In the summer of 1937, the L’Aeronautique Militaire Belge began to recognize the desperate need to replace the various versions of the Fairey Fox light bomber/reconnaissance/attack aircraft. The SABCA firm entered into an agreement in the fall to license produce the Caproni Ca 335 Maestrale as the SABCA S.47. Meanwhile, Avions Fairey put forward the British Fairey Battle as a light bomber/reconnaissance aircraft. While both of these proposals interested the Belgian high command, they both had their drawbacks - the Battle was bigger, slower, and less versatile than the S.47, but the latter was unproven in technology. As a compromise solution, E.O. Tipps of Avions Fairey proposed an even smaller, technologically simpler aircraft that was broadly based on the S.47 layout. The Avions Fairey Faucon (as it was named) was designed in three short weeks by E.O.Tipps (with a lot of assistance from the Fairey staff at Hayes, especially Marcel Lobelle). The Faucon prototype first flew in April 1938, at Gosselies. The Faucon completed its test program and, with only a few needed changes, entered production in January 1939. Faucons began to enter service replacing Fox IIs and IIIs in the summer of 1939.
In the meantime, the Belgian government saw an opportunity to to increase international prestige by exporting their new combat aircraft whilst simultaneously securing a source of petroleum imports. Accordingly, an agreement was made with the government of Venezuela whereby twelve Avions Fairey Faucons were exported to Venezuela in exchange for a large quantity of Venezuelan oil. In the event, only six Faucons were delivered to Venezuela (where they were known as 'Halcons') before further exports were stopped in order that all production could be directed to the Belgian AIr Force.
Shown below is number 4 of the six Faucons delivered to Venezuela.
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
Faucon by
cacree, on Flickr
