10/31/2023. Remarks by Kees Kort: "The original design of the Farman Goliath was initially identified as the FF.60 Bn2. The abbreviation FF stood for 'Fréres Farman' (Farman brothers, being Henry and Maurice Farman), while Bn2 meant 'Bombardier de nuit' (Night bomber). Intended as a successor for the Caudron C.23 and the Farman 50, the FF.60 Bn2 was first flown in October 1918.

Soon after the Armistice (November 11, 1918), Farman set out two careers for the FF.60 design, one military and one civil version, while the FF.60 identification was changed to F.60 Goliath.

The Goliath developed as a whole class, the civilian developments being identified as F.60 to F.63, some had suffixes for subtypes, the F.63 had the subversions F.63bis and F.63ter. The suffixes often indicated different engines had been installed, but there may have been other not readily visible modifications as well, complicating the identification of the specific type.

Identifying the F.63bis it is even more complex as originally it was fitted with two 380 hp Gnome & Rhône 9Aa Jupiter nine-cylinder air-cooled radial engines, but under the same designation it was delivered to Romania fitted with two 365 hp Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar IIIA fourteen-cylinder two-row radial engines. To complicate things further many Goliath-types were in time converted to a more powerful or advanced version to keep up with the times. Some aircraft had as a consequence two or maybe even more F.60 sub-identifications.

The pictured aircraft was initially built as an F.60 Goliath powered by two 300 hp Renault 12 Fe twelve-cylinder liquid-cooled V-engines. Being one of the first of this version, it was delivered to Sociéte Generale de Transport Aériens (SGTA) at Toussus-le-Noble, 13 mls (21 km) south-west of Paris in 1921. In the Spring of 1922 it was leased to Compagnie des Messageries Aériennes (CMA) at Le Bourget, Paris. It appeared on the French civil registered to CMA as F-AEGP, in September 1922, subsequently ik was named "Flandre" (Flanders). On January 1, 1923, CMA and Grands Express Aériens merged into Air Union, all Goliaths still in service of both airlines were transferred to the new enterprise.

All that is left is what version is in the photograph of the Farman F-AEGP ? The big difference is in the engines fitted. As the picture is somewhat indistinct here some caution is needed, but I think I see radial engine mounted, which would give away the machine as an original F.60 fitted with the Renault 12 Fe.