The SPAD S.XIII was a French fighter plane of a mixed structure with mainly wooden elements in a biplane configuration. The drive was provided by a single Hispano-Suiza 8Be V-engine with 235 HP. The flight of the prototype took place on March 4 1917 and serial production began in May that year which was completed only in 1919 with the production of over 8 400 copies of this very successful aircraft._x000D_ _x000D_ The SPAD S.XIII was created as a far-reaching development of another fighter plane from this manufacturer - the SPAD S.VII model. The new fighter was primarily characterized by very good piloting qualities and its great ease. This feature resulted from the use of a V-engine - operating in the air much smoother and more stable than the then popular rotary engines. It was also characterized by a much more solid construction than many Allied aircraft of that time - for example Nieuport fighters. Due to their numerous advantages SPAD S.XIII planes quickly became the backbone of French aviation and were also used by the air forces of such countries as: Great Britain USA Italy and Czechoslovakia. The greatest aces of the French aviation also flew on this type of machines with the famous Rene Fonck at the helm who is still considered the most effective Entente fighter pilot today.