The Friedrichshafen FF.33 was a German single-engined amphibious reconnaissance biplane designed by Flugzeugbau Friedrichshafen in 1914.
The initial production version was powered by a Mercedes D.II engine inline water-cooled engine, six examples of this variant were built. The basic design was refined and improved. The FF.33e main production reconnaissance variant was powered by a Benz B.III inline engine. This version had longer twin floats, and the under tail central float was eliminated. A radio transmitter replaced its armament, aproximately 180 examples of the FF.33e variant were built.
The FF.33l was the main production armed scout/fighter version. The design underwent aerodynamic improvements, including a reduction in length and wingspan, about 135 of this version built.
The FF.33 served in both the German and Austrio-Hungarian navies. Several other nations purchased the Friedrichshafen FF.33e during the first world war, including: Bulgaria, Denmark, Netherlands, and Sweden. The Finnish Air Force purchased two FF.33Es from Germany in February 1918. The first one arrived on April 20, 1918 to Vaasa and the other one in the summer of 1918.
Versions
- FF.33 Initial production version powered by a Mercedes D.II engine, six built
- FF.33b FF.33 with pilot and observers positions reversed, additional observers-operated machine-gun and powered by 119 kW (160 hp) Maybach inline piston engine, five built.
- FF.33e Main production reconnaissance variant powered by a Benz B.III inline engine, longer twin floats, under tail central float removed, and radio transmitter instead of armament, about 180 built.
- FF.33f Scout/Fighter version based on FF.33e with reduced span wings and reduced length but fitted with a machine-gun on a pivoted mount, five built.
- FF.33h FF.33f with aerodynamic refinements, and duplication of wing-bay bracing cables as a safeguard if the observer has to fire his machine-gun forward through the wings, about 50 built.
- FF.33j FF.33e with aerodynamic refinements and the provision of a radio transmitter and receiver.
- FF.33l Main production scout/fighter version, with further aerodynamic improvements and a fixed machine gun, about 130 built
- FF.33s dual-control trainer version
- FF.39 Refined version of the FF.33e with a 149 kW (200 hp) Benz Bz.IV engine, 14 built.
- FF.49c Further improved FF.39 with strengthened structures, balanced controls, a radio receiver and transmitter, machine-gun for observer, over 200 built.
- FF.49b Bomber variant of the FF.49c, crew positions reversed, deletion of observers machine-gun and provision to carry a light bombload, 15 built.
- FF.59a Development aircraft based on FF.39 with different tail, one built.
- FF.59b Development aircraft based on FF.39 with different tail, one built.
- FF.59c FF.39 with modified tail unit, wing interplane struts moved outwards and inner-bay bracing wires removed.
- C.I A landplane version of the FF.33l with wheeled landing gear, one built.
References
- Friedrichshafen FF.33. (2010, August 15). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:57, August 29, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Friedrichshafen_FF.33&oldid=379054818
- Timo Heinonen. Thulinista Hornetiin - 75 vuotta Suomen ilmavoimien lentokoneita
. Tikkakoski: Keski-Suomen ilmailumuseo. (1992) ISBN 9519568824.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Germany - 1914 Friedrichshafen FF.33e
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Britain - 1914 RAF S.E.2- S.E.2a
Guns Arrive on the Scene
Early prewar aircraft mainly started out as civilian planes and were used as unarmed scouts. Even before the war heated up, it became obvious that weapons were needed on-board to make them more useful over the battle field. In the beginning everything from hand guns to bricks were used in an attempt to give the scout some teeth. The next step was to mount rifles on the side of the fuselage to provide a small measure of firepower.
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.2 (Scout Experimental) was an early British single-seat scout aircraft. Designed and built at the Royal Aircraft Factory in 1913 as the B.S.1, the prototype was rebuilt several times before serving with the Royal Flying Corps, being operated over the Western Front in the early months of the First World War.
In 1912, a team at the Royal Aircraft Factory, lead by Geoffrey de Havilland, started design of a single seat scout, or fast reconnaissance aircraft, the first aircraft in the world specifically designed for this role. The design was a small tractor biplane, and was named the B.S.1 (standing for Blériot Scout) after Louis Blériot, a pioneer of tractor configuration aircraft. It had a wooden monocoque circular section fuselage, and single-bay wings. Lateral control was by wing warping,while the aircraft was initially fitted with a small rudder without a fixed fin, and an all moving elevator. It was powered by a two-row, 14-cylinder Gnome rotary engine rated at 100 hp (75 kW).
