Latécoère 500 (original) (raw)

The Latécoère 500 was a flying boat built in France in 1931 for use on the transatlantic mail route to South America. Designed to a specification by the French aviation ministry, Latécoère also built a passenger-carrying variant, the 501, which actually flew first. The design was a large, parasol-wing monoplane with broad sponsons and a fully enclosed cabin. Three engines were installed on the wing, two tractor-fashion on the leading edge, and one pusher-fashion on the trailing edge.