[2] It was shown at the Paris Aero Salon held in December 1908 and was first flown in 1909.

[4] A Gnome Omega engine powers the 1912 Blackburn Monoplane, owned and operated by the Shuttleworth Collection, the oldest known airworthy British-designed aeroplane worldwide.

The prototype Omega engine still exists, and is on display at the United States' National Air and Space Museum.

[2] Like all early Gnome et Rhône engines the Omega features a single pushrod driven exhaust valve on the cylinder head; the intake valve is located in the piston crown, opening by inertia on the downstroke and feeding the intake charge from the crankcase into the upper part of the cylinder.

No throttle is provided, the pilot controls the aircraft's speed by switching off the ignition when necessary.