Salmson 3

The Salmson 3 C.1 was a French World War I biplane fighter aircraft developed by Salmson which lost out in competition to the SPAD XIII and Morane-Saulnier AI.

Design
The Sal 3 C1 was a biplane of all-wood construction, originally built with a 230 hp Salmson 9Z, but re-engined with a 260 hp Salmson 9Zm in an effort to rectify deficiencies in performance.

Flight tests began in late 1917, but pilots complained of poor visibility and difficulties operating the machine. Although the Salmson 3 prototype was returned to the factory for modifications, further tests were unable remedy the deficiencies sufficiently, and the French military judged the Salmson 3 to be inferior to the SPAD XIII in performance.