Nord 3400 Norbarbe
Role	Two-seat army liaison Type of aircraft
National origin	France
Manufacturer	Nord Aviation
First flight	1958
Introduction	1959
Primary user	French Army Light Aviation
Produced	1959-1961
Number built	152

The Nord 3400 Norbarbe was a French two-seat observation and casualty-evacuation aircraft built by Nord Aviation for the French Army Light Aviation.^[1]

Design and development

The Nord 3400 was designed to meet a French Army requirement for a two-seat observation aircraft, with a secondary casualty-evacuation role. The 3400 was a braced high-wing monoplane with a fixed tailwheel landing gear and an enclosed cabin with tandem seating for a pilot and observer. The prototype F-MBTD first flew on 20 January 1958, powered by a 179 kW (240 hp) Potez 4D-30 engine. A second prototype with an increased wing area followed, being powered by a 194 kW (260 hp) Potez 4D-34 engine. A production batch of 150 was ordered by the French Army in the same configuration as the second prototype.

Variants

Nord 3400-01

First prototype, powered by a 179 kW (240 hp) Potez 4D-30 engine, with, 12.7 m (42 ft) span/19.5 m² (210 sq ft) area, wings.^[2]

Nord 3400

Production aircraft (and 2nd prototype), with a more powerful 194 kW (260 hp) Potez 4D-34 engine and increased span/area wings.^[3]

Operators

 France

• French Army Light Aviation
• National Gendarmerie

Specifications (Nord 3400)

Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1962-63^[3]

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Length: 8.42 m (27 ft 7 in)
• Wingspan: 13.11 m (43 ft 0 in)
• Height: 3.1 m (10 ft 2 in)
• Wing area: 20.82 m² (224.1 sq ft)
• Aspect ratio: 8.2
• Airfoil: NACA 23015^[4]
• Empty weight: 920 kg (2,028 lb) equipped
• Max takeoff weight: 1,350 kg (2,976 lb)
• Fuel capacity: 220 L (58.1 US gal; 48.4 imp gal) in two self-sealing rubber tanks (160 kg (353 lb))
• Powerplant: 1 × Potez 4D-30 4-cylinder air-cooled inverted in-line piston engine, 180 kW (240 hp)
• Propellers: 2-bladed Ratier Type 24-56 adjustable-pitch propeller, 2.25 m (7 ft 5 in) diameter adjustable-pitch propeller

Performance

• Maximum speed: 235 km/h (146 mph, 127 kn)
• Cruise speed: 200 km/h (120 mph, 110 kn)
• Stall speed: 70 km/h (43 mph, 38 kn) <
• Range: 1,000 km (620 mi, 540 nmi)
• Rate of climb: 7 m/s (1,400 ft/min)
• Wing loading: 65 kg/m² (13 lb/sq ft)
• Power/mass: 0.192 kW/kg (0.117 hp/lb)
  
• Take-off run: <100 m (328 ft)
• Landing run: <100 m (328 ft)