Louis Béchereau

Louis Béchereau was a French aviation pioneer, born 25 July 1880 and died in Paris on 18 March 1970. He was a contemporary (among others)Clément Ader, Gabriel Voisin, Wilbur Wright Henri Farman and Louis Blériot. In 1902, Béchereau joined a machine shop in Bezons where he participated in the prototype car designed by Clément Ader. With a nephew of Clement Ader in 1903 he created "Construction Company of Aerial Devices." Armand Deperdussin had entrusted the realization of a plane in 1909 Production Company of Deperdussin Airplanes, with Béchereau as a technical consultant. Béchereau conceived from the outset devices called "monocoque", the spindle-shaped body very aerodynamic. This feature allows them to achieve performance previously unthinkable. Its revolutionary design allowed the Deperdussin to win several awards, including the famous Gordon Bennett Aviation Cup in 1912.