The Royal Aircraft B.S.1 in its original form
The B.S.1 was first flown by Geoffrey de Havilland early in 1913, demonstrating excellent performance, with a maximum speed of 91.7 mph (147.6 km/h), a stalling speed of 51 mph (82 km/h) and a rate of climb of 900 ft/min (4.6 m/s), despite the engine only delivering about 82 hp (61 kW) instead of the promised 100 hp. However, on 27 March 1913, the aircraft crashed while being flown by de Havilland, breaking his jaw and damaging the aircraft.
Following this accident, it was repaired, with an 80 hp single-row Gnome and new tail surfaces, with triangular fins above and below the fuselage and a larger rudder. While the repaired aircraft was initially designated B.S.2, it was soon redesignated S.E.2 (for Scout Experimental). It was flown in this form by de Havilland in October 1913.
In April 1914, the S.E.2 was again rebuilt, this time under the supervision of Henry Folland, as de Havilland had left the Royal Aircraft Factory to become chief designer of Airco (the B.S.1/S.E.2 was the last design de Havilland produced for the Factory). The tail surfaces were again revised, with a larger fin and rudder, with new tailplane and elevators. The monocoque rear fuselage was replaced by conventional wood and fabric, and more streamlined struts and streamlined sectioned bracing wires (Raf-wires) were fitted. It was flown in this form on 3 October 1914. This modified version is often referred to as the "S.E.2a" - this designation was not used at the time, and was probably not official.
The S.E.2 was handed over the Royal Flying Corps on 17 February 1914, with the serial number 609 being issued to No. 5 Squadron, where it made a good impression, and then to No. 3 Squadron before being returned to the Royal Aircraft Factory in April.
By the time the rebuilt "S.E.2a" version was completed, the First World War had broken out, and the modified S.E.2 was sent across the English Channel to join No. 3 Squadron on 27 October. It was fitted with an improvised armament of a pair of rifles mounted on the side of the fuselage, angled outwards to avoid the propeller, together with the pilot's revolver. It was one of the fastest aircraft available in the early months of the war, with it being said that:"Its speed enabled it to circle around the enemy machines and gave it a decided ascendancy." It remained in use with 3 Squadron until March 1915, when it was damaged by an exploding bomb and was sent back to England.
References
- "Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.2". (2010, August 3). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 03:39, November 15, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Royal_Aircraft_Factory_S.E.2&oldid=376984114
- Bruce, J.M. "British Aeroplanes 1914-18
". London: Putnam, 1957.
- Bruce, J.M. "The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps
" (Military Wing). London: Putnam, 1982. ISBN 0-370-30084-X.
- Hare, Paul R. "The Royal Aircraft Factory". London:Putnam, 1990. ISBN 0-85177-843-7.
- Jackson, A.J. "De Havilland Aircraft since 1909
". London: Putnam, Third edition, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-802-X.
- Mason, Francis K. "The British Fighter since 1912
". Annapolis, USA: Naval Institute Press, 1992. ISBN 1-55750-082-7.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Britain - 1915 RAF S.E.4a
An Early British Experimental Scout Aircraft
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.4a was an early aircraft which bore a close resemblance to planes used later in the war. It was one of the stepping stones from early unarmed aircraft to the fighters of the next few years.
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.4a was an experimental British single-engined scout aircraft of the First World War. Four S.E.4a aircraft were built, being used for research purposes and as home-defence fighters by the Royal Flying Corps. In spite of its type number it had little or no relationship to the earlier S.E.4
In 1915, Henry Folland of the Royal Aircraft Factory designed a new single-engined scout aircraft, the S.E.4a. While it had a similar designation to Folland's earlier Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.4 of 1914, which had been designed to be the fastest aircraft in the world, the S.E.4a was fundamentally a new aircraft, intended to investigate the relationship between stability and manoeuvrability, and for possible operational use.
The resulting design was a single-engined, single bay biplane. The fuselage structure was of mixed construction, with a steel tube forward section and a wooden box-girder rear section. The first prototype's fuselage was smoothly faired out to a circular section using formers and stringers, with the forward fuselage back to the cockpit covered in metal skinning and the rear fuselage fabric covered. The wood and fabric single-bay wings, unlike the S.E.4, had noticeable stagger between the upper and lower wings, but were fitted with similar, full span control surfaces which could be moved differentially as ailerons or together as camber changing flaps, to those used on the S.E.4.
