Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.2

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 1912–13 as the B.S.1, the prototype was rebuilt several times before serving with the Royal Flying Corps over the Western Front in the early months of the First World War.

Development and design

In 1912, a team at the Royal Aircraft Factory, led 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, andsingle-bay wings. Lateral control was by wing warping, while the aircraft was initially fitted with a small rudder without a fixed fin (a scaled down version of that fitted to the B.E.3), and a one-piece elevator. It was powered by a two-row, 14-cylinder Gnome rotary engine rated at 100 hp (75 kW)

he 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. De Havilland was not satisfied with the control afforded by the small rudder and designed a larger replacement, but on 27 March 1913, before the new rudder could be installed, he crashed the B.S.1, breaking his jaw and badly damaging the aircraft.

Following this accident, it was rebuilt, with an 80 hp single-row Gnome and new tail surfaces, with triangular fins above and below the fuselage, a larger rudder and conventional divided elevators.^[5] While the rebuilt aircraft was initially designated B.S.2, it was soon redesignated S.E.2 (for Scout Experimental).^[3] 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, which had been criticised as too expensive for mass production, was replaced by a conventional wood and fabric structure. Better streamlined struts were fitted, as well as streamline sectioned bracing wires (Raf-wires). It was first 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.^[7] 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.

Specifications (S.E.2)

Data from The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing) 

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 20 ft 10 in (6.35 m)
• Wingspan: 27 ft 6¼ in (8.39 m)
• Height: 9 ft 4⅛ in (2.82 m)
• Wing area: 188 sq ft (17.5m²)
• Empty weight: 720 lb (327 kg)
• Loaded weight: 1,132 lb (515 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Gnome Rotary engine, 80 hp (60 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 91 mph (79 knots, 147 km/h)
• Endurance: 3 hr

Armament

• Guns: 2× .303 in rifles

A.1 Balilla WWI

The Ansaldo A.1, nicknamed "Balilla" after the Genoan folk-hero was Italy's only domestically-produced fighter aircraft of World War I. Arriving too late to see any real action, it was however used by both Poland and the Soviet Union in the Polish-Soviet War.

Development

The A.1 resulted from continued efforts by the Ansaldo company to create a true fighter. Their SVA.5 had proved unsuitable in this role, although it made an excellent reconnaissance aircraft and had been ordered into production as such. Ansaldo engineer Giuseppe Brezzi revised the SVA.5 design, increasing the size of the lower wing, and redesigning the interplane strut arrangement. While this produced more drag, it increased the stiffness of the wing structure and reduced stresses in the airframe. Engine power was increased to 150 kW (200 hp) and a safety system to jettison the fuel tank through a ventral hatch (in case of onboard fire) was installed.
The first prototype was completed in July 1917, but acceptance by the air force did not occur until December. Test pilots were not enthusiastic in their evaluation. While they found a marked increase in performance over the SVA.5, the A.1 was still not as maneuverable as the French types in use by Italy's squadrons. This resulted in a number of modifications, including a slight enlargement of the wings and rudder, and a further 10% increase in engine power. This initially proved satisfactory to the air force, and the modified A.1 (designated A.1bis) was ordered into service with 91 Squadriglia for further evaluation.
Reports from pilots were mixed. While the fighter's speed was impressive, it proved unmaneuverable and difficult to fly. Nevertheless, with a need to clear a backlog of obsolete fighter types then in service, the air force ordered the A.1 anyway.

Operational history

The first of an original order of 100 machines entered service in July 1918. The A.1s were kept away from the front lines and mostly assigned to home defence duties. In the four months before the Armistice, A.1s scored only one aerial victory, over an Austrian reconnaissance aircraft. It was during this time that Ansaldo engaged in a number of promotional activities, including dubbing the aircraft as Balilla, flying displays in major Italian cities, and in August donating an example to Italian aviator Antonio Locatelli as his personal property amidst a press spectacle. (This latter publicity stunt backfired somewhat when one week later a mechanical fault in the aircraft caused Locatelli to make a forced landing behind enemy lines and be taken prisoner). Despite all this, the air force ordered another 100 machines, all of which were delivered before the end of the war. At the armistice, 186 were operational, of which 47 aircraft were ordered to remain on hand with training squadrons, and the remainder were to be put into storage.

