Potez 840?

dogmatix

While leafing through an old Observers book of aircraft from the early 60’s I came across an entry for the Potez 840. Apparently they were to be built in Ireland and France. It looked like a cross between a Viscount and Jetstream, but smaller. Supposed to have been built at Baldonnel – the factory was completed but the company went belly up.

The wiki entry is a little sparse on the aircraft so was wondering if anyone else here has more info?

Did Ireland (south of the border) ever build aircraft here - either licensed designs or local ones?

Joe 90

dogmatix wrote: »

While leafing through an old Observers book of aircraft from the early 60’s I came across an entry for the Potez 840. Apparently they were to be built in Ireland and France. It looked like a cross between a Viscount and Jetstream, but smaller. Supposed to have been built at Baldonnel – the factory was completed but the company went belly up.

The wiki entry is a little sparse on the aircraft so was wondering if anyone else here has more info?

Did Ireland (south of the border) ever build aircraft here - either licensed designs or local ones?

Wiki shows up the Baldonnel factory to produce the Potez 840 but I remember haering something about a Potez factory to produce aero engines in Ireland. Don't know any details as I spent a fair bit of the '60s incarcerated in a boarding school where we knew nothing about the outside world.

newcavanman

The factory that was to be used for the Potez 840 production line is now the home of Lufthansa Technik Airmotive on the Naas road in front of Baldonnel . The Potez 840 was one of a large number of proposed designs in the late 19650s to early 1960s for a DC-3/ C-47 replacement . It was felt thatlsarge numbers of airlines would look to replace their old C-47s with much newer technology ,but similarly sized aircraft . In the event due to the growth in air travel at the time, most airlines went for larger aircraft, and almost none of the proposed 25-35 seater aircraft ever entered service . It was to be in the early 1980s when that size category came back in to vogue, which led to modified aircraft such as the Shorts 330/360 , and new designs such as the Saab 340 and DHC-8 .

xflyer

When I worked in Airmotive it was said that one Potez 840 was assembled in the factory and then flown out of Baldonnel. I'm not really sure of the veracity of the tale but as I would have imagine pictures would have been taken of such a significant event.

The hangar was then used by Roadstone to store it's vehicles for many years until Aer Lingus wanted an engine overhaul plant. Which was Airmotive Ireland. Interestingly Roadstone kept offices in the Airmotive building for a long time, maybe they're still there.

As for for building aircraft well I read that aircraft were assembled, in of all places, Dublin city. Apparently during 1918 RAF aircraft were sent crated to a garage in Portobello, where the old Ever Ready battery factory stood. There they were rebuilt and towed to Baldonnel. Not quite manufacturing though.

Stovepipe

There was a concrete bridge from Airmotive to Baldonnel, from where assembled aircraft would be test-flown. There is a nose of what I think is a Potez 240 (but might be a Nord 262) at the Vliegend Museum, Seppe, Netherlands.
regards
Stovepipe