А.Шепс Самолеты Первой мировой войны. Страны Антанты

Бристоль "Скаут" (Scout) 1913 г.

   В 1912 году пионер английской авиации Джефри де Хевилленд спроектировал для фирмы "Бристоль Бритиш энд Колониэл Эйрплэйн Компани" спортивный самолет по схеме, ставшей позднее классической, фюзеляжного биплана с тянущим винтом.
   Построенный первоначально как спортивный самолет, с начала войны он стал использоваться для разведки, а позднее и как истребитель.
   Бристоль "Скаут" - это одностоечный биплан деревянной конструкции. Фюзеляж прямоугольного сечения, обтянут полотном и покрыт авиационным лаком. Для растяжек использовался либо трос, либо стальная лента. Крыло двухлонжеронное, деревянной конструкции, также обтянутое полотном. Стойки бипланной коробки - деревянные, первоначально эллиптической, а позднее каплевидной формы. На первых машинах управление осуществлялось перекашиванием, а с 1914 года крыло оборудовалось элеронами.
   Оперение обычной схемы. Стабилизатор нерегулируемый. Вертикальное оперение без киля.
   Шасси обычной схемы с V-образными стойками жесткой схемы с шнуровой резиновой амортизацией и неуправляемым костылем. 7-цилиндровый звездообразный ротативный двигатель воздушного охлаждения "Гном" мощностью 80 л. с. закрывался металлическим капотом.
   При использовании машины в роли истребителя устанавливался пулемет 7,69-мм "Виккерс" и отсекатели на винт. Однако с середины 1916 года скоростные и маневренные характеристики оказались уже недостаточными для борьбы с новыми германскими истребителями, и до конца войны оставшиеся машины использовались как учебные.
   Самолет имел несколько модификаций, отличавшихся формой и размахом крыльев и оперения, с разными двигателями мощностью от 50 до 100 л. с. В целом это был простой в производстве, удачный и отличный в своем классе по летным качествам самолет.
   Для увеличения дальности перехвата германских дирижаблей и бомбардировщиков в Великобритании пытались использовать большую летающую лодку "Феликстоу", над верхним крылом которой устанавливался истребитель Бристоль "Скаут С" как самый легкий из строившихся тогда. Но дальше опыта дело не пошло.

C.Barnes Bristol Aircraft since 1910 (Putnam)

