Blériot 5190

The Blériot 5190 was a French transatlantic mail plane of the 1930s, a large parasol-wing monoplane flying boat with a low-profile hull and the crew compartment in the thick pylon that carried the wing. Four engines were arranged with three along the leading edge and one on the centreline of the trailing edge. It was built for a French government contract to carry airmail to South America. The first example, named Santos-Dumont, flew on 3 August 1933, made two proving flights across the South Atlantic by the end of 1934 and entered Aéropostale service in February 1935, flying until June 1937 and completing 38 crossings. The government ordered three more but cancelled the contract without explanation or compensation, which forced the borrowing company into bankruptcy.