purchase of inactive former automaker Ariès, complete with all facilities and equipment. Berliet has announced its intent to renovate the former Ariès factory to produce GBC-4 trucks for the military and civilian markets. The renovated facilities should begin operation in 1942, and be capable of producing two thousand trucks per year.
June 6
Oleg Losev, a Russian national and inventor, has accepted the invitation of the
Centre national de la recherche scientifique (National Centre for Scientific Research) to join a year-long study program in France to study electronics and computers.
June 9
The French military has issued a general informational alert regarding upcoming military exercises between the coastal towns of Phan Thiet and Vung Tau (near Saigon) in French Indochina. The exercises will be carried out jointly with Thai military units and will include air, land, and sea components.
June 10
ONERA (the
Office National d'Études et de Recherches Aérospatiales) has opened a new wind-tunnel complex at Modane-Avrieux in the Savoy region of France. The complex includes two wind-tunnels of particular note, with a 15-meter wind tunnel capable of up to 700kph, and a 1.5-meter wind tunnel designed to generate speeds of at least 3000kph. The new high-speed wind tunnel is a critical component of ONERA's high-speed flight research.
June 11
A flight of three Lioré et Olivier LeO 400 floatplanes has departed France to make a tour of several countries in northern Europe, stopping in Belgium, Denmark, Nordmark, Poland, the Baltic states, and Ireland.
June 12
The
Centre national d'enseignement à distance (National Center for Distance Education) has begun moving into their new headquarters in Paris. The CNED provides distance-learning materials to schools and individuals around the world.
June 13 -
Le Figaro
The delayed Akesombo Dam and Tema Aluminium Smelter project in Côte-de-l'Or [1] continues to linger in administrative limbo...
Read more here.
June 15 -
Paris-Soir
Air France has initiated flights from Paris to Cleito today using the Bloch MB.970 Transatlantique airliner F-IGK today.
Read more here.
June 16
The carrier
L'Ocean weighed anchor from Toulon before dawn today, getting underway for the eastern Mediterranean to conduct port calls and sea trials. Embarked aboard France's newest carrier are forty LeO-400 floatplanes, which the
L'Ocean will deliver to the Greek Navy during a port call in Athens. The floatplanes are being shipped in crated state, with their floats removed and wings folded.
In related news, the recently-rebuilt contretorpillieurs
Roland and
Olifant finished their refit in Brest and put to sea briefly to test their new engines. They will conduct another three months of trials before moving on to new assignments.
June 20
Officials of the Armee de Terre and the Marine Nationale inspected the new Societe Francaise Du Gyroplane SH.20 Cigale helicopter today at Dijon Air Base. The SH.20, designed at SFG with Atlantean and Russian cooperation, is a substantial improvement on the groundbreaking but mechanically complex Dorand G.II, which has been manufactured by SFG since 1937. Although the Cigale has not been seen by the private press, it has reportedly dispensed with the contra-rotating propellers of the G.II, instead using a Sikorsky-designed tail rotor to deal with torque issues. Reportedly, Monsieur Sikorsky worked quite closely with Monsieur Dorand and his design team, although at the present time it is not known if the Cigale will be adopted by any other FAR members.
Both the Marine Nationale and the Armee de Terre have shown growing interest in helicopters over the past few years. Although the Dorand G.II was known to be very complex and never lived up to the high performance expectations, it has proven to be a crucial stepping stone in the development of the helicopter. The SH.20, if accepted for service, may see production orders as early as December, although individuals within SFG have indicated that 1942 is a more likely date.
June 21
Preparations are underway for the next Tour de France, which begins on July 3rd. The world's most prestigious bicycling race will see the participation of individuals and teams from around the world.
June 23
With Air France's opening of Paris-to-New York service in the next week, the French Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (better know to travelers as "the French Line") has started a new advertising campaign emphasizing the safety, comfort and reliability of sea travel over the speed of the airliner. Their newest poster, released for use over the weekend, shows a CGT ocean liner as a solid, safe and imposing edifice, drawing a contrast to the fragility of the airliner.
June 24
The Armee de Terre has begun issuing, on a test bases, the new "Modele 1941" infantryman's boots. The new boots will replace footwear designed during the Great War, specifically the "Trench Boot". The new Modele 1941s have both the laces for the main part of the boot and a double-buckle system for the leggings. The design is reported to provide better comfort and support for the arches and ankles, and improves waterproofing while still maintaining a good airflow.
June 27
The
Fédération du Scoutisme Français was founded today as a merger of several smaller scouting associations.
June 30
The battlecruisers
Dunkerque and
Strasbourg departed Toulon today on their planned goodwill cruise to the South Atlantic. Their first port call will be at Casablanca.
WesWorld »
The SIM »
News and Stories »
Quoted
But we're sending large and important ships to tell the people we're visiting that they're worthy of receiving a port call from France's largest and most important ships.
Sunday, April 28th 2024, 11:32pm
Go to the top of the page
