Sud Aviation Super-Caravelle

The Sud Aviation Super-Caravelle was an early design for a supersonic transport. Unlike most competing designs which envisioned larger trans-Atlantic aircraft and led to the likes of the Boeing 2707, the Super-Caravelle was a much smaller, shorter range design intended to replace their earlier and very successful Caravelle. Design work started in 1960 and was announced in 1961 at the Paris Air Show, but was later merged with similar work at the British Aircraft Corporation (originally the Bristol 223) to create the Concorde project in November 1962. After starting the Concorde, the Super Caravelle name was instead used on a lengthened version of the original Caravelle design, the SE-210B.

The Super-Caravelle looks very much like a smaller, two-engine version of the Concorde. It used the Concorde's unique ogive wing planform, and was otherwise similar in shape and layout with the exception of the nose area which was more "conventional" and only the outermost section over the radar "drooped" for visibility on takeoff and landing. In normal use it was designed to carry 70 passengers between 2000 to 3000 km at about Mach 2. The size and range requirements were set to make the Super-Caravelle "perfect" for Air France's European and African routes.

The Concorde was originally to be delivered in two versions, a longer-range transatlantic version similar to the Bristol 223 that was eventually delivered as the Concorde, and a smaller version for shorter range routes similar to the Super-Caravelle. After consulations with prospective customers, the smaller design was dropped.

pecifications (Super-Caravelle)

Aircraft specification

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
crew=4
capacity=68 to 105 passengers
length main=33.0 m
length alt=108 ft 3 in
span main=34.3 m
span alt=112 ft 6 in
height main=8.7 m
height alt=28 ft 6 in
area main=146.7 m²
area alt=1,579.1 ft²
empty weight main=
empty weight alt=
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main=
max takeoff weight alt=
more general=
engine (jet)=Rolls-Royce Avon RA.29 Mk.533 turbojets, 56 kN (12,590 lbf) each; "or" 2× Pratt & Whitney JT8D-9
type of jet=turbofans
number of jets=2
thrust main=65 kN
thrust alt=14,610 lbf
max speed main=835 km/h
max speed alt=518 mph
max speed more=at 7,600 m (24,935 m)
range main=2,650 km
range alt=1,645 mi
ceiling main=12,000 m
ceiling alt=39,370 ft
climb rate main=11.2 m/s
climb rate alt=2,205 ft/min
loading main=
loading alt=
thrust/weight=
more performance=
avionics=

ee also

aircontent
related =
* Concorde
similar aircraft =
* Bristol 223
* Boeing 2707
* Lockheed L-2000
* Tupolev Tu-144
lists =
* List of airliners
see also =
* BAC 221
* Handley Page HP.115
* LAPCAT