After graduating from the
St Cyr Aeronautical Institute he worked for
Levasseur (
Levasseur-Abrial A-1) and did some pioneering work into
tailless aircraft. He designed several
gliders during the 1920s before turning to lecturing the following decade, when he also became influential in the French
soaring movement. Abrial stopped designing new aircraft after 1932 when he abandoned his A-12 project. He was more attracted by instructorship and educational methods and played an important role in the development of soaring in France during the 1930s. After
World War II, he was still active in promoting soaring in France and in
French Africa. In 1954 he came back to the design of tailless aircraft, with the A-13 "Buse" project. But this glider was never built. ==Aircraft designs==