In Polish service

The A.1 found a new lease of life, however, when a purchasing committee from the Polish army visited Italy in 1919 in search of new weapons. A contract for ten evaluation aircraft was signed, and these were delivered to Warsaw in January 1920. The initial impression of pilots there (mostly American volunteers) was extremely favourable, on account of its high speed and fuel capacity and, curiously, the maneuverability disdained by Italian airmen. On May 25, the A.1s were deployed to the front line. All but one of them were destroyed during the Red Army counterattack in the Ukraine. Nevertheless, the Polish government had already purchased another 25 aircraft and a licence to locally produce another 100. The new aircraft only arrived after hostilities had ended, and in July 1921 the first of 36 licence-built machines rolled out of the Lublin factory.
The Lublin-built machines were some 80 kg (180 lb) heavier than the original Italian design and exhibited frequent problems with their engines and with the quality of their welds. Numerous accidents ensued, including at least nine fatal crashes. In 1924, the production order was reduced to 80 machines, and soon thereafter to 57 (the number actually constructed at the time). The following year, the armament was removed from all A.1s then in service, and by 1927, the type had been withdrawn from service completely.

In Soviet service

In 1920, the White Russian army ordered thirty aircraft, of which 18 were eventually delivered in April 1922. These were initially deployed in the Kharkov region, flying unarmed (they had been ordered sans weapons). They eventually served around the Baltic and Black Sea until mid-1928. During Winter, they were equipped with skis.

In Latvian service

In 1921, Latvia became another buyer, ordering 13 aircraft even though the demonstration flight in Riga ended in a fatal crash for Ansaldo's test pilot. The Latvian machines differed from other examples by the addition of insulation to protect the engine from the cold.
Promotions in the Americas
In an attempt to secure post-war markets, Ansaldo undertook a number of promotional activities in both North and South America. The firm sent six aircraft to the United States in 1919 in an attempt to attract private buyers - at $US 6,000 apiece. The aircraft's high speed proved attractive to record-hunters; US aviation ace Eddie Rickenbacker set a national airspeed record in one in 1920, and one was flown with a Curtiss D-12 engine to third place in the 1921 US Pulitzer air race.
Four aircraft were flown on tour to Argentina and then to Uruguay in an attempt to interest the respective governments in the type, Ansaldo even offering each country two of the promotional aircraft with its complements. However, no order ensued from either of them. The company then displayed two aircraft in Peru, and one in Honduras, but without any success there either. With the failure of the South American promotional tour to attract any business, Ansaldo abandoned the A.1, and the firm was soon absorbed into Fiat.
Mexico acquired one example in 1920 and served in the Fuerza Aérea Mexicana for few years.

The Adolphe Bernard

The Adolphe Bernard AB 1 was a two engine French biplane medium bomber, built near the end of the First World War. Ten were produced for the Armée de l'Air but did not reach squadron service; post-war, two civil derivatives were considered but only one such aircraft was built.

Design and development

The AB 1, built near the end of the First World War, was the first original design from the Adolphe Bernard factory which had previously produced SPAD aircraft to government contracts. It was a twin engine biplane bomber, carrying 600 kg (1,323 lb) of bombs.
The AB 1 was a wooden three bay biplane, without stagger but with greater span on the upper planes. Only the lower wings carried dihedral. The outer and mid interplane struts were outward leaning pairs but the inner bay was defined by a complex of struts supporting the engines mid-way between the wings. Head on, these appeared as a V based on the lower wing but had M and W arrangements seen side-on above and below the engine. The AB 1 used Hispano-Suiza V-8 piston engines, of which type there was a surplus after the Armistice. It had ailerons on both upper and lower wings, externally connected.
The fuselage of the AB 1 was flat sided, with a narrowed but flat topped decking. There was a gunner's position in the extreme nose fitted with a 7.7 mm machine gun on a TO 4 mounting. The fuselage tapered rearwards with the cantilever tailplane, which carried separate elevators, mounted on top. The fin carried a horn balanced rudder which extended down to the bottom of the fuselage, moving between the elevators.
Its main undercarriage had a wide track, with twin wheels on short axles mounted below each engine on inverted V struts, themselves further braced to the lower fuselage longerons.
The first AB 1 was built in 1918 and probably flew that year. There were plans for a variant using more powerful Hispano-Suiza 8Ba engines, the AB 2, but this was not built. Post war, two civilian variants were started, the post-carrying AB 3 and the passenger only or passenger plus post AB 4. The AB 3, one of which was completed in 1920, could carry a useful load of 905 kg (1,95 lb). The AB 4, which had the same engines as the proposed AB 2, carried a maximum of seven passengers. Its fuselage was on display at the 6th Paris Aero Show in December 1919, but it was not completed.
Operational history
Ten AB 1s were produced after the Armistice but do not seem to have achieved squadron service.

