Nieuport 11 Bebe French fighter
Eastern Express 72161

The Nieuport 11, often nicknamed the "Bebe", was a French World War I single seat fighter aircraft, designed by Gustave Delage in 1915. Nieuport 11s were supplied to the Aeronautique Militaire, the Royal Naval Air Service, the Dutch air service, Belgium, Russia and Italy. 646 were produced by the Italian Macchi company under licence.

In 1916 an improved version appeared as the Nieuport 16 which was a Nieuport 11 airframe powered by the 110 hp (92 kW) Le Rhone 9J rotary engine. Visible differences included a larger aperture in front of the "horse shoe" cowling and, at least in some cases, a pilot headrest fairing. Later versions had a deck-mounted synchronized Vickers gun, but in this configuration the combined effect of the heavier 9J engine and the heavier Vickers gun compromised maneuverability and made the craft decidedly nose-heavy. [Wikipedia]