The Bristol Scouts A-D, S.S.A., G.B.1 and S.2A

   Apart from improved replicas of the Anzani-engined Prier monoplanes, Coanda designed only one single-seat monoplane; this was the S.B.5, No. 183, a smaller version of the military monoplane, for the Italian government. When the Caproni-Bristol contract fell through in November 1913, the unfinished fuselage was still in the works awaiting disposal. There was a growing interest in single-seater biplanes for high-speed reconnaissance and Barnwell was given permission to convert the S.B.5 into a scout biplane, as 'X Department' was not fully occupied. The drawings were sketched in a manifold book under the reference' SN.183', although the result, when completed, received the new No. 206.
   The 'Baby Biplane', or Scout, was very simple in outline and economical in manufacture. The single-bay wings of 22 ft. span were similar to those designed by Coanda for the P.B.8 and had the same ailerons and stagger. A two-wheeled Vee chassis was fitted and the tailplane, elevators and balanced rudder were made from light steel tubing. A reconditioned 80 h.p. Gnome engine (Actually No. 1916, salvaged from hydro-biplane No. 120) was installed in a close cowling open at the bottom and the machine when finished weighed only 950 lb. complete with pilot and 3 hours' fuel.
   No. 206 was sent to Larkhill on 23 February 1914, and Busteed, who had had a considerable hand in the design, was delighted with it; after a very few flights to familiarise himself with so lively a mount he attained 95 m.p.h. The little biplane was then sent to the Olympia Aero Show, together with the G.B.75 two-seater. When the Show opened on 16 March, No. 206 was the smallest biplane there, but without doubt the most sensational.
   After the Show was over, the Scout went back to Larkhill, and at the end of April returned to Filton to be fitted with a new set of wings of slightly greater area, which increased the span to 24 ft. 7 in. These reduced the landing speed and improved handling without affecting the maximum speed. At the same time the engine cowling was modified to an annular shape, allowing more airflow through the central opening. On 14 May 1914 Busteed put the modified Scout through an A.I.D. performance test at Farnborough and recorded a speed range of 97.5 m.p.h. to 40 m.p.h.; he then flew to Brooklands, where he gave a spectacular demonstration and in a handicap race was beaten only by seconds by Harold Barnwell in the 100 h.p. Gnome-engined Sopwith Tabloid.
   The Scout was entered for the Aerial Derby round London on 23 May, but the race was postponed until 6 June, and on that day visibility was so bad that Sippe was not allowed to fly the Scout. However, another competitor, Lord Carbery, who owned a Morane monoplane, was so impressed by the Scout that he asked to buy it, and was allowed to because two more of the type, Nos. 229 and 230, were being built. Carbery paid ?400 for the airframe without engine and installed the 80 h.p. Le Rhone from his Morane. He took delivery at Hendon on 17 June, having already entered it for two cross-country races, the first being London-Manchester and back on 20 June. During practice flying, Carbery reached a true speed of over 100 m.p.h., but on the day the weather was very rough and having averaged 89 m.p.h. to the compulsory landing point at Castle Bromwich, Carbery landed across wind and tipped up on his nose, breaking the port lower wing and the chassis. Repairs at Filton were completed by 7 July, just in time for the second race, from London to Paris and back. In this event Carbery was scratch man and on the day of the race his engine was not giving full power. Nevertheless, he would not give up, and although he had to circle Hendon three times to gain height with 5 hours' fuel on board, and the weather was foggy into the bargain, he reached Buc safely. Unfortunately the mechanics who refuelled the Scout at Buc, during the compulsory 2 hours' stop, only filled one tank and Carbery did not check both tanks before taking-off on the return flight. Consequently he had only just crossed the French coast near Hardelot when his engine began to fail; he operated the fuel changeover cock, only to find the second tank empty also. He just had time to glide down on to the Channel beside a convenient tramp steamer; the water was calm and he was rescued without even getting his feet wet, but in salving the aircraft the fuselage was broken and all but the engine and mountings fell back into the sea.
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   Nos. 229 and 230 differed from No. 206 only in detail, notably the wing bracing and engine cowling, and were designated Scout B to distinguish them from the prototype, which became Scout A in retrospect. Barnwell sketched out a version of the Scout with a Statax engine, a small diameter swash-plate design which showed initial promise but was never properly developed. He also designed a racing single-seater, the G.B.l, for the 1914 Gordon Bennett race. This was discussed by the Directors on 26 June, but they decided not to built it. It was to have had a 100 h.p. Mono-Gnome engine mounted between horizontal bearers, as in the Sopwith Tabloid, and a tapered fixed fin.
   The two Scout Bs had not been flown when war broke out on 4 August 1914, but they were at once requisitioned by the War Office and delivered to Farnborough on 21 and 23 August, respectively. They were then sent to France, where their high speed and rate of climb won the approval of discerning pilots, who nicknamed them 'Bristol Bullets'. They were allotted R.F.C. numbers 633 and 648 and were flown by Lt. Cholmondeley and Major J. F. A. Higgins, of Nos. 3 and 5 Squadrons, respectively. The former armed his Scout with two rifles, on either side of the cockpit and offset from the line of flight so as to miss the airscrew.
   Although committed to ordering Royal Aircraft Factory designs, for which large contracts had been placed when war was imminent, the War Office was sufficiently impressed by its new Bristol, Martinsyde and Sopwith Scouts to place small production contracts for them, and the Company received an order for 12 of a further improved version, Scout C, on 5 November 1914. The Admiralty wanted them too and ordered 24 Scouts on 7 December, but this led to a dispute between the two Services, who both demanded priority in delivery. A compromise was reached whereby the first Scout C, No. 450 (1243) was completed urgently and delivered to the Admiralty on 16 February 1915. It was followed by Nos. 451-462 (1602-1613), delivered to the War Office between 23 April and 13 June 1915, followed by 17 more for the Admiralty, Nos. 463-479 (1244-1260) between 3 June and 18 July 1915. Meanwhile the War Office had placed a second contract for 75 Scout Cs on 16 March and the first six of these, Nos. 480-485 (4662-4667) were delivered between 10 and 29 July, followed by the remaining six, Nos. 486-491 (1261-1266), for the Admiralty between 29 July and 24 August 1915. All these Scouts were fitted with 80 h.p. Gnome engines. Manufacture of the Scout C was undertaken at Brislington because the Filton factory was fully committed to B.E.2c production. The next 32 for the War Office, Nos. 492-523 (46684699), were completed between 9 August and 12 November 1915, all after the first four being fitted with 80 h.p. Le Rhone engines after delivery because of a growing shortage of Gnomes. The Admiralty, however, insisted on having Gnomes because of their greater reliability, particularly for over-water flying, and had ordered 50 more on 6 June 1915; the first of the batch, No. 524 (3013), was delivered on 5 September, but the shortage of Gnome engines caused progressive delay until early in the New Year, and the 37th machine, No. 560 (3049), was delayed until 9 February 1916. However, it was followed quickly by the remaining 13, Nos. 771-783 (3050-3062), between 11 February and 25 March.
   Meanwhile, the remaining 37 Scouts for the War Office, Nos. 784-820 (5291-5327), with Le Rhones, had gone ahead smoothly and were dispatched between 13 November 1915 and 18 February 1916. This completed the production of the Scout C, of which 161 in all were produced, 74 for the Admiralty and 87 for the War Office; 65 of the latter had 80 h.p. Le Rhone engines and all the others had 80 h.p. Gnomes. At least one R.N.A.S. Scout (3035) was tested with an 80 h.p. Clerget.
   Bristol Scouts were dispersed among many R.F.C. squadrons, but never formed the sole equipment of any squadron. They were not armed when issued and much ingenuity was displayed by individual units and pilots in adapting them to an offensive role. How effective they could be was demonstrated on 25 July 1915 by Capt. Lanoe G. Hawker of No. 6 Squadron, who on an evening patrol forced down three enemy two-seaters all armed with machine-guns, although he himself had only a single-shot Martini carbine mounted at an angle on the starboard side; for which feat he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Other weapons, similarly mounted to miss the airscrew, included the larger 0.45 in. Martini carbine firing incendiary bullets, the Lewis gun and even a breech-loading duck-gun firing chain-shot. The fowling-piece was useless, but good use was made of Lewis guns.
   Most Naval Scouts were unarmed, but carried canisters of Ranken darts, designed to set fire to Zeppelin airships. Each Scout had two containers on the cockpit floor, each holding 24 darts, which could be released three at a time. Some Naval Scouts had a Lewis gun mounted above the centre-section, and a few had one mounted parallel to the top longeron and firing through the airscrew disc, sometimes but not always synchronised by a Scarff-Dibovski interrupter gear. The long duration and rapid rate of ascent of the Zeppelins made them particularly difficult to attack, except with small fast Scouts which had insufficient range to intercept them. In an attempt to overcome the range problem several Isle of Man steamers had been converted into seaplane carriers, and one, H.M.S. Vindex, was equipped with a flying-off deck forward. On 3 November 1915 the first take-off from this deck was made by Flight-Lt. H. F. Towler in a Scout C (1255), and thereafter two Scouts were carried by Vindex on anti-Zeppelin patrols. Another of the Vindex Scouts (3028) was loaned to Squadron Commander John Porte at Felixstowe for an experiment in which it was successfully launched from a large three-engined Porte Baby flying boat, flown by Porte himself. The Scout was carried on the upper wing of the flying boat, and its pilot, Flight-Lt. M. J. Day of Vindex, switched on his engine and climbed away when the composite aircraft had reached a height of 1,000 ft. above Harwich Harbour, landing safely soon afterwards at Martlesham Heath. This experiment took place on 17 May 1916, but was not repeated because Flight-Lt. Day was killed in France soon afterwards and newer aircraft able to tackle Zeppelins more effectively were coming into service by that date.
   During the period of Scout C production at Brislington few modifications had been made to Barnwell's design, and meanwhile Barnwell had joined the R.F.C. and Tinson had gone to the Admiralty Air Department. The principal change necessary was a rearrangement of the tanks so as to bring the oil tank forward from its original position behind the cockpit; here it had insufficient head to maintain oil supply while taxying, particularly with the Le Rhone engine, whose oil pump was less effective than the Gnome's. In August 1915, however, Barnwell was released from active service to resume duty at Filton as Chief Designer, and he quickly took action to remedy some of the shortcomings of the existing Scout C, as reported by both Services. Some requests, such as the Admiralty's for a fixed fin and a rudder area of 5 sq. ft. he rejected. (There is a note in his handwriting in reply to the Admiralty overseer, Lt. Ronald Kemp, saying, 'We have already given them a rudder of 5.13 sq. ft. do they want a negative fin area?') But he took steps to improve detail design and performance, substituting streamline Rafwires for stranded cable and ensuring better interchangeability and reliability of quick-wearing parts. Provision was made for a synchronised Vickers gun, and tank design was improved to overcome fue11eaks caused by vibration. Loss of fuel from this cause forced Flight-Lt. Freeman of Vindex to break off an engagement with Zeppelin L.l7 after hitting it with his Ranken darts; he had to ditch his Scout, but was rescued by a Belgian ship and interned in Holland for a few days before being repatriated as a 'shipwrecked mariner'.
   The revised design, Scout D, completed in November 1915, matched a new War Office contract awarded on 3 August for 50 Scouts, Nos. 1044-1093 (5554-5603). These were delivered without engines between 14 February and 3 June 1916 and retained the same wing rigging and aileron area as the Scout C, but an alternative wing design was already approved for a smaller aileron combined with increased dihedral; in this type the wing-tip skids were moved outboard from below the interplane struts. The production drawings confirm that both types of wing were manufactured for the Scout D and that aileron size is not a criterion m recognising a Scout C from a Scout D. Two sizes of rudder were designed for Scout D, the larger being fitted in conjunction with long ailerons, the so-called 'medium' in conjunction with short ailerons; both the Scout D rudders were larger than the Scout C type in height and chord, but differed from each other only by 2 1/2 inches in height. A repeat contract for 30 Scout Ds Nos. 1094-1123 (7028-7057), was placed by the War Office on 18 October 1915, and these were equipped with standardised gun mountings and the modified wings; they were delivered without engines between 7 June and 15 July 1916, and followed by a further 50, Nos. 1381-1430 (A1742-A1791), delivered between 22 July and 27 September 1916. Meanwhile the Admiralty ordered 50 with the 100 h.p. Monosoupape-Gnome, Nos. 1124-1173 (8951-9000), on 9 November 1915; their delivery was spread over the period 18 April to 5.August 1916 and they had a modified cut-away centre section with a mounting for a movable Lewis gun. The cowling for the Monosoupape engine was larger in diameter than for the 80 h.p. engines and had a bulge on the starboard side to improve exhaust scavenging. A final production batch of 30 Scout Ds, Nos. 1837-1866 (N5390-N5419), covered by an Admiralty contract on 1 November 1916, was delivered between 2 November and 16 December 1916, but by this time the Company had begun production of the F.2A two-seater fighter at Brislington and declined an Admiralty invitation in March 1917 to tender for a further 40 Scouts. The first ten of the final batch had 100 h.p. Monosoupape-Gnomes, but the remainder reverted to 80 h.p. Gnomes and went to RN.A.S. flying schools. The R.F.C. also expressed interest in a more potent version of the Scout D, and three, 5554, 5555 and 5556, were modified to take the 110 h.p. Clerget, which like the Monosoupape, required a larger diameter cowling. In March 1916 Barnwell designed hemispherical spinners to suit each engine, and 5555 was fitted with the largest and provided data for the Clerget installation proposed for the M.1A monoplane. The other spinners were also tested, as well as a Morane spinner, which was flown extensively on a Scout D with a 110 h.p. Le Rhone by Lt. Frank Courtney at Farnborough. A conical spinner tested on 5556 suffered badly from distortion and vibration and no spinners were approved for production aircraft. The number of Scout Ds produced was 210, 130 for the R.F.C. and 80 for the R.N.A.S., so that the total of all Scouts A to D was 374, a not inconsiderable progeny from a project which started as a carbon-copy stop-gap.
   Scouts C and D found their way to most theatres of war in small numbers and saw service with the R.F.C. on the Western Front, in Palestine with Nos. 14, 111 and 67 (Australian) Squadrons, in Mesopotamia with Nos. 30 and 63 Squadrons and in Macedonia with No. 47 Squadron. With the R.N.A.S. they were flown by No.2 Wing from Mudros, Thasos and Imbros in the Dardanelles campaign, from H.M.S. Vindex in the North Sea, and from coastal stations at home. Both services employed them extensively for training and communications, and 8976 went to the Australian Central Flying School at Point Cook; another, rebuilt by No.1 (Southern) Aeroplane Repair Depot, R.F.C., as B763 was sent to McCook Field, Dayton, Ohio, where it was tested by the U.S. Army Engineering Division as Project no. P32.
   Only one Scout D, No. 1060 (5570), delivered new on 18 March 1916, survived the war to enter private ownership as G-EAGR in the British Civil Register. It was first owned by Major J. A. McKelvie, who sold it in 1926 to Squadron Leader Champion de Crespigny, who sold it a year later to Flight-Lt. A. M. Wray; it was stored for a time at Hedon, Hull, awaiting renewal of its certificate of airworthiness, which was refused because no approved fireproof bulkhead was fitted, and it was finally scrapped in 1930. In 1919 a Spanish private pilot, Juan Pombo, wished to order a new Scout D but the Company declined to build a single new specimen and could not recommend any of those still in store at that date as being fit for reconditioning.