Variants

AB 1
The bomber version of 1918, as supplied to the Armée de l'Air. Eleven built.
AB 2
Proposed version with 200 hp (150 kW) Hispano-Suiza 8Ba engines. Not built.
AB 3
Post carrying civil version of AB 1. One built 1920.
AB 4
Airliner/post carrier version of AB 2. Maximum seven passengers, depending on postal load. One part built 1919.
Specifications (AB 1)[edit]
Data from Liron pp.224, 215[1]
General characteristics
Crew: 2?
Length: 11.30 m (37 ft 1 in)
Upper wingspan: 18.95 m (62 ft 2 in)
Height: 3.65 m (12 ft 0 in)
Wing area: 80.0 m2 (861 sq ft)
Empty weight: 1,570 kg (3,461 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 2,859 kg (6,303 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Hispano-Suiza 8 Ab water cooled V-8 piston engine, 130 kW (180 hp) each
Propellers: 2-bladed (later 4)

Performance

Maximum speed: 167 km/h (104 mph; 90 kn)
Service ceiling: 4,900 m (16,076 ft)
Rate of climb: 2.1 m/s (410 ft/min) to 2,000 m (6,560 ft)
Armament

Breguet 14

The Breguet 14 was a French biplane bomber and reconnaissance aircraft of World War I. It was built in very large numbers and production continued for many years after the end of the war. Apart from its widespread usage, it was noteworthy for becoming the first aircraft in mass production to use large amounts of metal rather than wood in its structure. This allowed the airframe to be lighter than a wooden airframe of the same strength, in turn making the aircraft very fast and agile for its size, able to outrun many of the fighters of the day. Its strong construction was able to sustain much damage, it was easy to handle and had good performance. The Breguet 14 is often considered one of the best aircraft of the war.

Design and development

The aircraft was designed by Louis Breguet, who flew the first prototype (originally designated Breguet AV Type XIV) on its first flight on 21 November 1916. The design was a come-back for Breguet to designing conventional planes, after designing the pusher-type Breguet BUM. Later that month, the French Army's Section Technique de l' Aéronautique (S.T.Aé.) issued requirements for four different new aircraft types. Breguet submitted his new design for two of those categories - reconnaissance aircraft, and bomber.
Following evaluation in February, the Breguet 14 was accepted for both these roles, and in March, orders were placed for 150 reconnaissance aircraft and 100 bombers, designated Breguet 14 A.2 and 14 B.2 respectively (by 1918 written Breguet XIV A2/B2). The A.2 was equipped with a camera, with some carrying radios, while the lower wing of the 14 B.2 was modified slightly in order to accommodate bomb racks (built by Michelin). Both variants featured automatic, bungee-cord operated aerodynamic flaps, but these were not fitted to production aircraft. A number of B2 models were equipped with the U.S. built Liberty engine and were denoted Breguet 14 B2 L.
Other minor variants flown in small numbers during the war included the 14 B.1 long-range single-seat bomber, the 14 GR.2 long-range reconnaissance, the 14 H floatplane, the 14 S air ambulance and the 14 Et.2 trainer. Later variants 14bis A2 and 14bis B2 featured improved wing. An improved variant with bigger wings was the 16. There was also the two-seat fighter 17, which was built in small numbers only.

