The NiD.29 was an equal-span biplane with ailerons on both upper and lower wings. It had a fixed tailskid landing gear, a nose-mounted engine and a single open cockpit for the pilot. The prototype NiD 29 was evaluated by the French Air Force in July 1918 and a pre-production batch was ordered on 21 August 1918. It was powered by a Hispano-Suiza 8Fb engine piston engine, it performed well in test but could not achieve the required ceiling. The second prototype was modified with an increased wingspan and on achieving the required ceiling it was ordered into production in 1920, becoming the fastest service fighter in the world at that time. Production aircraft did not have ailerons on the upper wing and the lower wing ailerons were increased in size. The first mass production deliveries were made in 1922 to the French Air Force and the type was popular although it did have a tendency to enter a flat spin. The French military bought 250 aircraft which were built by Nieuport and seven other companies. The Ni-D 29 was to become an important fighter in the 1920s with purchases of 30 by Spain, 108 by Belgium. The Italian Regia Aeronautica bought 175 aircraft including 95 built by Macchi as the Macchi-Nieuport 29 and 80 built by Caproni. Sweden bought nine aircraft and designated them J 2. The Japanese companyNakajima bought a pattern aircraft and built 608 for the Imperial Japanese Army as the Ko-4. Racing versions of the aircraft were developed and they gained eight world speed records and won the 1920 Gordon Bennett Trophy and the 1922 Coupe Deutsch de la Meurthe competition.
Operational history
Three NiD 29s were modified for reserve Captain Joseph Sadi-Lecointe in November 1925 and used on seventy sorties against insurgents in Morocco using bomb racks with six 10 kg bombs. Spanish aircraft were also involved in similar operations in North Africa.
Argentine Air Force operated 6 examples from 1925 operated by the 3rd Observation Group.
Belgian Air Force operated 108 examples of which 88 were built locally by SABCA from 1922 until replaced by Avia BH-21s from 1927 and Fairey Firefly IIM in 1931
Kwangsi operated 12 examples purchased from Japan from 1935
Manchuria operated 4 examples purchased from a Japanese mission in 1931
French Air Force operated over 600 from 1922
French Navy operated a small number before standardizing on the Dewoitine D.1
Corpo Aeronautico Militare operated 175 examples built by Macchi and Caproni from 1924 until at least 1931. These were flown by the 76, 84, 91st Squadriglias of the 7thGrupo, 70, 74 and 75th Squadriglias of the 23rd Grupo of the 1st Sturmo Caccia and the 92nd Squadriglia 8th Grupo.
Imperial Japanese Army operated 608 Nakajima-built Ko.4 from 1923 until 1937 or later in the 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 Hiko Rentai. One pattern aircraft was purchased from France
Spanish Air Force operated 30 examples from 1923 until replaced with Nieuport-Delage NiD 52s in 1931
Swedish Air Force operated 10 examples designated as Jaktflyglan 2 from 1925 by Flygflotilj F.3 and F.5.
