View source for Engineering:Nieuport-Delage NiD-120

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{|{{Infobox Aircraft Begin
 | name=NiD 120 Series
 | image=Nieuport NiD.121 photo L'Aerophile January 1934.jpg
 | caption=Nieuport-Delage NiD 121
}}{{Infobox Aircraft Type
 | type=Fighter
 | national origin={{wipe|France}}
 | manufacturer=Nieuport
 | designer=
 | first flight=23 July 1932
 | introduced=
 | retired=
 | status=
 | primary user=Peru
 | more users= <!--Limited to three in total; separate using <br /> -->
 | produced= <!--years in production-->
 | number built=11
 | program cost= <!--Total program cost-->
 | unit cost= <!--Incremental or flyaway cost for military or retail price for commercial aircraft-->
 | developed from= 
 | variants with their own articles=
}}
|}
The '''Nieuport-Delage NiD 120 series''' was a series of {{wipe|France}} single-seat parasol [[Engineering:Monoplane|monoplane]] fighter aircraft of the 1930s. It was built in a number of versions, fitted with various types of engines, with six aircraft designated '''NiD 123''' being sold to Peru.

==Design and development==
In 1930, the ''Armée de l'Air'' (or {{wipe|French Air Force}}) issued a specification for a single-seat fighter to be powered by a 650&nbsp;hp (485&nbsp;kW) engine and required to reach a speed of 350&nbsp;km/h (217&nbsp;mph) and a height of 9,000&nbsp;m (29,500&nbsp;ft).<ref name="Hartmann p19">Hartmann, p. 19.</ref> A total of 27 designs were offered by French manufacturers, of which one was selected for development to prototype status. Nieuport-Astra's design was a parasol [[Engineering:Monoplane|monoplane]] with the wing mounted just above the fuselage on short cabane struts. A hole was cut out of the wing immediately above the pilot's cockpit, allowing the pilot to raise his seat so that his head was just above the wing for a better upwards view. The engine was cooled using an unusual [[Engineering:Radiator|radiator]] built into the wing, where air was sucked in through slots in the leading edge of the wing and expelled through the trailing edge. A fixed [[Engineering:Conventional landing gear|tailwheel undercarriage]] was fitted. Two versions were proposed, one, the Nieuport-Delage NiD 121, powered by a Lorraine-Dietrich 12H water-cooled V12 engine and the other, the NiD 122, powered by a Hispano-Suiza 12X engine of similar layout.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>

First to fly on 23 July 1932 was the Hispano-powered NiD 122, piloted by Joseph Sadi-Lecointe, with the NiD 121 following on 25 November 1932.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/> The NiD 122 was destroyed in a crash on 13 April 1933 when severe wing [[Physics:Aeroelasticity#Flutter|flutter]] caused an [[Engineering:Aileron|aileron]] to break off while the aircraft was being demonstrated in front of representatives of the Parliament of France.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/> Testing continued, with a second NiD 122 flying in July 1933. While performance was good, with the NiD 121 reaching 367&nbsp;km/h (226&nbsp;mph), it was criticised for a weak undercarriage while its novel radiator was considered vulnerable to damage in combat, giving poor performance at high [[Physics:Angle of attack|angles of attack]], and the [[Engineering:Dewoitine D.500|Dewoitine D.500]] was selected instead.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/><ref>[http://fandavion.free.fr/nieuport_constructeur.htm "Constructeurs d'avions:Nieuport"]. ''Fan d'avions''. 16 May 2001, Retrieved 29 October 2010.</ref>

The NiD 121 was tested by representatives of the Peru Air Force in September 1933, and an order was made for six aircraft that could be fitted with either wheeled or [[Engineering:Floatplane|floatplane]] undercarriages. A prototype of the Peruvian fighter flew on 18 July 1934.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/> A final version, the NiD 125, was built for evaluation by the ''Armée de l'Air'', featuring a more powerful Hispano-Suiza 12Y engine with provision for a 20&nbsp;mm cannon firing through the propeller hub, and with the wing mounted radiators replaced by more conventional radiators mounted on the sides of the fuselage. The sole prototype flew in June 1934, but despite good performance, a similarly powered and armed version of the Dewoitine D.500, the D.510 was chosen for production.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>

==Variants==
[[File:NiD_122_L'Aerophile_Salon_1932.jpg|thumb|NiD 122 photo from L'Aerophile Salon 1932]]

;Nieuport-Delage NiD 121
:Powered by one 670&nbsp;hp (500&nbsp;kW) Lorraine-Dietrich 12H engine. One built.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>
;Nieuport-Delage NiD 122
:Powered by 690&nbsp;hp (515&nbsp;kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Xbrs engine. Two built.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>
;Nieuport-Delage NiD 123
:Fighter for Peru with convertible wheel/float undercarriage, powered by 720&nbsp;hp (537&nbsp;kW) Lorraine-Detrich 12Hdrs engine. One prototype plus six production aircraft.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>
;Nieuport-Delage NiD 125
:Improved fighter with 860&nbsp;hp (642&nbsp;kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs engine and revised cooling system. Reached 400&nbsp;km/h (248&nbsp;mph) during testing. One built.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>

==Operators==
{{PER}}
*Peru Air Force - The six production NiD 123s were delivered to Peru in 1935.<ref name="Complete p442-3"/>

==Specifications (NiD 123 (floatplane)) ==
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=The Complete Book of Fighters<ref name="Complete p442-3">Green and Swanborough 1994, pp. 442–443.</ref>
|prime units?=met
<!--
        General characteristics
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|genhide=

|crew=one
|capacity=
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|span m=13.00
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|height m=3.70
|height ft=
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|wing area sqm=22.00
|wing area sqft=
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|empty weight kg=1335
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|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=Lorraine 12Hdrs
|eng1 type=liquid-cooled V12 engine
|eng1 kw=<!-- prop engines -->
|eng1 hp=720<!-- prop engines -->
|eng1 note=
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|thrust original=

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|perfhide=

|max speed kmh=320
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|range km=600
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|ceiling m=9000
|ceiling ft=
|ceiling note=<ref name="aviafrance NiD123">Parmentier, B. [http://www.aviafrance.com/nieuport-delage-nid-123-aviation-france-687.htm "Nieuport-Delage NiD-123"]. ''Aviafrance''. Retrieved 29 October 2010.</ref>
|climb rate ms=
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|more performance=
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        Armament
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|guns= 2× 7.7 mm (0.303 in) [[Engineering:Vickers machine gun|Vickers machine gun]]s<ref name="aviafrance NiD123"/>
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|hardpoints=
|hardpoint capacity=
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|avionics=
}}

==See also==
{{aircontent
|see also=
|related=<!-- related developments -->
|sequence=
|similar aircraft=<!-- similar or comparable aircraft -->
|lists=<!-- related lists -->
* [[Engineering:List of Interwar military aircraft|List of Interwar military aircraft]]
}}

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*Green, William and Gordon Swanborough. ''The Complete Book of Fighters''. New York: Smithmark, 1994. {{ISBN|0-8317-3939-8}}. 
*Hartmann, Gérard. [http://www.hydroretro.net/etudegh/les_avions_nieuport-delage.pdf "Les avions Nieuport-Delage"]. ''La Coupe Schneider et hydravions anciens''. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
<!-- ==Further reading== -->
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[[Category:Parasol-wing aircraft]]

{{Sourceattribution|Nieuport-Delage NiD-120}}