Operational history

Following successful deployment by the French, the type was also ordered by the Belgian Army (40 aircraft) and the United States Army Air Service (over 600 aircraft). Around half the Belgian and US aircraft were fitted with Fiat A.12 engines due to shortages of the original Renault 12F. By the end of World War I, some 5,500 Breguet 14s had been produced.
The type continued to be widely used after the war, equipping the French occupation forces in Germany and being deployed to support French troops in the colonies. A special version was developed for the harsh conditions encountered overseas, designated 14 TOE (Théatres des Operations Extérieures). These saw service in putting down uprisings in Syria and Morocco, in Vietnam and in France's attempted intervention in the Russian Civil War. The last trainer examples were not withdrawn from French military service until 1932.
Other air arms using the type included Brazil (30), China (70), Czechoslovakia (10), Denmark, Finland (38), Greece, Japan, Siamese Air Force, Uruguay (9) and Spain. Polish Air Force used 158 Breguet 14s, about 70 of them were used in combat in the Polish-Soviet war. In Japan, Breguet 14s were licence built by Nakajima.
Post war, Breguet had also begun to manufacture dedicated civil versions. The 14 T.2 Salon carried two passengers in a specially modified fuselage. An improved version of this was the 14 Tbis manufactured as both a land-plane and seaplane. The 14 Tbis also formed the basis of the improved 14 Tbis Sanitaire air ambulance version, and 100 mail planes custom-built for Pierre Latécoère's fledgling airline, Lignes Aeriennes Latécoère. After changing name to CGEA, the airline used among others 106 Breguet 14s for flights over the Sahara desert. The 18 T was a single 14 T re-engined with a Renault Ja engine and equipped to carry four passengers. When production finally ceased in 1928, the total of all versions built had reached 7,800 (according to other sources, 8,000 or even 8,370).

General characteristics

Crew: Two
Length: 8.87 m (29 ft 1 in)
Wingspan: 14.36 m (47 ft 1 in)
Height: 3.30 m (10 ft 10 in)
Wing area: 47.50 m² (511 ft²)
Empty weight: 1,010 kg (2,227 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 1,536 kg (3,386 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Renault 12Fe, 224 kW (300 hp)
Performance
Maximum speed: 190 km/h (95 kn, 109 mph)
Range: 900 km (486 nmi, 560 mi)
Service ceiling: 6,000 m (19,685 ft)
Rate of climb: 292 m/min (960 ft/min)
Wing loading: 32 kg/m² (at max. takeoff weight) (6.6 lb/ft²)
Power/mass: 145 W/kg (at max. takeoff weight) (0.09 hp/lb)
Armament
Guns: 1 × fixed 7.7 mm (.303 in) Vickers machine gun
2 × flexible 7.7 mm (.303 in) Lewis Gun for observer
Bombs: 300 kg (660 lb)

Breguet Bre.5

The Breguet Bre.5 B.2 bomber

The Breguet Bre.5 B.2 bomber and Breguet Bre.5 Ca.2 escort fighter were French and biplanes of World War I which were developments of the Breguet Bre.4 bomber. The Bre.6 and Bre.12 were in turn developments of the Bre.5

Design and development

This aircraft was a refinement of the escort fighter that Breguet Aviation had designed and was manufactured by Michelin as the Breguet-Michelin BUC. Initially intended to carry the same 37 mm (1.46 in) Hotchkiss cannon that armed the BUC, the Bre.5 was revised at the request of the French Army to carry a 7.7 mm (.303 in) Lewis Gun fired rearward from atop the biplane's upper wing.

Operational history

A small number of cannon-armed machines were produced from April 1916 onwards and allotted to bomber units. The British Royal Naval Air Service operated 35 of which ten came from Breguet, and 25 were built in the United Kingdom by Grahame-White as the G.W.19.
The Bre.6 was similar but powered by a Canton-Unné engine, and was developed in case production of the Bre.5's Renault engine was unable to keep up with demand. It was also produced both as an escort fighter and as a bomber.
As the Bre.5 reached obsolescence, a number were rebuilt as Bre.12 night fighters and night bombers. The fighter carried a 37 mm (1.46 in) cannon and a searchlight.
Variants
Bre.5
Renault-powered version.
Bre 5 B.2
Bomber version.
Bre.5 Ca.2
Cannon-armed escort fighter version.
Grahame White G.W.19
British-built version for RNAS with Rolls-Royce Falcon engine.
Bre.6
Canton-Unné-powered version.
Bre.6 B.2
Bomber version.
Bre.6Ca.2
Cannon-armed escort fighter.
Bre.12
Bre.5s remanufactured for night fighting
Bre.12 B.2
Night bomber.
Bre.12 Ca.2
Cannon-armed night fighter.