SPECIFICATIONS AND DATA
Type: Scouts A-D, S.S.A.
Manufacturers: The British & Colonial Aeroplane Co. Ltd., Filton and Brislington, Bristol

Type Scout A Scout B Scout C Scout D S.S.A.
Power Plant 80 hp 80 hp 80 hp 80 hp 80 hp
   Gnome or Gnome Gnome, Gnome, Clerget or
   Le Rhone Le Rhone Le Rhone or Gnome
   Clerget Clerget,
   100 hp
   Mono-Gnome,
   110 hp Clerget
   or Le Rhone
Span 22 ft 24 ft 7 in 24 ft 7 in 24 ft 7 in 27 ft 4 in
   24 ft 7 in
Length 19 ft 9 in 20 ft 8 in 20 ft 8 in 20 ft 8 in 19 ft 9 in
Height 8 ft 6 in 8 ft 6 in 8 ft 6 in 8 ft 6 in
Wing Area 161 sq ft 198 sq ft 198 sq ft 198 sq ft 200 sq ft
   198 sq ft
Empty Weight 617 lb 750 lb 760 lb 760 lb 913 lb
   750 lb 925 lb
All-up Weight 957 lb 1,100 lb 1,200 lb 1,250 lb 1,200 lb
   1,100 lb 1,440 lb
Max. Speed 95 mph 100 mph 93 mph 100 mph 106 mph
   100 mph 110 mph
Initial Rate of
Climb 800 ft/min 1,000 ft/min 1,000 ft/min 1,100 ft/min
Duration 3 hours 2 1/2 hours 2 1/2 hours 2 1/2 hours 3 hours
   5 hours 2 hours
Accommodation 1 1 1 1 1
Production 1 2 161 210 1
Sequence Nos. 206 229,230 219

M.Goodall, A.Tagg British Aircraft before the Great War (Schiffer)

P.Lewis British Aircraft 1809-1914 (Putnam)

Bristol S.B.5

   During 1913, once it had become apparent that the aeroplane had reached a state of development whereby it could be of use in warfare, several firms initiated design work on single-seat scouts. Among them, was the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, one of whose designers, Mons. Henri Coanda, produced a tractor monoplane known as the S.B.5. An 80 h.p. Gnome engine was specified and construction was started under works number 183. The War Office's disapproval of monoplanes had its effect on the project, however, and the building of the S.B.5 was brought to a halt at an early stage. The parts were used later in the Scout A.


Bristol Scout A and B

   During 1913, Frank Barnwell set to work to produce a single-seat scout in the form of a biplane, and the resultant Scout A was built under works number 206. The partly-completed airframe of the abandoned S.B.5 was converted for use in the Scout A, the design of which was assisted by Harry Busteed. The power plant was the 80 h.p. Gnome partly cowled, the lower portion being left open. Single-bay wings of a comparatively small span of 22 ft. were used, together with cable-connected ailerons on upper and lower tips. The wooden fuselage consisted of a slab-sided structure, surmounted by a former and stringer decking, and metal cowling panels extended to the rear of the cockpit. The Scout was not provided with a fixed fin. The undercarriage was a simple, neat arrangement of a pair of vee-struts, with the wheels of fairly generous diameter mounted on a transverse axle with rubber cord shock-absorbers, the unit being devoid of unsightly, drag-inducing skids and their attendant struts and wires. All of the control wires were duplicated for safety, and the pilot's seat was adjustable for height.
   Upon completion, the Scout A was taken to Larkhill, where, piloted by Harry Busteed, it was flown for the first time on 23rd February, 1914. Test flights were very successful, and the machine was displayed at the 1914 Olympia Aero Show held during the following month. It was decided to fit larger wings to the prototype, and it reappeared on 2nd April, 1914, with an increased span measuring 24 ft. 7 ins. The cowling also was modified to a fully circular type. A practical demonstration of its speed was given at Easter, when Busteed flew it from Larkhill to Brooklands in 20 minutes. On 14th May, 1914, Harry Busteed put the Scout A through its A.I.D. tests and recorded a top speed of 97 m.p.h. and a climb of 800 ft. per minute. The machine was entered for the third Aerial Derby due to be held on 23rd May, but which, owing to bad weather, had to be postponed until 6th June. S. V. Sippe was the pilot nominated to fly it in the race, but he was forced to withdraw as the visibility was too poor. Two days after the contest, on 8th June, 1914, the Scout A was flown by Lord John Carbery. He was so impressed by the prototype's performance that he was allowed to buy the bare airframe, in which he installed the 80 h.p. le Rhone from his Morane Saulnier Monoplane, the work being completed in time for him to fly it under racing number 12 in the Hendon-to-Manchester and return race flown on 20th June. Lord Carbery damaged the undercarriage when he nosed over upon landing at Birmingham and was forced to retire from, the event. Repairs were soon effected and extra fuel tanks were installed to increase the Scout"s range for the London-to- Paris and return race flown on 11th July, 1914. Lord Carbery was the pilot but on the return lap he ran out of petrol in mid-Channel, owing to a mistake in refuelling in Paris; the resulting engine failure forced him to land in the water. Luckily he was picked up by a passing tramp steamer, but the Scout could not be salvaged and it sank.
   Prior to the outbreak of war, two additional improved 80 h.p. Gnome Scouts, designated Scout B and given works numbers 229 and 230, were supplied to the R.F.C., flying as 633 and 634 respectively. The Scout was produced later in quantity for the R.F.C. and the R.N.A.S., and gave extensive service during the 1914-18 War under its designations Scouts C and D. When the numbered system of Bristol types was applied retrospectively in 1923 the Scout C was chosen to start the range as Type I.

SPECIFICATION

   Description: Single-seat racing and reconnaissance biplane. Wooden structure, fabric covered.
   Manufacturers: The British and Colonial Aeroplane Co. Ltd., Filton, Bristol.
   Power Plant: 80 h.p. Gnome. 80 h.p. le Rhone.
   Dimensions: {Scout A) Span, 22 ft. (later 24 ft. 7 ins.). Length, 19 ft. 9 ins. Wing area, 161.5 sq. ft. (later 198 sq. ft.). (Scout B) Span, 24 ft. 7 ins. Length, 20 ft. 8 ins. Height, 8 ft. 6 ins. Wing area, 198 sq. ft.
   Weights: (Scout A) Empty, 617 lb. Loaded, 957 lb.
   Performance: (Scout A) Maximum speed, 97 m.p.h. Landing speed, 47 m.p.h. Climb, 800 ft. min. Endurance, 3 hrs.

P.Lewis The British Fighter since 1912 (Putnam)

Meanwhile, also at Bristol, another single-seat scout had taken shape. During the previous year, Frank Barnwell, one of Coanda’s prominent fellow designers, started on a new design under works number 206 using parts of Coanda’s defunct monoplane S.B.5. Harry Busteed contributed to the design which evolved as a trim single-bay biplane with staggered wings and powered by a semi-cowled 80 h.p. Gnome. After its initial flight by Busteed at Larkhill on 23rd February, 1914, the Scout A was put on display at that year’s Olympia Aero Show. Immediately afterwards larger wings of 24 ft. 7 in. span were substituted for the original ones of 22 ft. During its A.I.D. tests with Busteed, on 14th May, the machine showed a top speed of 97 m.p.h. and a climb rate of 800 ft./min. but the prototype was lost in the English Channel on 11th July, 1914, while Lord Carbery was competing in the London-Paris-London race.
   The Scout A had shown such promise that two modified versions were produced as Scouts B for the R.F.C. and were numbered 633 and 634. The Bristol Scouts A and B had been constructed on completely conventional lines with wire-braced box-girder fuselage, wooden structure throughout and fabric covering.
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   While the Sopwith company were developing the Tabloid for war, at Bristol a pair of new prototype scouts were being completed under Frank Barnwell’s direction, designated Scout B. Both were improved versions of the original Scout A which had been lost in the English Channel on 11th July, 1914. The new machines used the 80 h.p. Gnome engine and had double flying wires installed. Other differences included an undercarriage of broader track, a rudder of increased area, large skids added under the wings, and a full engine cowling with external ribs around its periphery, which had a similar appearance to the cowling fitted to Lord Carbery’s le Rhone engine in the Scout A.
   The two Scouts B were sent to Farnborough on 21st and 23rd August respectively for their official tests, following which both were posted to France for use with the R.F.C. during the first week of September. On arrival one was added to the strength of No. 3 Squadron, where it was armed with a rifle mounted on each side of the fuselage at an angle of 45° to fire forward outside the propeller disc; the other Scout B went to No. 5 Squadron. Two months after the pair of Bristols made their appearance on the Western Front, a further twelve were ordered for the R.F.C. on 5th November, 1914.
   Just over a month later, on 7th December, the Admiralty followed with an order for twenty-four to equip R.N.A.S. units. These production machines received the designation Scout C but were basically indistinguishable from the Scout B, apart from the new version’s revised engine cowling with its smooth outer surface and rather small frontal opening. The machines ordered for the R.F.C. were delivered in the following March, to be added singly or in pairs to reconnaissance units where their duty was to protect the two-seaters as they went about their dangerous observation duties over the opposing armies enmeshed in the struggle along the front line. The Bristol Scout C came on the scene before the idea had taken root of forming complete squadrons of scouts alone and so, for this reason, the type found itself spread in this way over the reconnaissance squadrons. Such a successful and reliable flying machine could well have been employed as the equipment of fighter squadrons if the concept of such formations had been realized earlier and had the machine been able, so early in the conflict, to take advantage of an interrupter or synchronous gun-firing gear.

