Caudron C.714

The Caudron C.714 Cyclone was a lightweight, wooden‑built fighter‑trainer produced by the French manufacturer Caudron during the early years of World War II. Designed in 1938 as a low‑cost interceptor, the C.714 featured a sleek, low‑wing monoplane layout with an all‑wood structure and a retractable undercarriage. Powered by a 450‑hp Renault 4Pei air‑cooled V‑12 engine, it could reach a top speed of roughly 460 km/h (285 mph) and carried a single 20 mm Hispano‑Suiza cannon plus two light machine guns. Only 90 examples were completed before production was halted in 1940, and most served with the French Air Force’s fighter groups and later with the British Royal Air Force’s 340 (Free French) Squadron. Although its wooden airframe gave it poor durability and limited combat performance against heavier German aircraft, the C.714 proved valuable as a trainer and as a stop‑gap fighter during the desperate Battle of France. Its deployment highlighted the challenges of rapid aircraft development under wartime pressure and underscored the strategic importance of economical designs when resources were scarce. Today the Cyclone is remembered as a symbol of French ingenuity and resilience in the early aviation war effort.

Caudron

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