Blériot XXI

The Blériot XXI was a French monoplane designed and built by the pioneering aviator Louis Blériot’s company in the early 1910s. First flown in 1911, it followed the successful Blériot VII and VIII, incorporating a more powerful 50‑horsepower Gnome rotary engine and a refined wing planform that improved lift‑to‑drag ratio. Its wooden frame was covered with fabric, and the aircraft featured a fixed undercarriage with a pair of main wheels and a tailskid, typical of the pre‑World War I era. The pilot sat in an open cockpit positioned beneath the wing’s leading edge, giving excellent forward visibility for reconnaissance and training missions. Though only a handful were built, the XXI demonstrated the practicality of monoplane designs for longer flights and helped validate the aerodynamic concepts that would dominate later wartime fighters. The aircraft’s participation in several early aviation meetings, including the 1911 Grande Semaine d'Aviation at Reims, showed its reliability and contributed to Blériot’s reputation as an innovator. In retrospect, the Blériot XXI marks a transitional step between experimental prototypes and the more standardized combat monoplanes that emerged during World War I.