F.Mason The British Fighter since 1912 (Putnam)

Bristol Scout A and B

   Formed in February 1910 by Sir George White, the British and Colonial Aeroplane Co Ltd had been engaged in aircraft manufacture since the first appearance in the spring of that year of the Boxkite, an adaptation of the Henry Farman biplane with 50hp Gnome engine. As a result of wide-ranging recruitment at home and abroad the company acquired the services of a number of distinguished aircraft designers, among them Frank Sowter Barnwell and the Romanian Henri Coanda, who joined the company in December 1911 and January 1912 respectively. Three semi-autonomous design offices were established, and Coanda was given charge of general design policy, at the same time pursuing his own advanced ideas on biplanes and monoplanes. His only pusher biplane design was the two-seat P.B.8, intended as a trainer and powered by an 80hp Gnome; this was never flown as the War Office requisitioned its engine on the outbreak of war. Another of Coanda’s designs, begun in 1913, was a single-seat monoplane, the S.B.5, intended for the Italian government; this also was never flown, and work had only started on the fuselage before the project was abandoned.
   With the increasing interest being shown in single-seat military scouts, Frank Barnwell was given permission to re-design the S.B.5 as a scout biplane, with wings and tailplane very similar in plan to those of the P.B.8, and using much of the unfinished fuselage of the S.B.5.
   This little aeroplane, affectionately known as the ‘Baby Biplane’, but increasingly as the Bristol Scout, was the forerunner of a long-lived class of Bristol designs. Powered by an 80hp Gnome, the Scout featured the same ailerons and wing stagger as the P.B.8 and incorporated a balanced rudder and two-wheeled V-strut undercarriage. A measure of its simplicity of structure and size may be judged by its all-up weight of no more than 957lb with pilot and fuel for three hours’ flight.
   Accorded the Bristol sequence number 206, the Scout was flown at Larkhill in February 1914 by Harry Busteed, and in a very short time proved capable of a speed of 95 mph. It then appeared the following month at the Olympia Show where its small size caused something of a sensation.
   In April the Scout returned to Filton to be fitted with slightly larger wings which improved the handling qualities and reduced the landing speed without significantly affecting the top speed; the engine cowling was also improved. Busteed then flew the aircraft to Farnborough where, on 14 May, it underwent an AID performance test, returning a speed range from 40 to 97.5 mph.
   Thereafter No 206 was flown in a number of sporting events and, purchased by the 22-year-old Lord John Carbery (later Carberry), it was unfortunately lost in the English Channel when it ran out of fuel on the return flight of the London-Paris-London air race on 11 July - but not before the pilot and aeroplane had established an unofficial British air speed record of 100.5 mph. Carbery had fitted an 80hp Le Rhone in place of the Gnome.
   The next two Scouts, which differed from No 206 principally in the engine cowling (and were referred to as the Scout B, while the earlier machine became the Scout A in retrospect), were requisitioned by the War Office at the outbreak of war and delivered to Farnborough during the latter half of August.

   Type: Single-engine, single-seat, single-bay scout biplane.
   Manufacturer: The British and Colonial Aeroplane Co Ltd, Filton, Bristol.
   Powerplant: Scout A. One 80hp Gnome, and later 80hp Le Rhone engine driving two-blade wooden propeller. Scout B. One 80hp Gnome engine.
   Structure: Predominantly light-gauge steel tubular construction with fabric covering; simple V-strut twin-wheel undercarriage.
   Dimensions: Scout A. Span, 22ft 0in (later 24ft 7in); length, 19ft 9in; height, 8ft 6in; wing area, 161 sq ft (later 198 sq ft). Scout B. Span, 24ft 7in; length, 20ft 8in; height, 8ft 6in; wing area 198 sq ft.
   Weights: Scout A. Tare, 617lb (later 750lb); all-up, 957lb (later 1,100lb). Scout B. Tare, 750lb; all-up, 1,100lb.
   Performance: Scout A. Max speed, 95 mph (later 100 mph); initial climb, 800 ft/min; endurance, 3 hr (later 5 hr). Scout B. Max speed, 100 mph; initial climb, 1,000 ft/ min; endurance, 2 1/2 hr.
   Armament: Initially none, but Scout B No 633 later fitted with two 0.303in rifles mounted on sides of nose to fire outside the propeller.
   Prototypes and Service: One Scout A, ‘No 206’ (first flown by Harry Busteed on 23 February 1914 at Larkhill). Two Scout Bs, 633 and 634 (first flown in August 1914), served with Nos 3 and 5 Squadrons, RFC.


Bristol Scout C and D

   The development of Barnwell’s Bristol Scout continued without interruption after the two Scout Bs had been requisitioned by the War Office on the outbreak of war. Soon afterwards the War Office and Admiralty expressed growing enthusiasm for the new class of Scout aircraft and placed orders with several manufacturers, notably with Sopwith for the Tabloid. On 5 November 1914 Bristol received an order from the War Office for twelve improved Scouts (the Scout C), but two days later the Admiralty ordered twenty-four, and claimed priority of delivery. A rather one-sided compromise was reached as the Admiralty received the first example on 16 February 1915, while the following twelve Scout Cs were delivered to the RFC between 23 April and 13 June that year. By the end of the summer a total of 161 Scout Cs had been ordered, of which the RFC received 87 and the RNAS 74.
   Produced at Brislington, Bristol, the Scout C differed externally from the B in dispensing with external engine cowling stiffeners, but all early aircraft retained the 80hp Gnome engines; however, War Office aircraft from the twenty-third onwards were powered by 80hp Le Rhones, while the Admiralty insisted on continuing with Gnomes owing to their better reliability. Production continued until February 1916 but, despite the number built, Scouts never fully equipped any Squadron, instead being distributed among a dozen units at home and in France.
   When, in 1916, shortage of 80hp Gnomes arose, a small number of Scout Cs was completed with 80hp and 110hp Clerget rotaries; with the latter engine the Scout C had a top speed of 109 mph at 3,000 feet (compared with 92 mph when powered by the standard Gnome).
   It was, nevertheless, in a Gnome-powered Scout C of No 6 Squadron that Capt Lanoe G Hawker DSO, RFC, won the Victoria Cross on 25 June 1915. Armed only with a single-shot Martini carbine, mounted to fire to starboard of the propeller, he succeeded in forcing down three German two-seaters, all armed with machine guns. Armament carried by other Scouts at this time included a 0.45in Martini carbine firing incendiary ammunition and, occasionally, a Lewis machine gun.
   The RNAS undertook numerous anti-Zeppelin patrols using Scout Cs, and on 3 November 1915 Flight-Lt H F Towler rn made the first deck take-off from hms Vindex, formerly an Isle of Man steamer which had been fitted with a small flight deck forward. On 2 August the following year Flight-Lt C T Freeman rn, also flying from Vindex, took off to attack one of a pair of Zeppelins; although he succeeded in hitting his target with a Ranken dart, the airship turned back and made good its escape.
   More spectacular were the experiments involving the mounting of a Bristol Scout C, No 3028, on the upper wing of Sqn Cdr John Cyril Porte’s prototype Baby, No 9800, a large three-engine flying-boat - the object being to carry anti-Zeppelin fighters further from the coast so as to have a better chance of engaging the German airships. Flown by Porte himself on 17 May 1916, the flying-boat took off and the Bristol Scout, flown by Flight-Lt M J Day rn of hms Vindex, separated successfully at 1,000 feet over Harwich. Although completely successful, the idea was not taken up as new fighting scouts were about to come into service with more chance of success and using more conventional methods of attack.
   Meanwhile Barnwell had left Bristol for service with the RFC, but returned in August 1915 to prepare a further improvement in the Scout, based on reports of the Type C by the Services. The principal change was intended to be adoption of the 100hp Gnome monosoupape, which required a slightly enlarged engine cowling, but which bestowed a top speed of about 110 mph at sea level. In the event, of the 160 Scout Ds produced, only the first 60 delivered to the RNAS were powered by the big engine, which was found to suffer from severe engine vibration (causing the centre section fuel tank to leak), so that the remaining 20 Admiralty aircraft reverted to 80hp Gnomes. The great majority of the RFC aircraft were fitted with 80hp Le Rhones - which still returned a respectable speed of 100 mph at sea level.
   The Scout D also introduced rafwires in place of twisted-strand cables, and the underwing skids were moved closer to the wingtips. A few RFC Scout Ds were delivered to France early in 1916 armed with a single Vickers machine gun equipped with Vickers-Challenger interrupter gear, enabling it to fire through the propeller arc, while some of the RNAS examples were similarly armed, but with Scarff-Dibovski interrupter gear. Many Scout Ds went further afield; they were flown operationally by Nos 14, 67 (Australian) and 111 Squadrons in Palestine, with Nos 30 and 63 in Mesopotamia, and with No 47 Squadron in Macedonia.
   The wartime Bristol Scouts were very popular little aeroplanes among their pilots, with crisp and light handling qualities; they were only robbed of a prominent place in the annals of the RFC by their lack of a synchronized gun until too late to be capable of matching opponents possessed of much superior performance.


