Hi everybody,
The very first plane was Br 940-01 "Intégral", coded F-ZWVF, only the letter "F" on the fuselage. She made her first flight on 21 May 1958. During the following three years she made some 300 flights.
There has been only one prototype of the Br 941, the Br 941-01, coded F-WJSD but was re-coded F-ZWVZ [showing that she belonged to the CEV or Centre d'essais en vol (Test Flight Center)] prior to first flight on 01 June 1961. This plane was the "first" Mc Donnell-Douglas 188 in June 1964, but was damaged in landing and repaired at St Louis by Mc Donnell and re-engined with Turmo IIID3 of 1 500 hp in place of the Turboméca Turmo IIID of 1 250 hp. She flew again in 1965 and was WFU after 1 200 hrs TT of test flights.
There were only one production batch of four Br 941 S... The French government was reluctant to order the new plane having already spent funds on the much larger Transall programme... And in the USA, where the plane could have been produced by Piasecki (PA-94) and McDonnell-Douglas (McDD 188) the US Army preferred the DHC Buffallo to the McDonnell-sponsored Breguet transport in the Army Tactical Transport competition in the late sixties...
Numerous projects had been drawn up, including :
Br 942 (1960) : basically a Br 941 with pressurized fuselage of circular section for commercial use (40 to 60 passengers)
Br 945 (1960) : a light tactical transport with a secondary role as co-operation aircraft powered by four Turmo IIID, competing with the Hurel-Dubois 150, Max Holste MH-261 and Dassault Spirale III. The Spirale III was chosen in february 1962 but eventually not ordered...
Br 1941C (1961) : feeder-liner with 52 passengers and 22 tons of freight
Br 941M (1961) : military transport.
Br 943 (1961) : a derivative with the projected more powerful engine of 1 850 hp, the Turmo VI and boundary layer control. Another version, the Bf 943R, with auxiliary pivoting Rolls-Royce RB. 162 jet engines was foreseen.
Br 944 (1964) : a project for 150 passengers.
Br 941B (1967) : production freighter version both civil and military.
Br 941S, N° 1, FF on 19 April 1967, coded F-ZJRK "K". To CEAM as 118-IX (F-SDIX) and ET 2/62 "Vercors" as 62-NA (F-RANA). WFU : April 1974.
Br 941S, N° 2, FF on ?, coded F-ZJRL "L". Second "McDD 188 from June 1968 to June 1969. To ET 2/62 "Vercors" as 62-NB (F-RANB). WFU : 1974.
Br 941S, N° 3, FF on ?, coded F-ZJRM "M". To CEAM as 118-IH (F-SDIH) and ET 2/62 "Vercors" as 62-NC (F-RANC). WFU : July 1974.
Br 941S, N° 4, FF on 25 April 1968. To CEAM as 118-IY (F-SDIY) and ET 2/62 "Vercors" as 62-ND (F-RAND). WFU : July 1974. Preserved by Musée de l'air at Le Bourget.
Jicehem
