Nieuport 17

Nieuport 17
Description
Role	Fighter
Crew	Pilot
First Flight
Entered Service	March 1916
Manufacturer	Nieuport
Dimensions
Length	19 ft	5.8 m
Wingspan	26 ft 9 in	8.2 m
Height	7 ft 10 in	2.4 m
Wing area	159 ft²	14.8 m²
Weights
Empty	827 lb	375 kg
Loaded	1235 lb	560 kg
Maximum takeoff	lb	kg
Capacity
Powerplant
Engines	Le Rhone JB
Power	110 hp	82kW
Performance
Maximum speed	102 mph	164 km/h
Combat range	155 miles	249 km
Service ceiling	17390 ft	5300 m
Rate of climb	18 ft/min	5 m/min
Wing loading	7.77 lb/ft²	37.84 kg/m²
Power/Mass	0.09 hp/lb	0.15 kW/kg
Avionics
Avionics
Armament
Guns	1 Vickers or Lewis machine gun

The Nieuport 17 was a biplane fighter aircraft manufactured by Nieuport, and prominent during the World War I era.

The Nie. 17 was directly developed from the Nieuport 12, with a more powerful engine, larger wings, and a more effective structure in general. At first, it was equipped with a 110 hp engine, then later it was upgraded to a 130 hp engine. It had outstanding maneuverability (compared to other fighters of the era), but the lower wing tended to snap under heavy loads.

The plane's was utilized in World War I. It reached the French front in March 1916, at the same time as the British De Havilland 2, and was quickly adopted by the Royal Air Force and Royal Naval Air Service, as it was superior to any British plane at the time. The Nie. 17 was also utilized by the Dutch, Belgian, Russian, and Italian air forces. Even Germany copied the design in the Siemens-Schukert D3.

Many Allied air aces flew this plane, including Canadian ace W.A. Bishop, who received a Victoria Cross while flying this plane.