   Type: Single-engine, single-seat, single-bay biplane scout.
   Manufacturer: The British & Colonial Aeroplane Co Ltd, Filton and Brislington, Bristol.
   Powerplant: Scout C. 80hp Gnome; 80hp Le Rhone; 80hp Clerget; 110hp Clerget. Scout D. 80hp Le Rhone; 100hp Gnome monosoupape, 80hp Gnome.
   Dimensions: Scout C and D. Span, 24ft 7in; length, 20ft 8in; height, 8ft 6in; wing area, 198 sq ft.
   Weights: Scout C (80hp Le Rhone). Tare, 757lb; all-up, 1,195lb. Scout D (100hp Gnome monosoupape). Tare, 760lb; all-up, 1,250lb.
   Performance: Scout C (80hp Le Rhone). Max speed, 92.7 mph at sea level; initial rate of climb, 1,000 ft/min; service ceiling, 15,500ft; endurance, 2 1/2 hr. Scout D (100hp Gnome monosoupape). Max speed, 110 mph at sea level; initial rate of climb, 1,100 ft/ min; service ceiling, 13,500 ft; endurance, 2 hr.
   Armament: Varied greatly from no fixed armament to a wide range of single weapons, either fixed to fire above or on either side of the propeller (including Lewis machine gun, service rifle, cavalry carbine, 0.45in Martini-Henry rifle or shot gun firing chain shot) or Vickers machine gun on nose decking to fire forward through propeller arc by means of various types of interrupter gear.
   Prototypes and Production. No prototypes. Scout C production: 161 aircraft (Nos 1243-1266 and 3013-3062, 74 for the Admiralty; Nos 1602-1613, 4662-4699 and 5291-5327, 87 for the War Office. Scout D production: 160 aircraft (Nos 7028-7057 and A1742- A1791, 80 for the War Office; Nos 8951-9000 and N5390-N5419, 80 for the Admiralty).
   Summary of Service: Scout C and D served in small numbers with Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 21, 24 and 25 Squadrons, RFC, in France, and Nos 14, 30, 47, 63, 67 (Australian) and 111 Squadrons, RFC, in Near and Middle East. Also many RNAS Stations at home, in France and the Mediterranean, as well as hm Seaplane Carrier Vindex.

W.Green, G.Swanborough The Complete Book of Fighters

BRISTOL SCOUT D UK
  
   Derived from a single-seat sports biplane designed by Frank Barnwell, first flown in February 1914 and retrospectively known as the Scout A, the Scout D was a revised design which, completed in November 1915, had provision for a fixed synchronised 0.303-in (7,7-mm) Vickers gun. The Scout D had been preceded by two Scout Bs, which, intended for reconnaissance, were officially unarmed, but one of which was fitted with a rifle on each side of the fuselage and angled outward to avoid hitting the propeller when fired. These had been followed by 161 Scout Cs (74 for the RN and 87 for the RFC) which, again, were officially unarmed, although much ingenuity was displayed in the field in fitting pistols, rifles and carbines, while some RN Scouts carried 24-round canisters of Ranken darts which it was intended to use against Zeppelins. The Scout D was thus the first model for which armament was officially intended, though relatively few of these had the synchronised Vickers gun and the armament of others varied considerably, some having a 0.303-in (7,7-mm) fixed Lewis gun firing straight ahead without synchronising equipment and others having a movable Lewis above the upper wing. Of the 210 examples built, 80 went to the RN, of which 50 had 100 hp Gnome Monosoupape engines and the remainder the 80 hp Gnome. Most of those delivered to the RFC ultimately had the 80 hp Le Rhone engines and the following data relate to the Scout D with this engine.

Max speed, 100 mph (161 km/h) at sea level, 86 mph (138 km/h) at 10,000 ft (3050 m).
Time to 10,000 ft (3050 m), 18.5 min.
Endurance, 2.5 hrs.
Empty weight, 760 lb (345 kg).
Loaded weight, 1,250 lb (567 kg).
Span, 24 ft 7 in (7,49 m).
Length, 20 ft 8 in (6,30 m).
Height, 8 ft 6 in (2,59 m).
Wing area, 198 sq ft (18,39 m2).

J.Bruce British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 (Putnam)

