Aircraft Project – Week 1

MODEL MAKING – ALL AIRCRAFT TYPES THAT FLEW IN WORLD WAR 1 John Preedy About 3 and a half years ago I took on the challenge of making all the aircraft types that flew in WW1 to the scale of 1/72. These cover all those of the Countries of the Allies and the Central Powers. At the time of starting I though the total amounted to some 180 models. Since that time I have found many more and my current estimate of the full number is more than 500. Pre…

Fokker E.I

Fokker E.I The Fokker E.I was the first fighter aircraft to enter service with the Fliegertruppe of the Deutsches Heer in World War I. Its arrival at the front in mid-1915 marked the start of a period known as the “Fokker Scourge” during which the E.I and its successors achieved a measure of air superiority over the Western Front. The E.I was essentially an armed version of the Fokker M.5K single-seat reconnaissance aircraft (military designation A.III), which was in turn very closely based on the design of the 1913 French…

Lohner L

Lohner L The Lohner Werke Aircraft Company produced a number of aircraft (both land and sea planes) in WW1. The Lohner L was a reconnaissance flying boat produced in Austria-Hungary. It was a two-bay biplane of typical configuration for the flying boats of the day, with its pusher engine mounted on struts in the interplane gap. The pilot and observer sat side by side in an open cockpit, and both the upper and lower sets of wings featured sweepback. The design was essentially a more powerful version of the earlier…

Sopwith Tabloid

Sopwith Tabloid The Sopwith Tabloid was a British biplanes, originally designed as sports aircraft and later adapted for military use. They were built by the Sopwith Aviation Company. The “Tabloid”, so named because of its small size, caused a sensation when it made its first public appearance. A floatplane variant was prepared and entered for the 1914 Schneider Trophy race; piloted by Howard Pixton. This aircraft comfortably won the competition, being known as the Sopwith Schneider. The first order, for twelve floatplane aircraft, was placed in November 1914. Later production…

Farman MF.11 Shorthorn

Farman MF.11 Shorthorn The Maurice Farman MF.11 Shorthorn is a French aircraft developed before World War I by the Farman Aviation Works. The MF.11 served in both the British and French air services on the Western Front in the early stages of the war, as a reconnaissance and light bomber. Later it was relegated to training duties. It had a pusher configuration unequal-span biplane like the earlier Farman MF.7 on which it was based. The nacelle containing crew and engine were mounted in the gap between the two wings. The…

Curtiss JN-4

Curtiss JN-4 The Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny” was one of a series of “JN” biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for the U.S. Army, the “Jenny” (the common nickname derived from “JN-4”, with an open-topped four appearing as a Y) continued after World War I as a civil aircraft. The Curtiss JN-4 is possibly North America’s most famous World War I aircraft. It was widely used during…

SIKORSKY S-16

Sikorsky S-16 Igor Sikorsky was an early Russian aviation pioneer before WW1. Before and during the war he designed and built a number of aircraft for the Imperial Russia Airforce. One of the early successes was the Russian S-22 Ilya Muromets four-engine biplane heavy bomber. Later Sikorsky designer light weight fighters aircraft to provide protection to heavy bomber fleets. The Sikorsky s-16 was one of these. The Sikorsky S-16 was a Russian equi-span single-bay two-seat biplane designed by Sikorsky in 1914-15. Conceived in response to demand for an escort fighter…

Caproni Ca.4

Caproni Ca.4 The Caproni Aircraft Company made a series of heavy Bomber aircraft in WW1 (Ca.1 to Ca. 5). The Caproni Ca.4 was one of these. Its main features was a triplane (3 wing) arrangement, and 3 engines. The Ca.4 was a twin-fuselage triplane of wooden construction with a fabric-covered frame. It had an open central body, that was attached to the under-surface of the centre wing. This central body contained a single pusher engine, pilot, and forward gunner. The other two engines were tractor mounted at the front of…