The first prototype's engine, an 80 hp (60 kW) Gnome rotary engine, was mounted within a smooth cowling driving a two-bladed propeller fitted with a large, blunt spinner. This was found to lead to engine overheating and was replaced by a more conventional arrangement.
The remaining three prototypes had simpler structures, with flat-sided fuselages, and many of the drag reducing features of the first prototype omitted. They were powered by a range of engines of similar power to that used in the first prototype, including Clerget and Le Rhône rotaries.
The first prototype flew on 25 June 1915, with the remaining three aircraft all having flown by mid August. The S.E.4a proved easy to fly, demonstrating excellent aerobatic capabilities, but were overweight and underpowered, and was not developed further.
Two of the aircraft, armed with a Lewis gun mounted above the upper wing were issued to Home Defence squadrons of the Royal Flying Corps in the winter of 1915-16, based at Hounslow and Joyce Green. One of these was lost in a fatal crash on 24 September 1915. The third prototype remained in use for trials purposes until September 1917.
References
- "Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.4a". (2009, October 14). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:35, November 25, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Royal_Aircraft_Factory_S.E.4a&oldid=319904390
- Bruce, J.M. "British Aeroplanes 1914-18
". London:Putnam, 1957.
- Bruce J.M. "War Planes of the First World War: Volume Two Fighters
". London:Macdonald, 1968. ISBN 0 356 01473 8.
- Bruce, J.M. "The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps
" (Military Wing). London:Putnam, 1982. ISBN 0 370 30084 x.
- Lewis, Peter. "The British Fighter since 1912
". London:Putnam, Fourth edition, 1979. ISBN 0 370 10049 2.
- Mason, Francis K. "The British Fighter since 1912
". Annapolis, USA:Naval Institute Press, 1992. ISBN 1-55750-082-7.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
USA - 1914 Curtiss Model F-4
Good morning, I hope you are having a great weekend. For Americans this weekend marks a solemn observance of Memorial Day, honoring all those who fell in war defending what they held precious. Common men who through their sacrifices became heroes we should never forget. May their memory always burn bright, and may we make a better world in their honor.
Glenn Curtiss Changes the Aviation World
Glenn Curtiss was one of the most influential of all American aircraft designers. He designed many of the aircraft used by the US Air Force. His research into amphibious aircraft was a game changer. It extended air power well beyond coastal regions and created flexibility of operational roles. Flying boats would be used as fighters, reconnaissance aircraft and cargo carriers during the Great War..
The Curtiss Model F-4 flying boat came about because The Daily Mail offered a large monetary prize for an aircraft with transoceanic range in 1914 prompting a collaboration between British and American air pioneers, resulting in the highly successful Curtiss Model H.
The Curtiss Models F made up a family of early flying boats developed in the United States in the years leading up to World War I. Widely produced, Model Fs saw service with the United States Navy under the designations C-2 through C-5, later reclassified to AB-2 through AB-5. Several examples were exported to Russia, and the type was built under license in Italy
In configuration, these were biplane flying boats powered by a single engine mounted amongst the interplane struts and driving a pusher propeller. The pilot and a single passenger sat side-by-side in an open cockpit. The wing cellule was derived from the Model E land plane and was of two-bay, unstaggered, equal-span construction with large ailerons mounted on the interplane struts and extending past the span of the wings themselves. The earliest examples of this design were built and sold by Curtiss in 1912 without any designation applied to them; the Model F name only coming into use the following year. Confusingly, Curtiss also used the designation Model E to refer to some early machines in this family, although these were quite distinct from Curtiss land planes that bore this same designation and all but identical to the Model Fs.
Model Fs built from 1918 featured a revised, unequal-span wing that incorporated the ailerons into the upper wing and sponsons on the sides of the hull to improve the aircraft's handling in water. These were known as the Model MF (for Modernized-F), and years later as the Seagull in the post-war civil market.
The US Navy initially purchased four of these aircraft in addition to the Freak Boat (C-1/AB-1) that it had already obtained and which was retrofitted to approximately the same design as the others. One of these, the C-2 became the first aircraft to fly under automatic control on 30 August 1913 when fitted with a gyroscopic stabilizer designed by Elmer Sperry. The same aircraft (by now redesignated AB-2) then became the first aircraft to be launched by catapult from a warship while underway when it took off from USS North Carolina on 5 November 1915. Her sister, AB-3, became the first US heavier-than-air aircraft to see military action when launched from USS Birmingham on 25 April 1914 on a scouting mission over Veracruz during the United States Occupation of Veracruz.
