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{{Infobox aircraft
|name= Salmson 2 A.2
|image= File:Salmson 2 WW1 recon aircraft.jpg
|caption=
|type= [[Reconnaissance]] [[biplane]]
|manufacturer= [[Salmson]]
|designer=
|first_flight= 1917
|introduction=
|retired=
|number_built=3,800+
|status=
|primary_user=
|more_users=
|unit cost=
|variants=
}}

The '''Salmson 2 A.2''', (often shortened to '''Salmson 2''') was a French [[biplane]] [[reconnaissance]] aircraft developed and produced by [[Salmson]] to a 1916 requirement. Along with the [[Breguet 14]], it was the main reconnaissance aircraft of the French army in 1918 and was also used by [[American Expeditionary Force]] aviation units. At the end of the [[First World War]], one-third of French reconnaissance aircraft were Salmson 2s.

==Design and development==
During the First World War, the Salmson factory built aircraft engines, generally 9- and later 18-cylinder water-cooled radial engines developed from the [[Switzerland|Swiss]] Canton-Unné design, an early stationary radial engine design used for military aircraft. The company's first aircraft was the [[Salmson-Moineau S.M.1]], an unusual three-seat reconnaissance biplane with twin propellers gear-driven from a single Salmson engine mounted sideways in the fuselage but it was not successful although it saw limited production.

The Salmson 2 came from a requirement to replace the [[Sopwith 1½ Strutter]] and [[Dorand AR|Dorand A.R.]] reconnaissance aircraft in the A.2 (tactical reconnaissance) role. Salmson had built the 1½ Strutter under license, and the Salmson 2, while an original design, had more in common with the Sopwith than to the Salmson-Moineau. The aircraft was of conventional construction with a two-bay biplane configuration, powered by the company's own {{cvt|230|hp}} [[Salmson 9Z]] water-cooled radial engine. Some minor control problems were quickly resolved in early testing, but the main defect of the Salmson 2, shared with the contemporary [[Airco DH.4]], was that the pilot and gunner were widely separated, making communication difficult. Production was ordered after trials on 29 April 1917, and deliveries were underway by October of that year. Around 3,200 Salmson 2s were built in France, 2,200 by Salmson and the remainder by the [[Latécoère]], [[Hanriot]], and [[Desfontaines]], companies. Some of these were '''Salmson 2 E.2''' dual control advanced training (''Ecole'') aircraft.

[[File:Salmson 2 Limousine L'Aéronautique October 1921.jpg|thumb|Salmson 2 Limousine photo from L'Aéronautique October 1921]]
[[File:Lignes Aeriennes Latécoére (Latécoére-Toulouse).jpg|thumb|Salmson 2 Berline of Lignes Aeriennes Latécoére, ''circa ''1918]]

==Variants==
Developments of the Salmson 2 included:
* '''Salmson 2 A.2''' standard model.
* '''Salmson 2 E.2''' dual control advanced training aircraft.
* '''Salmson 4 Ab.2''' was an enlarged version fitted with armour to meet the ground attack role. Production in 1918 was limited, and was cancelled at the end of the war.
* '''Salmson 5 A.2''' was a modified Salmson 2, with no production.
* '''Salmson 7 A.2''' was a modified Salmson 2. The primary change was that the pilot and gunner were seated back-to-back in a single cockpit. Large scale production was planned, but was cancelled with the end of the war.
* '''Salmson Limousine''' ex-military Salmson 2s converted into enclosed civilian passenger aircraft after the First World War.
* '''Salmson 2 Berline''' ex-military Salmson 2s converted into open cockpit civilian passenger aircraft after the First World War.
* '''Kawasaki Army ''Otsu-1'' (乙-1) Reconnaissance Aircraft''' was a Japanese licence-built Salmson 2&nbsp;A.2.

==Operational history==
In addition to its service with the French army, the Salmson 2 served during the First World War with [[United States]] air units. Some 700 were purchased, and were generally successful.

Postwar Salmson 2s were purchased by [[Czechoslovakia]], and remained in service until 1924. Others were transferred to [[Poland]], but were withdrawn by 1920, and replaced by [[Bristol F.2B]]s. [[Japan]] undertook licensed production as the '''Army Type ''Otsu 1''''', also known as the Kawasaki-Salmson. The number of aircraft built in Japan is unclear; 300 were built by [[Kawasaki Heavy Industries|Kawasaki]], and the same quantity by the [[Imperial Japanese Army]]'s [[Tokorozawa]] supply depot, although the total number of aircraft produced may have been as high as 1,000.

After First World War, the Salmson 2&nbsp;A.2 produced by [[Latécoère]] were the first aircraft used by French pioneering airmail company ''[[Aéropostale (aviation)|Aéropostale]]''.

