The de Pischoff 1907 biplane was a French experimental aircraft designed by Alfred de Pischoff in 1907. It is notable for being the first known example of a tractor biplane.[1] It was built by Lucien Chauvière, later known for his laminated wood propellers.[2]
de Pischoff had previously experimented with a biplane glider derived from Ferdinand Ferber's Type VI of 1904, and some elements of the earlier machine may have been used for the 1907 machine. This was an unequal-span, single bay biplane powered by a 25 hp (18 kW) Anzani engine mounted in the middle of the gap between the wings. Booms carried the aft-mounted elongated triangular fin and horizontal stabiliser, with rectangular rudder and elevator. It was mounted on a tricycle undercarriage with two front wheels below the wings' leading edge and a third aft of the trailing edge.[2]
Flight trials at Issy-les-Moulineaux in November 1907 were largely unsuccessful, although a flight of 500 metres was made on 17 December [3] and after the aircraft was damaged in an accident it was abandoned. De Pischoff did not attempt to develop the design and the next aircraft he built was a tandem seat monoplane designed in collaboration with Paul Koechlin.