Bristol Scout

  IN October, 1911, Lieutenant C. D. Burney, R.N., interested the British & Colonial Aeroplane Co. in his ideas for marine aircraft with multiple hydrofoils below the hull. Two months later Frank Barnwell joined the company as a designer, and his first job was to translate Lieutenant Burney’s ideas into practice. For this purpose the company installed him in a special drawing office known as X Department, at No. 4 Fairlawn Avenue, Bristol, quite separate from the main drawing office. There he was joined on January 4th, 1912, by Clifford W. Tinson, who was his assistant on the development of the Burney machines.
  This work was abandoned in September, 1913, but X Department did not, as might have been expected, thereafter come under the control of Henri Coanda, who had joined the company in March, 1912, and was regarded as the Chief Designer.
  Barnwell’s next activity was the design of a small single-seat biplane. This work was carried out in considerable secrecy, and the original drawings were made in an ordinary manifold book; simple carbon copies were taken and were sent to the shops for use as working drawings. At about this time (November, 1913) the company turned over to Barnwell the fuselage of a partly-built Coanda monoplane on which construction had been abandoned because it was proving to be heavier than had been expected.
  This monoplane had been allotted the Bristol works Sequence Number 183. For some reason best known to the manufacturers this number was, for a time at least, used when referring to Barnwell’s little single-seat biplane; and it was frequently called S.N. 183 despite the fact that its own works Sequence Number was 206. This may have been done in order to avoid offending Coanda in any way, but the fact remains that the little biplane was entirely the work of Frank Barnwell.
  The completed machine emerged in February, 1914, and was a single-bay biplane with wings of only 22 feet span; the engine was an 80 h.p. Gnome rotary. The general appearance of this little aeroplane was one of pleasing simplicity, and its small size earned it the name of the Bristol Baby Biplane or Scout.
  The Scout was tested by Harry Busteed at Larkhill on February 23rd, 1914, and was an immediate success. Its maximum speed was 97 m.p.h. and the initial rate of climb 800 feet per minute. During the next month it was exhibited at the Aero Show at Olympia, where it created a furore: it was then still in its original form with an engine cowling which covered most of the front of the engine.
  In May the Scout was fitted with larger wings which had a span of 24 ft 7 in.; and a full circular, open-fronted engine cowling replaced the original: the new cowling had six external stiffening ribs. Thus modified, the Scout was raced against the more powerful Sopwith Tabloid at Brooklands, and lost only by the narrowest of margins. The Bristol was therefore expected to do well in the 1914 Aerial Derby, which was to be held on May 23rd. Bad weather led to the postponement of the contest until June 6th, but visibility on the day of the race was so bad that S. V. Sippe, who was to have flown the Scout in the race, was forbidden to take off.
  One of the competitors who unsuccessfully braved the weather was Lord Carbery. On June 8th he asked Mr Sippe for permission to fly the Bristol Scout, and took such a liking to the little machine that he wanted to buy it immediately. The manufacturers readily agreed to the sale, for they were then building two more Scouts.
  Lord Carbery fitted the Scout with an 80 h.p. Le Rhone engine taken from his Morane-Saulnier monoplane, and flew it in the Hendon-Manchester-Hendon race on June 20th, 1914. Unfortunately, he damaged the machine at Castle Bromwich and had to withdraw; but by July 7th the Scout was once more airworthy, and four days later he flew it in the London-Paris-London race. After a somewhat hair-raising take-off from Hendon with petrol for five hours’ flight and an engine which was not giving full revs per minute, Carbery reached the French turning-point at Buc. On the return journey his engine stopped suddenly in mid-Channel, and he came down on the water beside a tramp steamer. The pilot escaped without so much as a wetting, but over-energetic efforts to salve the aeroplane pulled the engine and bearers away from the airframe, which dropped back into the Channel and was lost.
  By the time the two new Bristol Scouts were completed, Britain was at war. The two machines were delivered to Farnborough on August 21st and 23rd, 1914, and were sent to join the R.F.C. in France after trials at the Royal Aircraft Factory. These two machines were designated Bristol Scout B to distinguish them from the original Scout, or Scout A, from which they differed in detail only. The Scout B had an 80 h.p. Gnome engine; the flying-wires were duplicated; the rudder was slightly larger; the undercarriage track was increased; the cables connecting upper and lower ailerons were farther apart; and wing-tip skids were mounted directly under the interplane struts. The engine cowling was generally similar to that of the modified Scout A, but the diameter of the frontal opening was reduced.
  The Scouts B went to France in the first week in September, 1914. One was attached to No. 3 Squadron, where it was flown by Lieutenant Chohnondeley; and the other was flown by Major J. F. A. Higgins of No. 5 Squadron. The Scout belonging to No. 3 Squadron was armed with two rifles: one was mounted on each side of the fuselage at an outward angle of 45 0 in order to clear the airscrew.
  The first contract for production of the Bristol Scout was placed on November 5th, 1914, and was for twelve machines (numbered 1602-1613) for the R.F.C.: this was followed on December 7th by an order for twenty-four (numbered 1243-1266) for the R.N.A.S. These were designated Scout C, and were virtually identical to the Scout B. The engine cowling of the Scout C had no external stiffening ribs, and, in the Scouts C which had the 80 h.p. Gnome, the oil tank was installed behind the cockpit. The machines of the R.F.C. batch were delivered in March, 1915, and a further contract for seventy-five Scouts (numbered 4662-4699 and 5291-5327) was placed.
  The Bristol Scout never formed the complete equipment of any R.F.C. unit in any theatre of war, for it was in use at a time before the grouping of single-seat scouts into homogeneous squadrons. Each squadron had one or two fighting scouts on its strength for the protection of the two-seat reconnaissance machines.
  The Order of Battle of the R.F.C. on March 10th, 1915, shows that no Bristol Scouts were with the squadrons in the field on that date, and by May 9th only one was on active service in France: it was with No. 4 Squadron. On September 25th there were only nine on the strength of the squadrons, but thereafter nearly every squadron had at least one Scout, until the type began to be withdrawn. By the time of the opening of the Somme offensive on July 1st, 1916, only Squadrons Nos. 11 and 24 had Bristol Scouts on their strength: each unit had three. Altogether, eighty Scouts went to France.
  The number in operational use was never very large, but it was on a Bristol Scout that Captain Lanoe G. Hawker of No. 6 Squadron won the first Victoria Cross to be awarded for an air-to-air combat. His machine was armed with only' a single-shot cavalry carbine, mounted at an outward angle on the starboard side of the fuselage; yet on the evening of July 25 th, 1915, he attacked three enemy two-seaters in succession. The first he drove down; the second dived away with a damaged engine; and the third, an Albatros two-seater, fell in flames. All three enemy machines were armed with machine-guns.
  More Scouts were ordered during 1915 for both the R.F.C. and the R.N.A.S. Shortage of 80 h.p. Gnomes led to that type of engine being reserved for Scouts destined for the R.N.A.S.; whilst many of the R.F.C. machines were fitted with the 80 h.p. Le Rhone. This was done because the R.N.A.S. machines were liable to have to fly over the sea, and the Gnome was regarded as the more reliable power unit. In the Le Rhone installation, the oil tank was mounted in front of the cockpit, for it was discovered that the oil pump of the Le Rhone was less efficient than that of the Gnome, and with the oil tank in the original position (behind the pilot’s seat) the engine was starved of oil in a climb. Another alternative engine which was fitted to some Scouts C when the Gnomes ran short was the 80 h.p. Clerget rotary. Martlesham tests of a Clerget-powered Scout were carried out in March, 1916.
  Further modifications were made to the design, and a fourth version, designated Scout D, appeared late in 1915. This variant had shorter ailerons, increased dihedral, and the wing-tip skids were further outboard. The first production batches of Scouts D had the 80 h.p. Le Rhone: eighty machines of this type were built, and all went to the R.F.C.
  The final production version of the Bristol Scout D had the 100 h.p. Gnome Monosoupape engine. A larger diameter engine cowling had to be fitted, and there was a “gumboil” bulge on the starboard side of the cowling. The bulge was made to expedite the escape of the exhaust gases from the interior of the cowling. It was found, however, that the Monosoupape engine vibrated and caused the centre-section tanks to leak; and the last twenty machines (N.5400-N.5419) of the final batch for the R.N.A.S. had the 80 h.p. Gnome.
  These versions of the Scout D had a vee-shaped cut-out in the trailing edge of the centre-section in which there was a bracket for a semi-free Lewis gun.
  Another version of the Bristol Scout existed, and is sometimes regarded as a Scout D: in reality, however, the machines concerned were modified Scouts C. These were the Scouts which had the 110 h.p. Clerget engine. At least three Bristol Scouts had this power unit. No. 5554 was the first; its Clerget was installed when the machine was rebuilt after a crash at C.F.S. The second Scout with the 110 h.p. Clerget was No. 5555, and the opportunity was taken to use this machine as a flying test-bed for the engine installation for the Bristol M. 1A monoplane; the airscrew had an enormous shallow spinner which covered almost all of the engine. The engine diameter exceeded the width of the fuselage, and consequently the cowling had to be tapered back markedly. No. 5556 also had the 110 h.p. Clerget, and was fitted with a conical spinner; this spinner distorted badly at full engine speed and caused severe vibration.
  There was also a Scout D, flown by Lieutenant F. T. Courtney, which had a cowling similar to that of No. 5555, but the airscrew had a spinner which must have come from a Morane-Saulnier aircraft (probably a Type BB biplane or Type LA parasol monoplane). The engine of this Scout appeared to be a 110 h.p. Le Rhone, probably also from the same Morane-Saulnier, and the installation must have been a “home-made” modification.
  A few of the Scouts D which were delivered to the R.F.C. early in 1916 were armed with a fixed Vickers gun, synchronised to fire through the revolving airscrew by means of the Vickers-Challenger interrupter gear. The first of these machines reached France on March 25th, 1916. The date is of considerable significance, for it was not until two weeks later, on April 8th, 1916, that a sample of the Fokker interrupter gear fell into our hands when a Fokker monoplane made a forced landing in the British lines. Some of the Bristol Scouts delivered to the R.N.A.S. had a Vickers gun with the Scarff-Dibowski interrupter gear.
  After its operational service in France, the Scout was extensively used at training units at home, in Egypt, and in Australia. In Macedonia, No. 47 Squadron had at least one Bristol Scout late in 1916; and some of the Scouts which went to the Middle East were used operationally by Squadrons Nos. 14, 67 and 111 in Palestine. A few Bristol Scouts were sent from Egypt to assist No. 30 Squadron in Mesopotamia. These machines were assembled at Basra, and two of them were flown to the front, 750 miles away, on April 5th and 17th, 1917. On April 22nd, Lieutenant M. L. Maguire, flying a Bristol Scout, shot down a Halberstadt behind Istabulat. The last Scouts in Mesopotamia were those used as part of the equipment of No. 63 Squadron’s fighter Flight at Samarra: these were still in service in November, 1917.
  The Bristol Scout was also widely used by the R.N.A.S., both operationally and for training purposes. One of the lesser-known distinctions which can be claimed for the Scout is that it pioneered deck-flying from aircraft carriers. A small seaplane carrier, the Vindex, had been fitted with a flying deck forward, and the first take-off from the vessel was made by Flight-Lieutenant H. F. Towler in a Bristol Scout on November 3rd, 1915. It was found that, with Vindex steaming at 25 kt in a dead calm, the take-off run was but 30 ft; with the ship making 13 kt the run was 102 ft. Two Scouts could be accommodated on board, and they were dismantled for stowage in their hangar: flights could not, therefore, be made at short notice. There were no facilities for retrieving the Scouts after flight, though the machines were ultimately provided with air bags to keep them afloat after ditching.
  The carrier-borne Bristol Scouts were intended to be used against Zeppelins, and on August 2nd, 1916, Vindex put to sea from Harwich when news was received that a Zeppelin raid was expected. At about 7 p.m. a Bristol Scout piloted by Flight-Lieutenant C. T. Freeman flew off to attack a Zeppelin which had been sighted earlier. Freeman attacked the nearer of two airships which he found, and three times dropped Ranken darts upon it. He scored a hit on his third attack, but did not succeed in destroying the Zeppelin, which turned back to Germany. The Scout’s engine would not pick up after the engagement, and Freeman had to come down on the sea, where the air bags kept his machine afloat long enough for him to be rescued by a Belgian ship bound for Holland. There he was interned, but was released as a shipwrecked mariner after a few days.
  Some months before Freeman’s exploit, one of the Vindex Scouts (a Scout C, No. 3028) took part in a remarkable experiment at Felixstowe, the object of which was to provide a speedier means of transporting a fighter aircraft to within striking distance of Zeppelins. The “carrier” in this case was a Porte Baby flying boat, and the Bristol Scout was carried on its upper wing. The Scout’s undercarriage was in front of the leading edge of the flying boat’s wing; the wheels rested in special crutches carried on struts from the engine bearers of the Baby’s central engine, and the tail-skid was secured by a quick-release hook controlled by the pilot of the Scout.
  A successful flight and mid-air separation was made on May 17th, 1916. The Bristol Scout was flown by Flight-Lieutenant M. J. Day, and the Porte boat by its designer, Squadron Commander John Porte. The Bristol Scout took no active part in the take-off, and it was not until the combination reached a height of 1,000 feet above Harwich that Day switched on and climbed away successfully. The experiment was never repeated.
  As an anti-Zeppelin fighter the Bristol Scout was used by the R.N.A.S. from various aerodromes in England, but never succeeded in coming to grips with the enemy.
  The Bristol Scout was used by the R.N.A.S. during the Dardanelles campaign, and continued to be used in the Aegean area after the evacuation. When No. 2 Wing, R.N.A.S., went to Imbros at the end of August, 1915, among its equipment were four Scouts; and six more, armed with Lewis guns, arrived later in the year. A year later, some Bristol Scouts were still being flown by No. 2 Wing at Imbros and from Thasos by the composite R.N.A.S. unit known as “A” Flight: on December 13th, 1916, one of No. 2 Wing’s Scouts escorted four Henri Farmans on a bombing attack on the railway bridge across the River Maritsa at Kuleli Burgas.
  One hundred and fifteen Bristol Scouts were delivered to R.F.C. training units during the war. Their numbers dwindled steadily, until at the last the few which remained were the jealously-guarded personal aircraft of senior officers. The Scout was very popular with pilots, for it combined excellent handling qualities with great structural strength. Only the lack of timely, adequate and effective armament prevented it from making a great name for itself during the war.
  One solitary specimen survived the Armistice. This was a Scout C, No. 5570, whose first owner was Major J. A. McKelvie: its civil registration was G-EAGR. After changing owners more than once, this last Bristol Scout ended its days on a scrap-heap at North Cave.


