Breguet 763 Deux-Ponts

fitted with the early central fin shape (2008) Breguet began design work on the Breguet 761 double-deck airliner even before the end of the Second World War, in 1944. It was decided that a medium-range airliner with seating for over 100 passengers would be built. The design envisaged using readily available engines with the aim of ease of manufacture and an early first-flight date. The design was known as Project 76-1. The aircraft was destined not to be the first French postwar design to fly, an honour which instead fell to the Sud-Est Languedoc, a civil version of the Bloch MB161. The prototype Br.761, F-WASK, first flew at Villacoublay on 15 February 1949. The 761 featured a cantilever wing set at mid-height on the bulky fuselage. The retractable tricycle landing gear featured dual-wheel main units. The empennage had twin fins and rudders and a vestigial central fin. The Breguets serving with Air France had up to 107 seats and an elevator between the two floors. The prototype was followed by three Br.761S pre-production aircraft powered by 2,020 hp (1506 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-2800-B31 radial engines. These were fitted with 12 ft 1½in (3.70 m) diameter Hamilton Standard propellers. The aircraft successfully completed their trials incident-free. Their first flights were in 1951 and 1952. The French Government ordered 12 production aircraft, the Breguet 76-3, which was later redesignated Br.763. Six aircraft were to be operated by Air France and the other six by the Ministry of Transport. The 763 had more powerful engines, a larger wingspan, strengthened wings and a three-crew flight deck (earlier aircraft had four crew). The 763 first flew on 20 July 1951 and entered service with Air France during autumn 1952. The Air France aircraft had accommodation for 59 passengers on the top deck, and 48 on the lower deck, although the aircraft was capable of carrying 135 passengers in a high-density layout. During 1964 Air France transferred six Br.763s to the French Air Force. The air force also acquired the three pre-production Br.761S aircraft and four new Br.765 Sahara freighter aircraft with removable cargo doors. Projects to build versions powered with British engines (for possible United Kingdom buyers) did not come to fruition. The projects would have been the 766 (with the Bristol Hercules radial engine), and the 767 with British turboprop engines. ==Operational history==

Civil The prototype Br.761 entered service with Air Algérie in 1952 as a cargo aircraft. It was withdrawn early the next year. Silver City Airways leased a Br.761 for three months in the summer of 1953 for use on the Hamburg - Berlin route. A total of 127 round trips carried of freight with up to three round trips being made in a day, each leg taking 52 minutes flight time. It was rumoured that Silver City would purchase three aircraft at £770,000 but this did not materialise into a sale. These remained in service on European freight services until the early 1970s. The final flight was on 31 March 1971 from Heathrow to Paris-Orly. A double-deck AEC Routemaster bus was parked alongside the aircraft to mark the retirement of the Br.763 from service. Military In October 1955 an order for 30 Breguet Br.765 Sahara aircraft for the Armée de l'Air was announced. This order was cancelled by the end of the year, but construction on four aircraft was so far advanced that they were completed. These entered service with 64 Escadre de Transport. The French Air Force acquired the three pre-production Br.761S aircraft, these and the six Sahara aircraft acquired from Air France provided the French Air Force with a valuable transport fleet for moving personnel and materials to the Pacific nuclear testing areas. The Sahara fleet was retired in 1972. ==Accidents and incidents==

The Breguet Deux-Ponts had an excellent safety record. • On 10 May 1955, F-BASQ of Air France made a forced landing in a field at Pont-Évêque, Isère following directional control problems in flight. The four crew and 46 passengers were unharmed. The aircraft was repaired on site and flown out from an improvised airstrip a few weeks later. ==Variants==

;Breguet 761 :Prototype with four SNECMA 14R-24 radial engines, one built. ;Breguet 761S :Pre-production aircraft, powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-2800-B31 engines; three built. ;Breguet 763 Provence :Production aircraft for Air France, powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CA18 engines; 12 built. ;Breguet 764 :Proposed anti-submarine naval version, prototype 761 was to be converted but project was abandoned. ;Breguet 765 Sahara :Freighter version for the French Air Force, powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CB17 engines; four built. ==Operators==

; :Air Algérie (loaned for trials in 1952 when Algeria was still a French territory) :French Air Force :Air France :French Navy ; :Silver City (leased 1953) ==Specifications (Br.763)==

Airport • Br.763 c/n 6, F-BASS of Air France (later saw service as F-BACC with the French Air Force) was acquired in 1968 by the Aéroclub de Chaubuisson, which has converted it into a restaurant at the single-runway aerodrome it operates in Fontenay-Trésigny, France • Br.765 c/n 501, 64-PE of the French Air Force is preserved as a gate guard at Évreux-Fauville Air Base, France • Br.765 c/n 504, 64-PH of the French Air Force (nicknamed Brigitte while in service) was transported to Ailes Anciennes Toulouse, France, in stages from 1985 to 1987, where restoration efforts were still ongoing as of 2023, when a former airman of the French Air Force was able to provide two original mechanical pieces from Brigitte. ==See also==