FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1940
1940 - 1133.PDF
APRIL 18, 1940 ff0 1912 TO 1940 (CONTINUED) slide along the ground, acting as a very useful .brake. Although the amphibian did not do particularly well in the Air Ministry competition, it had proved what the designers were seeking, and a development of it was put in hand for the Air Ministry. Instead of the pusher airscrew of the 1920 machine, this amphibian had a tractor, and a 450 h.p. Napier Lion engine had replaced the Eagle. There were many other improvements, and the Seagull had quite a respectable performance (93 knots). The land undercarriage was a great improve- ment on that of the previous year's machine. In addi- tion to the pilot, the Seagull carried a wireless operator and a rear gunner. In 1921-22 the Supermarine company again turned to the single-seater fighting scout. In 1922 appeared the Sea King, Mark II, which had a 300 h.p. Hispano-Suiza engine. In spite of the fact that the machine was an amphibian flying boat, and that the undercarriage lifted clear of the water but did not retract into hull or wings, the performance was good for the power ; 125 m.p.h. at sea level (the engine was unsupercharged, of course), and climb to 10,oooft. in 12 minutes. The airscrew was a pusher. The pilot was armed with a Lewis gun. In the summer of 1922 Mr. Scott-Paine and Com- mander Bird formed a new company : the British Marine Air Navigation Co., Ltd., for the purpose of operating flying-boat services between Southampton and such places as Cherbourg and the Channel Islands. For the first time they received Government aid in the form of a subsidy of 25 per cent, on the gross earnings. The machines to be used were of what was known as the Sea Eagle type, single-engined amphibian flying boats with Rolls-Royce Eagle engines. The company was fairly suc- cessful in operating services, and when Imperial Airways were formed, the British Marine Air Navigation Co., Ltd., was one of the firms taken into the new company, Mr. Scott-Paine becoming a director. Saving the Schneider At this time, 1922, the Schneider Trophy was in grave danger of being lost to Great Britain, Italy having won it two years in succession. A third win would mean that Italy could claim the Trophy permanently. No Govern- ment assistance was forthcoming, and with a sporting spirit for which they were never given sufficient, credit, Mr. Scott-Paine and Commander Bird decided to finance a venture themselves. One of the Sea King machines was modified and cleaned up for the race, and the Trophy was won at Naples by Henri Biard, Super- marine's test pilot. The story of Supermarine partici- pation in the Schneider Trophy contests, and their final victory in 1931, is illustrated on other pages, as it forms such a prominent feature of the firm's history. But here it should be pointed out that but for Biard's victory at Naples in 1922, Great Britain would never have be- come the permanent holder of the coveted Trophy. As another instance of the enterprise shown by the Supermarine firm, one may mention that by 1922 ruite a good export business had been established, and Super- marine boats had been sent to many parts of the world. Japan, for cample, had bought both the Channel type and also the Seagull amphibian. The latter had a 450 h.p. Napier Lion engine, and was later adopted by our own Government, while a number were sold to Australia. Chili bought the Mark II Channel type, with a redesigned front step which gave much cleaner running. First Passenger Boat Reference has already been made to the Sea Eagle, the type operated by the services of the British Marine Air Navigation Co., Ltd. The first of these was com- pleted and tested in the summer of 1923. It was similar to previous Supermarine types, but had very high bows and a straight stem in order to prevent her from " taking it over green," to the discomfort and discomfiture of the passengers. This was the first flying boat specifically designed for passenger-carrying. The six passengers were accommodated in the forward cabin, while the pilot sat aft of and above the cabin, in line with the leading edge of the wings. As the Rolls-Royce Eagle IX engine developed but 360 h.p., the power expenditure per pas- senger was very modest indeed. One of these machines took part in the race for the King's Cup in 1923, and another was sent to the Swedish Aero Show at Gothenburg. In spite of all this activity, Supermarines found time to .enter a machine for the 1923 Schneider race at Cowes. This was the Sea Lion III. It was outclassed by the American Curtiss twin-float seaplanes, and did not vin, but Biard put up a magnificent show, and finished the race in a vertical climb to several thousand feet. Early in 1924 the first twin-engined Supermarine amphibian flying boat appeared. This had two Rolls- Royce Eagle engines, and the hull shape was based on that of the Sea Eagle, with high flaring bows. It was, however, a military type with a gunner in the bows and the pilot in a sort of "coach house" raised above the (Continued on page I.) The Supermarine Seamew was a reconnaissance flying boat(amphibian), powered by two Siddeley Lynx engines.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
