The Dewoitine D.338 was a French passenger airliner that first flew on 9 August 1935. Powered by three Hispano-Suiza 9V-16 engines (license built versions of the Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9), it entered service with Air France on 13 July 1936 on the route from Paris to Marseille via Lyon.
Designed to carry up to 22 passengers, it had a range of 2,000km (1,200 miles) and cruised at 260km/h. Like all aircraft of the time, the service ceiling was not particularly high, at 16,100 feet.
Dewoitine D.338 Video
Following on from the last video about the versatile Bristol 170, this time we head over to France for a look at the Dewoitine D.338. The first one minute and 10 seconds of the video below show the plane in action.
A lot is packed into the minute, including ground shots as well as air to air photography. When the aircraft swings around on the ground it looks like one of the staff was almost taken out by a propeller.
A Look Inside
In the late 1930s, the plane was operated in Europe and all the way to Hong Kong and Saigon in Asia. They also saw service in South America and Africa, working the Air France network.
Overall Thoughts
There were 30 Dewoitine D.338’s built in Toulouse for Air France. Interestingly the capacity depended on the routes. There was seating for 22 passengers within Europe, 15 for services to Africa, and 12 for services to the Far East (with a note “including 6 in chaises longues”). Sadly there are no surviving examples of this aircraft, so it’s not possible to see what one was like.
Did you know about this French airliner? What do you think of the video? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Featured image via MilitaryAviations.net.
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