1872
Roald Amundsen born July 16
1928 Latham expedition
Latham 47.02
- Aircraft type: Latham 47.02 (Latham 47-II)
- Length: 16.30 m
- Wingspan: 25.20 m
- Height: 5.20 m
- Weight: 4,900 kg
- Maximum departure weight: 6,886 kg
- Top speed: 170 km/h
- Range: 900 km
- Engines: 2 x Farman 12We 500 hp (373 kW) 12-cylinder water-cooled W-block
- The hull was made of wood and steel. The bottom was rounded and boat-shaped which made it suitable for landing in large leads, but not on sea ice. Beneath the lower wing on each side was a small float.
- Amundsen first tried to get hold of a Dornier Wal flying boat, similar to N 24 and N 25 used on the expedition to 88 degrees north. He failed, but through contacts of the merchant Fredrik Peterson, head of the Norwegian-French Chamber of Commerce in Paris, the French navy made available a Latham flying boat. Latham 47.02 was the second prototype of this model and originally designed to cross the Atlantic. In the spring of 1928, a test flight of almost 2000 km had been made between Caudebec (France) and Bizerte (Tunisia).
- When the decision was made to use the Latham to search for the Italia expedition, modifications were made at the factory in Caudebec for flying in polar regions. Water pipes, oil pipes and the carburettor were clad to prevent frost formation. The propeller was replaced and a heater installed to maintain a constant temperature around the accumulator batteries.
- After the plane’s arrival in Bergen on June 17, 1928, the circulation pump was overhauled and the port wing float was patched with a metal plate.
The clip below was filmed in the days before Latham 47.02 and the French crew left for Norway in the summer of 1928. At the end of the clip, aviator Renè Guilbaud and radio operator Emile Valette appear in close-up.
Sources:
Dragon, Maurice: Memoire de la derniere tragedie de la conquete du pole du nord, (2018).
Kristensen, Monica: Amundsens siste reise
Hovdenak, Gunnar: Roald Amundsens siste ferd📜
