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Fieseler Fi-156C-1 Storch

Designed in 1935, the Storch was widely used during World War II by German military forces for reconnaissance, liaison and aeromedical transport. High-ranking officers also used Fi 156s as personal transports. Notable features of the Storch included its good maneuverability, extremely low stalling speed of 32 mph, and excellent short field takeoff and landing characteristics. Between 1937 and 1945, the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) accepted almost 2,900 Fi 156s.

At the Cleveland Air Races in September 1938 the Germans exhibited their Fiesler Storch. Other countries using the Fi 156 included Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Italy. The most famous Storch mission was the hazardous rescue of deposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini in 1943 from a tiny rock-strewn plateau at a remote lodge high in the Apennine Mountains.

Artillery officers also were dissatisfied with available observation aircraft. They wanted arugged plane that could operate out of forward locations, whichwould facilitate cooperation with the firing battalions, provide longer loiter time over the front, and decrease the significance of an aircraft's maximum range. In addition, from an artillery point of view, a slower plane was much more conducive to scrutinizing activity on the ground. The emphasis on acquiring the fastest and most capable aircraft worked at cross purposes. The resulting observation planes were large, heavy, complicated machines that required sophisticated maintenance and a well-developed airfield, characteristics that mandated they be based well to the rear. Much smaller than the standard American observation plane, it was slower, more maneuverable, and could operate from a much shorter field.

One Argus As 10C-3 of 240 hp 109 mph 93 mph 238 miles 17,300 ft. 46 ft. 9 in. 32 ft. 6 in. 10 ft. 2,904 lbs. maximum

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MS.500 Criquet

Best known for its wartime use by the Luftwaffe, the remarkable Fieseler Fi.156 Storch became synonymous with air operations over Indochina in the years following World War 2. Initially produced at the Fieseler plant in Kassel, in April 1942 the Storch also entered production for the Luftwaffe in the Morane-Saulnier works in the Paris suburbs and 141 aircraft had been delivered at the end of the year. With the Reich's air industry mobilized to meet the growing demand for home defence fighters, the Fieseler plant was switched to making the Focke-Wulf FW 190 and Storch production was entirely transferred to France and Czechoslovakia.

In order to rebuild both its air force and its aircraft industry in the immediate post-war period, the French government decided to keep a number of German designs in production and 925 Fi.156s were ordered under their new designation, the Morane-Saulnier MS.500 Criquet, while around 65 Störche captured as war booty were turned over to the Armée de l'Air. Used for observation, liaison and casualty evacuation, the Criquet soon became a common sight over Indochina.

Morane Saulnier applied some design modifications. Most visible were the aluminum wing that replaced the wooden structures and the fabric skinned wings of the Fi-156. But the main difference between the aircraft and the original German French variants lies in the automation, since the Fi-156 was equipped with an Argus AS 10 8-cylinder engine inverted V-240 hp air-cooled, as the MS 500. Several different types of engines were offered on the following versions:

• MS.500 (Fi 156C) with the original Argus AS 10c 240 HP engine
• MS.501 with a Renault 6Q 233 HP engine
• MS.502 with a Salmson 9AB 230 HP radial engine
• MS.504 & MS.505 with a Jacobs R-755-A2 304 HP engine
• MS.506 with a Lycoming engine.