Nord 1101 Noralpha: French communications and liaison monoplane
Made by SNCAN in France
First flight: 1945
Capacity: 3 passengers
Engine: Renault 6Q 10
Power: 230 HP
Speed: 305 km/h
Range: 1500 km
Ceiling: 5900 m
Nord-Aviation (English: Northern Aviation) was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer. The bulk of its facilities were based on the site of Bourges airport, in the département of Cher, in central France.
On 1 October 1954, Nord Aviation was created as a result of the acquisition of SFECMAS (Société française d’étude et de construction de matériels aéronautiques spéciaux) by SNCAN (Société nationale de constructions aéronautiques du Nord).
The company’s name, Nord, also became commonly used as a generic name referring to the Pingouin light aircraft. It manufactured numerous aircraft; perhaps Nord Aviation’s most successful aircraft was the Nord Noratlas, a utility transport used by both military and civilian customers. Other aircraft included general aviation, trainers and experimental aircraft, as well as other transports. Nord Aviation also developed and produced its own range of missiles; perhaps the most famous of these was the Exocet, a sea-skimming anti-ship missile.
On 1 March 1970, Nord Aviation merged with Sud Aviation to create Société nationale d’industrie aérospatiale (SNIAS), which was promptly renamed Aérospatiale. In 2000, this company merged into European Aerospace Corporation EADS, which was then renamed to the Airbus Group.
