On this day in aviation history, 90 years ago (February 18, 1936), the first flight of the Caudron C.690M occurred. The C.690 was a single-seat trainer developed by French aircraft manufacturer Caudron during the late 1930s. Caudron intended the C.690M to be an aircraft that could train fighter pilots to handle higher-performing planes. Reminiscent of French aircraft designer Marcel Riffard’s race-aircraft designs (of the same period), the C.690M looked like a sleek fighter on its own.
Caudron initially sought to market the C.690M overseas, but interest was found to be lacking. Only two aircraft were ordered: one by Japan (designated as KXC1) and another by the USSR. Flight testing of the C.690M began on an unfortunate note, as the first of two prototypes was destroyed in a crash that killed Caudron’s chief test pilot, René Paulhan. Nevertheless, Caudron continued to develop the advanced trainer. France’s Armée de l’Air did eventually express interest in the C.690M, and they ordered a batch to be manufactured, with slight modifications. Delivery of the first aircraft to the Armée de l’Air did not occur until April 1939. Before the outbreak of World War II, only 15 C.690Ms were supplied, and Caudron only managed to build 19 in total. The Caudron C.690M was powered by a 220-horsepower Renault 6Q-05 inverted inline 6-cylinder engine. With this Renault, the C.690M could attain a maximum airspeed of 230 mph. The Caudron’s stall speed was 53 mph. C.690Ms had a range of 590 nautical miles and a service ceiling of 31,800 feet. The aircraft could attain a 2,070 feet per minute rate of climb.
