The Nord NC.850 (originally produced as the Aérocentre NC.850) was a light aircraft developed in France in the late 1940s for use by French aeroclubs, but which also saw military use as an airborne observation post. The NC.850 series was developed from the Aérocentre NC.840 in response to a competition sponsored by the French government under the auspices of the SALS movement to find a domestically-produced machine for club use. Aérocentre's entry was an ungainly high-wing, strut-braced monoplane with a fully enclosed cabin and fixed, tailwheel undercarriage. The fuselage construction was tubular, and the wings had a metal structure, the entire aircraft being skinned in fabric. The competition was won by the SIPA S.90, but SALS nevertheless also ordered 100 examples of this, the runner-up design. These production examples, designated NC.853, differed from the prototypes in having twin tails, the fins mounted on the ends of the horizontal stabiliser. Only 27 of the order had been completed, however, when Aérocentre was liquidated and its assets bought by Nord. The new owners continued production, with their machines identified with designation NC.853S. In March 1951, Nord flew a heavily modified version of the design for use as an observation aircraft by the French Army. Known as the NC.856 Norvigie, this featured a more powerful engine and a lengthened and more extensively glazed cockpit. The army ordered 112 examples which were mostly flown in the artillery spotting role, and while a civil version was also offered, orders were not forthcoming and only two were built. The sole example of a floatplane version was presented as a gift to King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia. For details of the 15 variants, click here.