The US Navy bought another eight aircraft before the end of 1916, but orders in quantity only came following the type's selection as the Navy's standard flying-boat trainer in April 1917. An initial batch of 144 of the basic F model were ordered, followed by 22 MFs in 1918. Another 80 MFs were produced under license by the Naval Aircraft Factory. A small number of Model Es and Fs were also purchased by the US Army.
The Russian Navy purchased two batches of Model Fs in 1913-14 and operated them as part of the Black Sea and Baltic Sea fleets until they were replaced by the Model K shortly thereafter.
In Italy, the Curtiss representative Enea Bossi secured rights for local license-production of the Type F by the Zari brothers, who built eight examples at their workshop in Bovisia, near Milan. The first of these was demonstrated to the Italian Navy on Lake Como on 22 September 1914.
References
- Curtiss Model F. (2010, October 12). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Curtiss_Model_F&oldid=390334667
- The Great War Society Aircraft of the A E F Curtiss F Boat Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/curtissf.htm
- Virtual Aircraft Museum Curtiss Model F 1913 Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://www.aviastar.org/air/usa/curtiss_model-f.php
- Aerofiles Those Curtiss Boats Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://aerofiles.com/curtiss-boats.html
- Bowers, Peter M. (1979). Curtiss Aircraft 1907-1947
. London: Putnam. ISBN 0 370 10029 8.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation
. London: Studio Editions. pp. 193, 278.
- The Curtiss Flyleaf. Hammondsport, New York: Glenn H. Curtiss Museum of Local History. 1987.
- World Aircraft Information Files
. London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 891 Sheet 43.
Monday, May 9, 2011
France - 1914 Caudron G.III
French Two Seat Reconnaissance Aircraft
The Caudron G.III may be a bit clunky but it has a certain appeal. It was built during the early days before ailerons or synchronized machine guns. Because it was unarmed it could use a tractor engine. I worked up two profiles for this airplane. One in the aluminum paint and the other in basic varnished linen.
The French Caudron G.III was a two seat, single-engined tractor biplane, with a twin-boom tail. The end of the lower booms was used as a landing skid. It was initially built in May of 1913. Its wing spars were of ash and spruce with reinforcing strips of metal. The wings had no dihedral. The design used wing warping, rather than ailerons, for controlling movement of the aircraft. Initially, the horizontal stabilizer also used warping, but later a hinged stabilizer was added. The aircraft was used as an Army cooperation and reconnaissance machine.
Friday, May 6, 2011
France 1914-1916 Voisin Bombers
Voisin Light Bombers 1914-1916
The need for aircraft which could attack ground assets was known since the early days of the Great War. French designers were quick to develop dedicated purpose designed bombers and ground attack planes. The Voisin brothers designed several successful aircraft which served with distinction for many of the allied nations.
The Voisin III (or Voisin 3) was one of the first two-seat bomber and ground attack aircraft of World War I. It was a pusher biplane, developed by Airplanes Voisin of Gabriel Voisin in 1914 as a more powerful version of the 1912 Voisin I (Voisin 1) design. It also incorporated a light steel frame which made it survivable in the temporary airfields of wartime military aviation.
The Voisin III became the standard Allied bomber in the early years of the war. The main users were the French Air Force and the Imperial Russian Air Force. Russia ordered over 800 in France and built a further 400 under license at DUX in Moscow. Around 100 were built in Italy, and 50 in the United Kingdom, while smaller numbers were purchased by Belgium and Romania.
The Voisin VIII entered service in November 1916 as a French night bomber. Gabriel and Charles Voisin designed the Voisin VIII to replace the Voisin VII. The more powerful, and more successful Voisin VIII, was also known as the Type LAP and Type LBP. This was the French army's main night bomber in 1916-1917, with over one thousand built.
The Voisin VIII flew in a wide range of environments, from the freezing Russian steppes to Mesopotamia. The Voisin VIII operated by the Imperial Russian Air Service substituted skis for the rubber wheels used by other operating nations . Equally adaptable to desert conditions, the sturdy Voisin VIII was used by the British Royal Flying Corps in the Middle East.
The original engine choice for the Voisin VIII was a Hispano-Suiza, however there were not sufficient quantities available for the demand, resulting in the installation of Peugeot engines. The change in power plant forced a redesign of the Voisin VIII. The engine compartment was widened and the airframe was strengthened to accommodate the engine.
