Società Aeronautica Meccanica Lombarda (S.A.M.L.) S.2 The S.A.M.L. (Società Aeronautica Meccanica Lombarda) was the main Italian constructor of the German Aviatik B.1 and B.2 designs up to 1916. In 1916-1917 the company developed this model into a native design called the S.1, which was powered by a 260 hp Fiat A-12 engine and equipped with a rotatable 6.5mm Revelli machine-gun on a tripod mounting in the rear cockpit. A further development of the S.1 including a modified and enlarged rudder, a second machine-gun and a more powerful engine resulted in…
Year: 2021
Società Italiana Aviazione 7B
Società Italiana Aviazione (SIA) 7B The SIA 7B was a biplane reconnaissance-bomber built by the Società Italiana Aviazione and served with the Italian Corpo Aeronautico Militare and American Expeditionary Force in 1917. It used the standard Italian structural feature of a plywood-covered fuselage. The SIA.7B was accepted for the Italian Air Force in November 1917 and entered mass production. There were however revealed its shortcomings, like low wing structure durability and poor view. Next variant SIA.7B2, developed in December 1917, had strengthened wings, slightly raised cockpits and stronger engine. Another…
W. J. Bennett, Acting Leading Seaman
Missing Acting Leading Seaman W. J. Bennett Acting Leading-Seaman W.J. Bennett, who has been posted missing, is the son of Mr and Mrs Bennett, 41 Gundolph Road, Bromley. He joined the Royal Navy after leaving the Royal Naval School, Greenwich, and was at Singapore when the Japanese captured that place. Every endeavour is being made to ascertain what has happened to him and others left behind at Singapore. They may be prisoners of war. Mr and Mrs Bennett have had a letter from the British Red Cross Society and Order…
Ansaldo S.V.A.5
Ansaldo S.V.A.5 An exceptional aircraft for its time, the Ansaldo S.V.A.5 was preceded by the S.V.A.4 which was designed in 1917 by Umberto Savoia and Rodolfo Verduzio with Celestino Rosatelli. The principal difference between the S.V.A.4 and the S.V.A.5 was fuel capacity. With a larger fuel tank, the S.V.A.5 could remain in the air two hours longer than the S.V.A.4. In air trials these aircraft were fast and sturdy but lacked the manoeuvrability necessary in a good fighter plane. As a result, the S.V.A.5 entered service as a long range…
Aircraft Project – Week 7
Selection of British Aircraft The Royal Flying Corps The RFC was the direct ancestor of the RAF. The term “flying corp” reflected the use that was made of aviation this moment of pioneers, a simple emanation of the army, devoted to observation. Unlike France, Britain had no active squadrons or aeronautical industry in 1914. Britain’s aircraft came, like most countries, from French productions. The British cockade was itself directly inspired by the French cockade, following misunderstandings and friendly shots due to the symbol of St. George cross drawn from the…
VICKERS F.B.5
Vickers F.B.5 The Vickers F.B.5 (Fighting Biplane 5) (known as the “Gunbus”) was a British two-seat pusher military biplane of the First World War. Armed with a single .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun operated by the observer in the front of the nacelle, it was the first aircraft purpose-built for air-to-air combat to see service, making it the world’s first operational fighter aircraft. Vickers began experimenting with the concept of an armed warplane designed to destroy other aircraft in 1912. The first resulting aircraft was the “Destroyer” (later designated…
Sopwith Triplane
Sopwith Triplane The Sopwith Triplane was a British single seat fighter aircraft designed and manufactured by the Sopwith Aviation Company during the First World War. It was the first military triplane to see operational service. The Triplane joined Royal Naval Air Service squadrons in early 1917 and was immediately successful. It was nevertheless built in comparatively small numbers and was withdrawn from active service as Sopwith Camels arrived in the latter half of 1917. Surviving Triplanes continued to serve as operational trainers until the end of the war. The Triplane…
MARTINSYDE G.100 “ELEPHANT”
Martinsyde G.100 “Elephant” The Martinsyde G.100 “Elephant” and the G.102 were British fighter bomber aircraft of the First World War built by Martinsyde. The type gained the name “Elephant” from its relatively large size and lack of manoeuvrability. The G.102 differed from the G.100 only in having a more powerful engine. An unusually large aircraft by contemporary standards for a single-seater, the Elephant two-bay equal span staggered biplane was designed by A A Fletcher of the Martinsyde Company, a prototype powered by a 120 hp Austro-Daimler engine entering test in…
Bristol Scout
Bristol Scout The Bristol Scout was a single-seat rotary-engined biplane originally designed as a racing aircraft. Like similar fast, light aircraft of the period it was used by the RNAS and the RFC as a “scout”, or fast reconnaissance type. It was one of the first single-seaters to be used as a fighter aircraft, although it was not possible to fit it with an effective forward-firing armament until the first British-designed gun synchronizers became available later in 1916, by which time the Scout was obsolescent. Single-seat fighters continued to be…
Airco DH.4
Airco DH.4 The Airco DH.4 was a British two-seat biplane day bomber of the First World War. It was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland (hence “DH”) for Airco, and was the first British two-seat light day-bomber to have an effective defensive armament. The DH.4 was developed as a light two-seat combat aircraft, intended to perform both aerial reconnaissance and day bomber missions. One of the early aims of the design was for it to be powered by the newly-developed Beardmore Halford Pullinger (BHP) engine, capable of generating up to 160…