SPECIFICATION
  Manufacturers: The British & Colonial Aeroplane Co., Ltd., Filton and Brislington, Bristol.
  Power: Scout A: 80 h.p. Gnome, later 80 h.p. Le Rhone. Scout B: 80 h.p. Gnome. Scout C: 80 h.p. Gnome;
80 h.p. Le Rhone; 80 h.p. Clerget; 110 h.p. Clerget. Scout D: 80 h.p. Le Rhone; 100 h.p. Gnome Monosoupape; 80 h.p. Gnome. At least one Scout D had a 110 h.p. Le Rhone.

Dimensions:
Scout A Scout B Scout C Scout D
ft. in. ft. in. ft. in. ft. in.
Span 22 - 24 7 24 7 24 7
Length 19 9 20 8 20 8 20 8
Height - - 8 6 8 6 8 6
Chord 4 - - - 4 6 4 6
Gap - - - - 4 3 4 3
Stagger 1 4 - - 1 4 1/2 1 9
Span of tail 8 - - - - - 10
Wheel track 3 3 - - - - - -
Airscrew diameter:
80 h.p. Gnome 8 - - - 8 2 1/2 - -
80 h.p. Le Rhone - - - - - - 8 8
80 h.p. Clerget - - - - 8 3 - -
110 h.p. Clerget - - - - 8 6 3/4 - -
Dihedral - - 1° 45' 3°
Incidence - - 2° 2° 30'
Areas (sq ft):
Wings 161-5 198 198 I98
Each aileron - - - 5-8
Total aileron - - - 23-2
Tailplane 15 - 23 23
Elevator 13 - 15 15
Rudder 5 - 7 7

  Armament: Originally none was fitted. Some pilots carried a rifle, pistol, or cavalry carbine. Some Bristol Scouts had a Lewis machine-gun mounted on the starboard side of the fuselage just in front of the cockpit, pointing outwards to clear the airscrew. Other machines had a Lewis gun mounted above the centre-section; specific provision for such an installation was made on some Bristol Scouts D. In some cases a 0-45-in. Martini-Henry rifle firing incendiary-filled lead bullets was used, and a few machines were armed with a duck gun firing chain shot.
  Anti-Zeppelin R.N.A.S. Scouts had two containers of Ranken darts directly under the pilot’s seat; each container had twenty-four darts.
  Late Scouts D had a fixed forward-firing Vickers machine-gun, synchronised by Challenger gear or by the Scarff-Dibowski gear to fire through the revolving airscrew.

Weights (lb) and Performance:
Aircraft Scout A Scout C Scout D
Engine 80 h.p. 80 h.p. 80 h.p. 110 h.p. 80 h.p. Monosoupape
Gnome Le Rhone Clerget Clerget Le Rhone
No. of Trial Report - M.55 - M.21 - -
Date of Trial Report - June, 1916 March, 1916 May, 1916 - -
Type of airscrew used on trial - P.3001 P.2408 P.3010 - -
Weight empty 617 757 750 926 760 -
Military load - 80 Nil 73 60 -
Pilot - 180 170 160 180 -
Fuel and oil - 178 169 256 200 -
Weight loaded 957 1,195 1,089 1,415 1,250 1,250
Maximum speed (m.p.h.) at:
ground level 95 92-7 93-8 107-3 100 -
1,000 ft - 92-5 - - - -
3,000 ft - 91 - 109 - -
5,000 ft - 90-5 - 108 94 -
6,500 ft - 89 - 108 - -
7,000 ft - 88 - 108 - -
8,000 ft - - 70 106 - -
9,000 ft - 86 - 103 - -
10,000 ft - 86-5 - - 86 -
I 1,000 ft - 87 - - - -
m. s. m. s. m. s. m. s. m. s. m. s.
Climb to
1,000 ft 1 15 0 55 1 38 1 00 - - - -
2,000 ft - - 2 05 2 53 2 15 - - - -
3,000 ft - - 3 35 4 38 3 35 - - - -
4,000 ft - - 5 20 6 18 5 05 - - - -
5,000 ft - - 7 00 8 05 6 30 - - - -
6,ooo ft - - 9 30 10 13 8 30 - - - -
6,500 ft - - 10 50 11 30 9 30 - - - -
7,000 ft - - 12 10 12 45 10 30 - - - -
8,000 ft - - 14 55 16 45 12 45 - - - -
9,000 ft - - 18 00 21 15 15 05 - - - -
10,000 ft - - 21 20 27 30 18 15 18 30 - -
I 1,000 ft - - 25 05 - - - - - - - -
12,000 ft - - 29 30 - - - - - - - -
13,000 ft - - 33 00 - - - - - - - -
14,000 ft - - 41 30 - - - - - - - -
15,000 ft - - 50 00 - - - - - - - -
Service ceiling (feet) - 15,500 11,000 14,000 - -
Endurance (hours) 3 2 1/2 2 2 1/2 - -
Tankage (gallons):
Petrol - 16 16 26 - 27
Oil - 6 6 6 - 5 1/2

  Service Use: Western Front: R.F.C. Squadrons Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 21, 24 and 25. Palestine: R.F.C. Squadrons Nos. 14, 67 (Australian), and 111. Mesopotamia: R.F.C. Squadrons Nos. 30 and 63. Macedonia: R.F.C. Squadron No. 47. Dardanelles: No. 2 Wing, R.N.A.S., Isle of Imbros; “A” Flight, R.N.A.S., Isle of Thasos. Australia: presumably used at Australian F.C. Central Flying School, Point Cook, Werribee, Victoria. Seaplane Carrier Vindex: two Bristol Scouts. Training: Widely used at training aerodromes: e.g. No. 34 Reserve Squadron, Orfordness; No. 45 Squadron, working-up before going overseas; training squadron at Dover; 20th Training Wing, Abu Qir, Egypt; flown at Shoreham and London Colney. Also used by the R.N.A.S. at various aerodromes: e.g. Great Yarmouth, Redcar, Chingford, Port Victoria, East Fortune, Cranwell, and at the R.N.A.S. Flying School, Vendome.
  Production and Allocation: The different versions of the Bristol Scout were built in the following numbers:
Scout A: 1.
Scout B: 2.
Scout C: 211. Of that total, 137 were delivered to the R.F.C. and seventy-four to the R.N.A.S.
Scout D, 80 h.p. Le Rhone: eighty, to R.F.C. only.
Scout D, 100 h.p. Gnome Monosoupape: sixty, to R.N.A.S. only.
Scout D, 80 h.p. Gnome: twenty, to R.N.A.S. only.
  These figures represent original deliveries. According to official statistics, however, the R.F.C. received 236 Bristol Scouts: this appears to indicate that seventeen must have been transferred from the R.N.A.S. Eighty went to France, thirty-two to the Middle East Brigade, nine to Home Defence units, and 115 to training units. The remainder went to the R.N.A.S., and precise allocation details are not known.

H.King Armament of British Aircraft (Putnam)

Scout. The Scout, or Bullet, originated in 1914 as an eminently appealing creation apparently suitable for no other warlike purpose than that of carrying a man swiftly on the mission its name conveyed. Two years almost to the month from the first flight of the original machine, a Scout was at the lighting from with the first operational installation of British gun-synchronising gear. This was of the Vickers type, as was the gun itself. Many and exotic were the improvisations both before and after this historic installation. Pistols were carried not only upon the pilot's person, or in his tiny cockpit, but attached to the airframe also, the classic example being the battery of three Webley-Fosbery revolvers carried in a rack affixed to the Scout of Maj W. G. Moore. Capt Vesey Molt was credited with destroying two enemy two-seaters with a pistol. Shotguns, sometimes with choke bore, were somehow shipped aboard, firing buckshot and even chain shot, and rifles were attached, with or without their stocks, and variously stripped. A 0.45-in Martini-Henry rifle was, in one instance, lashed to a centre-section strut, tiring outside the airscrew arc at an angle of 45 degrees to the line of fire. One identified load was a Short Lee-Enfield rifle without its stock, a Mauser self-loading pistol and five rifle grenades. Two rifles were fixed to the fuselage sides, firing at about 45 degrees to clear the airscrew, and a Lewis gun was mounted to lire straight ahead, and thus not to clear the airscrew, the resulting holes being filled and bound with sticky tape. (Airscrew scrapped, if holes more than three in number.) Lewis guns were also mounted for outward, upward or forward firing, in the last instance over the top wing, sometimes with a trigger extension attached to the spade grip. At least one Scout carried two Lewis guns, one on the port side and one over the top wing, pivoted at the rear and lying at its forward end in a rest carried on a pylon. In another arrangement there was one forward-firing Lewis gun on each side. Installations of the Vickers gun were not altogether crude. Attempts were made at partial fairing, and a system of channelling the empty cases and links overboard, as devised by G. H. Challenger and as will be illustrated in Volume 2, was applied. A type of cross-wire sight has been identified. In addition to the Vickers synchronizing gear, there were installations of the Scarff-Dibovsky mechanism these on RNAS Scouts. Rifle grenades were carried in external racks, and Capt G. I. Carmichael has recalled that the detonator pins 'usually had to be withdrawn by the pilot's teeth'. The rods which fitted in the rifle barrel were sawn off and streamers were attached for stability. Ranken Darts in canisters of 24 were attached to the lower longerons, and RNAS Scouts are known to have carried two such canisters. Four bombs were carried under the nose of some RNAS Scouts.