The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum has a beautifully restored example of a Voisin VIII on display. NASM's Voisin Type 8, serial number 4640, is the oldest surviving aircraft that was specifically designed as a bomber. When manufactured in February 1916, it was equipped as a night bomber, with internal bomb racks, cockpit lights, and provision for landing lights. Painted in the markings of French bombing squadron VB 109, it is the sole survivor of the 1,100 Type 8s produced.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Britain: 1914-1917 Some Early War Float Planes
Early British Float Planes
The Avro 510 was a two-seat racing seaplane designed by Avro to compete in the 1914 Circuit of Britain Race. It was a conventional two-bay biplane of greatly uneven span equipped with two large central floats and two outriggers. The race was called off at the outbreak of the First World War, but the British Admiralty was aware of the type and ordered five examples, with modified floats and tail. In service, these proved completely unsuitable, and it was discovered that with a second person aboard the aircraft could barely fly. In October 1915, the 510s in service were sent to Supermarine for modification and improvement, but by March the following year all were removed from service.
The Short Type 166 was a British two-seat seaplane designed by Short Brothers designed as a "folder" aircraft to operate from the Ark Royal as a torpedo-bomber. Six aircraft, known within Shorts as the Type A, were originally ordered before the outbreak of World War I and assigned the Admiralty serial numbers 161 to 166. As was normal at the time, the type was designated the Admiralty Type 166 after the naval serial number of the last aircraft in the batch. Sometimes the aircraft are referred to as the Short S.90 (S.90 was the manufacturer's serial number of the first aircraft, naval serial 161).
Similar to the earlier Short Type 136 but slightly larger, the 166 was designed from the start as a torpedo carrier, although it was never used in this role. The Type 166 was a two-bay biplane with twin wooden pontoon floats, with a water rudder fitted to the tail float and a stabilizing float mounted near the wing-tip under each lower wing. The 166 was powered by a nose-mounted 200hp (149kW) Salmson engine.
The Sopwith Baby was a development of the two-seat Sopwith Schneider. Although the Schneider had won the Schneider trophy in 1914, the RNAS did not place a formal order until January 1915. The production version of the Baby differed little from the Schneider Trophy winner. The design was also built by Blackburn Aircraft, Fairey, and Parnall in the United Kingdom. In Italy licensed manufacture was undertaken by SA Aeronautica Gio Ansaldo of Turin.
The Baby was used as a shipborne scout and bomber aircraft operating from larger ships such as seaplane carriers and cruisers, and smaller vessels such as naval trawlers and mine layers. It was even considered for operation from submarines. The main role of the Baby was to intercept German Zeppelin raids as far from Britain as possible.
The Fairey Campania two-seat seaplane got its name from the ex-Cunard ocean liner Campania which the Admiralty had converted into a seaplane carrier during the winter of 1914-15. Fairey designed the Campania float plane in response to the Royal Navy's specification for a purpose-built, two-seat patrol and reconnaissance aircraft. The initial prototype first flew on 16 February 1917. This was the first of two prototypes, designated F.16 which was powered by a 250 hp (190 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle IV. The second prototype was powered by a 275 hp (205 kW) Eagle V engine, it was designated F.17. Both prototypes would later see active service operating from Scapa Flow.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Italy 1914-1918 Caproni Bombers
Gianni Caproni's Heavy Hitters
The Italian designer Gianni Caproni produced arguably the most influential bombers of the war. They were the standard others were measured by. They were powerful, versatile, reliable and structurally tough.
The Caproni three-engined Italian heavy bomber of World War and the post-war era. The Caproni Ca.3 was the definitive version of the series of aircraft that began with the Caproni Ca.1 in 1914. The production version, equipped with three 100 hp fixed in-line Fiat A 10 engines entered service in the summer of 1915, and it was the most effective bomber of any air force, except for the Russian Sikorsky.Ilya Mourometz.
Caproni Ca.4 Series was patterned along the lines of the Caproni Ca.3 series of biplane bombers, the larger triplanes of the Ca.4 series were designed to be more effective in combat. Sometimes armed with up to eight machine guns, these cumbersome bombers were capable of accurately delivering large payloads of bombs to distant enemy targets. Although mainly used at night, they took part in daylight raids towards the end of the war. Of thirty-two Ca.42s manufactured in 1918, six of them were used by the Royal Naval Air Service.
The Caproni Ca.5 was an Italian heavy bomber of the World War I and post-war era. It was the final version of the series of aircraft that began with the Caproni Ca.1 in 1914.
