The SABCA, (Socièté
Anonyme Belge de Construction Aéronautique), in partnership
with Caproni, designed the aircraft very similar to the British
Fairey Battle. The prototype was made in Caproni's workshops, with
SABCA supplying the powertrain and the armament. The first flight
took place on February 16, 1939 in Italy, piloted by Ettore Wengi,
test pilot of the Italian firm. The prototype was transferred by
rail to Belgium in June of the same year and flew again on September
19, 1939. Faced with the qualities of the aircraft, the company
SABCA bought a license for the manufacture in Belgium Caproni CA-335
Maestral , Italian designation of the plane. In Belgium, the device
became the SABCA S47.
The SABCA S47 is a single-engine, tandem, low-wing aircraft. The
fuselage structure is made of steel tubes covered with aluminum
sheets. The wing, of metal structure, is covered with plywood. Interesting
feature, the device is equipped with dual-control.
The SABCA S47 is a versatile
aircraft capable of performing hunting, ground attack, or reconnaissance
missions.
The prototype is presented
to the Belgian and foreign authorities in January 1940, but it is
hilly in France in March 1940, on the ground of Orleans-Bricy. The
German invasion in May 1940 put an end to the SABCA S47 program.
It will be abandoned on the grounds of Orleans-Bricy where it will
still be visible in 1942
