The Art of Seaplane Flying Lives On at Lac de Biscarrosse

Biscarrosse – 10 August 2026: When a seaplane accelerates on Lac de Biscarrosse, technology and landscape come together in a rare way. The hull leaves a trail through the water before the aircraft lifts off from the surface. A recent report by Franceinfo introduces pilots who take off here for the joy of flying and being on the water – thereby continuing a special tradition.

Lake Biscarrosse and Parentis, with around 3,500 hectares of freshwater, is one of France’s major inland bodies of water. Its broad expanse of water made it of interest to aviation at an early stage. Where no long runway was available, the lake could serve as a natural takeoff and landing area. Wind, waves and currents, however, demand a different kind of attention than asphalt and markings.

The aviation history of the site is closely linked to Pierre-Georges Latécoère. In the late 1920s, the entrepreneur planned a base on the lakeshore. From 1930 onwards, Biscarrosse became an assembly and testing site for large French seaplanes. This also changed the town, which had previously been shaped primarily by the forestry industry of the Landes.

Some of the best-known names in French aviation are associated with the body of water. Jean Mermoz, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet flew in the vicinity of the Latécoère base. On 15 July 1939, Saint-Exupéry and Guillaumet were aboard a Latécoère 521 on the direct route from New York to Biscarrosse. For a brief era, the quiet lake thus became a French gateway across the Atlantic.

At the time, seaplanes were more than technical curiosities. They carried mail, opened up connections across oceans and were intended to transport passengers over distances for which land-based infrastructure was still lacking. The large flying boats of the 1930s resembled floating transport structures: heavy, costly and dependent on engines, weather and manageable water conditions.

Today, seaplane flying continues in Biscarrosse as a cultural heritage and as the passion of specialized pilots. During takeoff, they must keep the aircraft stable on the water; maneuvering and docking also require experience. The lake is therefore both an airfield and a historical site.

The Musée de l’Hydraviation on the site of the former Latécoère base preserves restored aircraft, engines, archives and personal items. Its collection recalls transatlantic flights to New York and Fort-de-France, as well as the people who made Biscarrosse an important place in the history of French aviation.