By late in World War I, developments in aircraft technology made older bomber designs unable to penetrate targets defended by modern fighters. Caproni's response to this problem was to significantly uprate the power on the existing Ca.3 design, with some versions of the Ca.5 eventually carrying engines with nearly five times the total power that the first Ca.1 had.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Monoplanes of the Early War
Monoplanes of the early were primitive compared to the designs of the middle period of World War One. They were fragile and underpowered. Maneuverability of these early aircraft was sluggish to say the least. Control was achieved through the use of wing-warping rather than ailerons.
At the outbreak of war,the British Royal Flying Corps (RFC) brought twenty-three Blériot XI's with them into France along with its expeditionary force; they served as reconnaissance aircraft with six RFC squadrons. The French Service de l'Aviation also furnished Bleriots to eight of their escadrilles, and Italy went into action with their own previously acquired Blériot XI's in six squadrons.
A "parasol" monoplane, the Morane Type L was a fragile one or two-seat reconnaissance aircraft. It was the first aircraft armed with a fixed machine gun that fired through the propeller arc. Bullets which struck the propeller were deflected by steel plates. Armed with a Hotchkiss machine gun firing 8 mm solid copper bullets, Roland Garros tested the design in April 1915. He scored three victories in three weeks before the plane was captured by the Germans.
The Pfalz A.I and A.II unarmed scouts were copies of the Morane-Saulnier L produced under license in Germany by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke early in the First World War.
The Pfalz E.I was a sport aircraft produced under licence in Germany by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke, who built several variants including: the E.I, E.II, E.IV, E.V, and E.VI. The aircraft was armed with a single, synchronized LMG 08/15 machine gun. A single-seat derivative of the successful Morane-Saulnier G with a slightly reduced wingspan. Like the Type G, it was a successful sporting type in its day.
Due to the shape of its nose, the Morane-Saulnier Type N was aptly nicknamed the “Bullet”. Built in small numbers, it was the first French aircraft specifically developed as a fighter. Armed with a fixed, forward firing machine gun, its propeller was protected by the metal deflector plates pioneered by Roland Garros on the Morane-Saulnier Type L. Although it was faster and more maneuverable than previous aircraft, the Bullet was extremely difficult to fly and unpopular with pilots.
Max Immelmann scored his first victory flying the “Eindecker.” Scourge of the air during the winter of 1915, the Fokker E.I was the first aircraft armed with a synchronized, forward firing machine gun. German pilots were ordered not to fly it across enemy lines for fear the Allies would capture the secrets of the synchronizing gear. Followed by the E.II, E.III and E.IV, the Eindecker was underpowered and slow but could out turn most of its opponents. Allied aviators who faced it called themselves “Fokker Fodder” The Eindecker ruled the skies until the Nieuports and SPADs were developed.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Britian - 1914 RAF R.E.5
Early Royal Aircraft Factory aircraft were surprisingly modern looking for the era in which they were built. They were not the flashiest bird in the sky but they got the job done. The project started with a line drawing I had found and a few photographs. The colors are best guess, but it gets the idea across. I promise to post something more colorful soon.
The Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.5 was a British two-seat reconnaissance and artillery observation biplane designed and built by the Royal Aircraft Factory for the Royal Flying Corps.
The R.E.5 was designed as a reconnaissance biplane using the experience of earlier R.E. series aircraft. It was a two-bay equal-span biplane with a fixed tail skid landing gear, with the wheels supported on skids and powered by a nose-mounted 120 hp (89 kW) Austro-Daimler engine driving a four-bladed propeller. The aircraft had two open cockpits with the observer/gunner in the forward cockpit under the upper wing and the pilot aft. The larger more capable Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.7 was a further development of the design. Some modified single-seat high altitude aircraft were built with extended-span (57 ft 2.66 in or 17.43 m) upper wings supported by a pair of outward-leaning struts. Other R.E.5s were used for experimentation with air-brakes and for test flying the Royal Aircraft Factory 4 engine.
References
- Rickard, J (16 April 2009), Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.5 , "http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_RAF_RE5.html"
- From Wikipedia Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.5, "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Aircraft_Factory_R.E.5"
- Bruce, J.M. (1957). "British Aeroplanes 1914-18
- Bruce, J.M. (1992). "The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps
- Lewis, Peter (1974). "The British Bomber since 1914
" (Second ed.). London: Putnam, p.35, pp.402-403. ISBN 0 370 10040 9.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). "Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation
- "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft" (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing. pp. 2820.