The Breguet Bre.4 WWI

The Breguet Bre.4, also known variously as the Type IV and BUM, was a French biplane bomber of World War I. A fighter version of it also was produced as the BUC and BLC; some of these saw service with the British Royal Navy, which called them 'the Breguet 'de Chasse.
Design and development
The Bre.4 was developed during 1914 when French military planners began to express a preference for pusher- over tractor-configured aircraft, leading Breguet Aviation to cease further development of its original Type IV design and pursue military contracts with an aircraft of the preferred layout. The Type IV was a two-bay, equal-span, unstaggered biplane that seated the pilot and observer in tandem open cockpits in a nacelle that also carried the pusher engine at its rear, and the tricycle undercarriage.
As the prototype neared completion, the Breguet factory at Douai was threatened by the advancing German Army, and the machine and its builders were evacuated to Villacoublay where construction and testing were completed. At this point, André and Édouard Michelin approached the French government with an offer to sponsor the construction of 100 bombers for the French Army, and were awarded a licence to the Breguet design. This was put into production as the BUM (B for pusher-driven, U for Canton-Unné-powered, M for Michelin). A later revised bersion, the BLM, was the definitive Renault-powered version.
Soon after the BUM entered service, the French Army requested that an escort fighter version be developed to protect the bombers from interception. Breguet responded with a lightened design armed with a 37 mm (1.46 in) Hotchkiss cannon intended to pick off enemy fighters before they closed to within range of their machine guns. This entered production as the BUC (C for chasse, or pursuit) in its original Canton-Unné powered version and BLC in its Renault version.
Operational history
French service
Few of the BUC and BLC escort fighters were built, as their performance and utility were discovered to be lacking, and the doctrine of the cannon-armed escort fighter was soon abandoned in favour of countering fighters with other similar fighters.
Royal Naval Air Service
Breguet built 17 BUC/BLCs for the British Royal Navy's Royal Naval Air Service using British 225-hp (168-kW) Sunbeam Mohawk engines. The Royal Navy called them the Breguet de Chasse. They served alongside Caudron G.4s with No. 5 Wing RNAS – the Royal Navy's first air unit specifically trained for long-range bombing – in Belgium from April to June 1916.
Variants
Type IV (BU3)
Breguet prototype.
BUM (BrM2B.2)
Michelin-built, Canton-Unné-powered bomber version.
BLM (BrM4B.2)
Michelin-built, Renault-powered bomber version.
BUC
Michelin-built, Canton-Unné-powered escort fighter version.
BLC
Michelin-built, Renault-powered escort fighter version.
Breguet de Chasse
Version of BLC for RNAS, powered by Sunbeam Mohawk or Rolls-Royce Falcon engine.

Breguet Type III WWI

The Breguet Types III was an early biplane built by Louis Breguet in France in 1910.
Design and development
The Breguet Type III, which first flew in April 1910, was a development of the Type II which Breguet had built and flown earlier that year. Eliminating the upper booms that had helped to carry the tail surfaces of the earlier aircraft, it had what is now seen as the conventional biplane configuration, with a fuselage containing a front mounted engine driving a tractor propeller and control and stabilising surfaces mounted at the rear. At the time this was an unusual layout: the Goupy II which had first flown the previous year was the first aircraft of this configuration to be successful. Like Breguet's earlier aircraft, extensive use of metal was made in its construction: the structure of the rectangular-section fuselage, wing spars and interplane struts were steel, and the ribs were aluminium pressings.
The lower wings were mounted on a short spar mounted below the lower longerons and the upper wing was supported by only four struts, two inboard supporting the centre section of the wing and one on either side connecting the mainspars of the wings near to the wingtips. The mainspars of the wing panels were connected to the centre section spar by knuckle joints, so that the wings could easily be folded back for road or rail transport.
Four small vertical stabilisers were mounted below the upper wing, and a pair of supplementary control surfaces were mounted below the fuselage. These were intended for lateral control, and were operated in conjunction with wing-warping The rear-mounted empennage initially consisted of a fixed fin and rudder and a rectangular elevator, with no fixed horizontal surface, but this was soon replaced by a cruciform assembly combining rudder and elevator connected to the fuselage by a universal joint. This unusual arrangement became a characteristic of the aircraft manufactured by Breguet before World War I.
The prototype was powered by a 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome Omega driving a three-bladed aluminium propeller through a 2:1 reduction gear. Later aircraft were produced with other power units.

pecifications (example shown at 1910 Paris Aero Salon)
Data from
General characteristics
Length: 9.2 m (30 ft 2 in)
Upper wingspan: 13.2 m (43 ft 4 in)
Lower wingspan: 9.9 m (32 ft 6 in)
Wing area: 38 m2 (410 sq ft)
Empty weight: 475 kg (1,047 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × R.E.P. 1910 60hp 5-cyl. 2-row semi-radial, 45 kW (60 hp)