Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle

The Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle is a French made medium to small jetliner. It was built with assistance from some British companies most notably deHavilland ( the nose area was licensed from the Comet ) and Rolls Royce who provided the engines. The Caravelle was to become a very popular jet in Europe and indeed was ( later in it's development ) to break into the American market under the United Airlines company. The beautiful design of aft engines lends itself to a very quiet experience for the passengers which in the early years of air travel was of paramount importance.

One unusual design feature is the drogue like parachute that can be deployed in extreme circumstances by a very conspicuous red handle in the cockpit. It was said that pilots used to wear it as a badge of honour if they did not need to use the parachute in adverse conditions.

Lastly why the 210 in the designation ? It may be apocryphal but it was said this was the number of Caravelles that needed to be built to break "even". They did manage this as well as a further 50 odd. Making the Caravelle a success for Sud Aviation.