Société des Avions Bernard

Société des Avions Bernard

Company type	Private
Industry	Aerospace
Predecessor	Etablissements Adolphe Bernard, Société Industrielle des Métaux et du Bois (SIMB)
Founded	April 1917 (1917-04)
Founder	Adolphe Bernard
Defunct	1935 (1935)
Fate	Nationalized in 1935
Headquarters	Île-de-France , France
Area served	France
Key people	Jean Hubert (chief designer from 1922)
Products	Aircraft

Société des Avions Bernard () was a French aircraft producer operating during the early decades of the 20th century.

History

The company was established in April 1917 by Adolphe Bernard under the name Etablissements Adolphe Bernard, initially focusing on licensed production of SPAD fighter planes. Following the conclusion of World War I, it reorganized as Société Industrielle des Métaux et du Bois (SIMB) to broaden its manufacturing scope but did not resume aircraft development until 1922, when a dedicated aircraft division was launched with Jean Hubert serving as chief designer. The firm ultimately declared bankruptcy in 1927.

Bernard revived the enterprise as Société des Avions Bernard, concentrating on producing a small series of airliners for CIDNA. In 1935, it took over Hydravions Louis Schreck FBA, yet financial challenges remained until the nationalization of the French aviation sector occurred that same year.

Aircraft

Notable aircraft produced or designed by the company include:

Etablissements Adolphe Bernard

• Bernard AB 1: A twin-engine medium bomber with 11 units constructed (1918).
• Bernard AB 3: A mail transport adaptation of the AB 1 (1920).
• Bernard AB 4: A passenger aircraft variant displayed in 1919 but left incomplete.

Société Industrielle des Métaux et du Bois (S.I.M.B.)

• Bernard AB.C1: Fighter aircraft initially redesigned as AB 10 prior to its maiden flight (1922).
• Bernard SIMB AB 3M: A twin-fuselage, tri-motor bomber project; two units remained unfinished (1923).
• Bernard SIMB V.1 and V.2: Racing planes with one example built for each model (1924).
• Bernard SIMB AB 12, AB 14, and AB 15: Fighter aircraft with one unit constructed per variant (1925–1926).
• Bernard SIMB AB 16: A three-engine aircraft designed for colonial use; single unit built (1927).

Société des Avions Bernard (S.A.B.)

• Bernard 18: Eight-passenger transport plane; two produced (1927).
• Bernard 190: Ten-seat airliner; fourteen units manufactured (1928).
• Bernard 20: Single-seat fighter; one example built (1929).
• Bernard H.V.40, H.V.41, and H.V.42: Single-seat racing floatplanes; several constructed between 1929 and 1931.
• Bernard H.52: Catapult-launched floatplane fighter; two units built (1933).
• Bernard 60 T: Three-engine transport accommodating fourteen passengers; two produced (1929).
• Bernard 70: A series comprising single-seat sports and fighter aircraft; three units built (1929).
• Bernard 80 GR: Long-distance record-setting aircraft; one constructed in 1930 and subsequently modified.
• Bernard 82: Bomber derivatives of the Bernard 80; two built in 1933, including an experimental diesel-powered version.
• Additional designs encompassed colonial military planes (Bernard 160), light aircraft (Bernard 200), and various racing seaplanes.

See also

• List of aircraft manufacturers

References

• Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aircraft Manufacturers. Naval Institute Press, 1993, pp. 46–47.
• Liron, J.L. Les avions Bernard. Éditions Larivère, Paris, 1990.