==Military operators==
===Wartime===
; {{FRA}}
* [[French Air Force]]
; {{USA}}
* [[American Expeditionary Force]]

===Post-war===
[[File:Otusiki 1gata teisatuki.jpg|thumb|Japanese ''Otsu-1'']]
; {{BEL}}
* [[Belgian Air Force]] - One aircraft only.
; {{CSK}}
* [[Czechoslovak Air Force]]
; {{FRA}}
* [[French Navy]]{{sfn|Morareau|1990|p=15}}
; {{JPN}}
* [[Imperial Japanese Army]]
;{{flag|Peru}}
* [[Peruvian Air Force]] - One aircraft only.
; {{POL}}
* [[Polish Air Force]]
; {{ESP}}
* [[Spanish Air Force]] - One aircraft only.
; {{RUS}} / {{USSR}}
* [[Soviet Air Force]]

==Aircraft on display==
* Kakamigahara Aerospace Museum, [[Kakamigahara, Gifu]] (replica)
* ''[[L'Envol des pionniers|L'Envol des Pionniers]]'', [[Toulouse]], France (replica)

<gallery mode="packed" caption="Replicas">
File:かかみがはら航空宇宙科学博物館 (21174615321).jpg|Replica Salmson 2&nbsp;A.2/Otsu&nbsp;1 in Japan.
File:Replica Salmson 2 A.2 at Envol des pionniers.jpg|Replica Salmson 2&nbsp;A.2 in Toulouse, France.
</gallery>

==Specifications==
[[File:Salmson 2 A.2 dwg.jpg|thumb|Salmson 2&nbsp;A.2 drawing]]

{{Aircraft specs
|ref=French Aircraft of the First World War<ref name=DavillaandSoltan>{{cite book |last1=Davilla |first1=James J. |last2=Soltan |first2=Arthur |title=French Aircraft of the First World War |publisher=Flying Machines Press |location=Mountain View, CA |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-9637110-4-5 |pages=25–26}}</ref>
|prime units?=met
<!--
        General characteristics
-->
|crew=2
|length m=8.5
|length note=
|span m=11.75
|span note=
|height m=2.9
|height note=
|wing area sqm=37.27
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=<!-- sailplanes -->
|airfoil=
|empty weight kg=780
|empty weight note=
|gross weight kg=1290
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight kg=
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
<!--
        Powerplant
-->
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[[Salmson 9Za]]
|eng1 type=9-cylinder water-cooled radial piston engine
|eng1 kw=172
|eng1 note=

|prop blade number=2
|prop name=fixed-pitch propeller
|prop dia m=<!-- propeller aircraft -->
|prop dia note=
<!--
        Performance
-->
|max speed kmh=188
|max speed note=at sea level
|cruise speed kmh=
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed kmh=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed kmh=
|never exceed speed note=
|range km=500
|range note=
|combat range km=
|combat range note=
|ferry range km=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=<!-- if range unknown -->
|ceiling m=6250
|ceiling note=
|climb rate ms=
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude={{convert|2,000|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} in 7 minutes 13 seconds<ref name="Owers">{{cite book|last=Owers|first=Colin A. |author2=Jon S. Guttman |author3=James J. Davilla |date=2001 |title=Salmson aircraft of World War I |location=Boulder, CO |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6XcLAAAACAAJ |publisher=Paladin Press |isbn=1-891268-16-3}}</ref>
|wing loading kg/m2=
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption kg/km=
|power/mass=
|thrust/weight=
|more performance=<!--<br />
*'''Take-off run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Take-off distance to {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing distance from {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}-->
<!--
        Armament
-->
|guns=*
** 1 × forward synchronized 0.303 in [[Vickers machine gun]]
** 2 × rear, ring-mounted 0.303 in [[Lewis gun]]s
|bombs=

|avionics=
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite journal |last1=Méchin|first1=David|title=Le Salmson 2A2: Bonne surprise sous l'uniforme, Première partie|journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=April 2023 |issue=641 |pages=62–70 |issn=0757-4169 |language=fr|trans-title=The Salmson 2A2: A Pleasant Surprise under the Uniform, Part 1 |name-list-style=amp}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Méchin|first1=David|title=Le Salmson 2A2: Le guerrier de retour au civil|journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=May 2023 |issue=642|pages=68–75|issn=0757-4169|language=fr |trans-title=The Salmson 2A2: The Warrior Returns to Civil Life}}
* {{cite journal|last=Morareau |first=Lucien |title=Histoire de l'Aviation Embarquée en France: La 4<sup>eme</sup> Flotille, de la reconnaissance au bombardement |journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=February 1990 |issn=0757-4169 |issue=243 |pages=14–17, 19–21 |language=fr }}

==Further reading==
{{Commons category|Salmson 2}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Hirschauer |editor1-first=Louis |editor2-last=Dollfus |editor2-first=Charles |title=L'Année Aéronautique: 1919-1920 |date=1920 |publisher=Dunod |location=Paris |page=33 |url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6553380s/f45.item}}

{{Salmson aircraft}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1910s French military reconnaissance aircraft]]
[[Category:Biplanes]]
[[Category:Salmson aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1917]]
[[Category:Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear]]