O.Thetford British Naval Aircraft since 1912 (Putnam)

Bristol Scout C and D

   The Bristol Scout occupies a unique position in British naval flying by being the first landplane with a wheeled undercarriage to take off from the deck of an aircraft-carrier. This feat was achieved on 3 November 1915 when F/Sub-Lt H F Towler flew his Scout C (No.1255) from the short flying-deck of the seaplane carrier Vindex. Two Bristol Scouts were accommodated, and for stowage they were dismantled. As there were no facilities for landing-on, flotation bags were fitted so that the aircraft could 'ditch' alongside.
   The RNAS used both the Bristol Scout C and D, both of which were developments of the original Bristol Scout flown in February 1914. The RFC was the first Service to adopt the type (on 5 November 1914), but the RNAS followed soon afterwards with an order for 24 (Nos.1243 to 1266) on 7 December 1914. Some of these early Scout Cs served with the RNAS on the Western Front in 1915. They were followed by a second batch of 50 Scout Cs (Nos.3013 to 3062).
   Later Admiralty orders were for the Scout D, which differed from the C in having shorter ailerons, increased dihedral and wingtip skids further outboard. Of the 80 Scout Ds delivered to the RNAS, the first 60 had 100 hp Gnome Monosoupape engines (Nos.8951 to 9000 and N5390 to 5399), N5400 an 80 hp Le Rhone and the final 19 (N5401 to 5419) the 80 hp Gnome, as on the Scout Cs.
   Despite its fine design, the Bristol Scout was handicapped by lack of effective armament. It was used extensively for anti-Zeppelin patrols, both from carriers in the North Sea and from land bases such as Redcar and Great Yarmouth, but with no real success. One method of attack was to climb above the Zeppelin and drop Ranken darts.
   The RNAS also employed Bristol Scouts in the Dardanelles campaign, sometimes to escort bombing raids.

UNITS ALLOCATED
   No.2 Wing, RNAS (Belgium. Imbros and Mudros); 'A' Flight, RNAS (Thasos). Coastal air stations at Eastchurch. East Fortune, Great Yarmouth, Port Victoria and Redcar. Training schools at Chingford and Cranwell. Seaplane carrier Vindex.

TECHNICAL DATA (SCOUT C)
   Description: Single-seat scout, land-based or carrier-borne. Wooden structure fabric covered.
   Manufacturers: British & Colonial Aeroplane Co Ltd, Filton and Brislington, Bristol.
   Power Plant: One 80 hp Gnome.
   Dimensions: Span, 24 ft 7 in. Length, 20 ft 8 in. Height, 8 ft 6 in. Wing area, 198 sq ft.
   Weights: Empty, 750 lb. Loaded, 1,190 lb.
   Performance: Maximum speed, 93 mph at sea level. Climb, 9 1/2 min to 6,000 ft. Endurance, 2 1/2 hr. Service ceiling, 15,000 ft.
   Armament: Anti-Zeppelin aircraft carried 48 Ranken darts. Some Scout Ds had one Lewis gun above the centre-section.

A.Jackson British Civil Aircraft since 1919 vol.1 (Putnam)

BRISTOL TYPE I SCOUT C

   Single-seat fighter built at Filton for the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War and retrospectively allotted Bristol type number I in 1923. One civil aircraft only: G-EAGR, powered by one 80-h.p. Le Rhone rotary; built with R.F.C. serial 5570 in March 1917; owned by Major J. A. McKelvie 7.19, Sqn. Ldr. H. V. Champion de Crespigny 3.26, F./Lt. A. M. Wray, Leuchars, 6.27, Smith at Hedon 9.30 and later to D. and J. Heaton and broken up in scrap yard at South Cave, East Yorks., 1933. Span, 24 ft. 7 in. Length, 20 ft. 8 in. Tare wt., 757 lb. A.U.W., 1,250 lb. Max. speed, 92-7 m.p.h.

Журнал Flight

Flight, March 14, 1914.

WHAT THERE WILL BE TO SEE AT OLYMPIA.

THE EXHIBITS.

Bristol (British and Colonial Aeroplane Co., Ltd.). (43.)

   THIS firm of constructors, who were our sole representative at the recent Paris Aero Exhibition, are showing two machines, one of which is a two-seater with the seats arranged in tandem, and the other a single-seater, as well as their travelling motor-repair workshop. Both machines exhibited are 80 h.p. Gnome-engined tractor biplanes, the engine on the two-seater being of the new Monosoupape type mounted upon supporting plates of pressed steel, and entirely enclosed in an aluminium shield that is continued forward in advance of the propeller for which it forms the boss and with which it rotates.
   Special attention has been given in the design of the wings, which, on the single-seater machine, are all fitted with double-acting ailerons. The empennage of this machine is non-lifting, and the frames for this as well as those for the elevator flaps and rudder are of steel tubing, the fabric covering being sewn on. On the two-seater the empennage is set at a negative angle and is used as a directive organ. The landing chassis of the latter is of the standard Bristol type, but the single-seater machine has a special two-wheeled undercarriage. Sufficient petrol may be carried to give a flight lasting for 3 hours in the case of the single-seater and 5 hours for the two-seater.
   The travelling workshop is fully equipped with every means necessary for the purpose of executing repairs to an aeroplane, and has been kept to the smallest possible dimensions. Winding gear, for the purpose of enabling the vehicle to wind itself or haul a trailer, is provided, as well as a dynamo of 50 amperes capacity at 65 volts, with suitably arranged switches for controlling the machine tools, which are driven by a separate electric motor. These machines include a lathe, band-saw, drilling machine, portable drill and a grinding machine, but a hand-operated shaping machine is also fitted. Increased floor space n obtained whilst the workshop is at rest, by dropping the two halves of each side door.


Flight, March 21, 1914.

THE OLYMPIA EXHIBITION.

THE EXHIBITS.

BRISTOL. (BRITISH AND COLONIAL AEROPLANE CO., LTD.)

   THE two biplanes exhibited on this stand differ considerably from previous models, the two-seater bearing hardly any resemblance to its prototype shown at Olympia last year, whilst the small fast single-seater scouting machine may be said to be the first of a new type to be turned out by this firm.
<...>
   In the 80 h.p. Scouting Machine both the span and the chassis appear to have been reduced to a minimum, for the span is only 22 ft. and the chassis is of the simplest imaginable form, consisting of two pairs of V struts of spruce, from which the axle is slung by means of rubber shock-absorbers. The rather wide and deep fuselage is built up in the usual way, and entirely covered in by aluminium in front and fabric in the rear. An 80 h.p. Gnome is mounted on overhung bearings, and almost entirely covered in by an aluminium shield.
   The main planes, similar in section, although on a reduced scale, to those of the two-seater, are separated by one pair of struts only on each side, and are attached to the fuselage by means of a steel clip and vertical bolt through the spars. The pilot is accommodated on an aluminium seat of the bucket type, and controls the machine by means of a single central column and a foot-bar. The column terminates in a double handle similar to those fitted on the Prier-type Bristol monoplanes.
   The tail planes consist of a flat non-lifting fixed tail plane mounted on top of the fuselage, and of a divided elevator. The rudder is of the balanced type, and no vertical tail fin is fitted. A small pivoted tail skid, sprung by means of rubber shock absorbers inside the fuselage, protects the tail planes.


Flight, April 25, 1914.

THE 80 H.P. BRISTOL "SCOUT."

   IT is a matter of gratification that the best of British-built machines are now generally acknowledged to be at least equal to those produced in other countries, in spite of the scant encouragement which the British industry has received in the past. It appears that Great Britain is in a fair way to take the leadership, at least as regards a certain type of machine originated in this country, a type possessing great possibilities, which has not up to the present received much attention abroad. We refer to the small, fast, single-seater, tractor-type biplane. In France, when high speeds are desired, designers almost invariably turn to the monoplane type of machine, whilst German constructors do not appear to pay any considerable attention to really fast machines. There is little doubt, however, that the small span tractor biplane has great possibilities where, in addition to a very high maximum speed, a low minimum speed is desired, for the biplane construction allows of a considerable amount of saving in weight, whilst still retaining a reasonably high factor of safety. Evidently British constructors are realising the possibilities of this type, as, at the recent Olympia Show, three well-known English firms exhibited machines of this type. Of these machines, the one exhibited by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Co. has already proved its capabilities in actual flight. Since the closing of the Show, Mr. Harry Busteed, the well-known Bristol pilot, has done a considerable amount of flying on the machine, most notable among these flights being one made during Easter, when he flew from Salisbury Plain to Brooklands in 27 mins. Of course this flight was accomplished with the aid of a following wind, but even so it was no mean performance.
   In the general disposition of its component parts the machine follows standard practice, having a rectangular type fuselage, built up of four longerons, which are of ash in the front portion, and spruce at the rear. Vertical and transverse spruce struts separate the longerons, and the whole structure is made rigid by high-tension steel piano wires attached to steel plate joints. Mounted on overhung bearings in the nose of the fuselage is the 80 h.p. Gnome engine which drives directly a Bristol propeller of 8 ft. diameter. An aluminium cowl almost entirely encloses the engine. This cowl appears to present a comparatively large vertical surface, and it would seem that some form of hemispherical nose-piece, revolving with the propeller as in the large two-seater Bristol biplane exhibited at the Show, might add slightly to the speed. The front part of the fuselage up to a point behind the pilot's seat is entirely closed in by an aluminium covering, whilst the rear portion is covered with fabric. Just behind the inner pair of rear struts is the pilot's cockpit, in which is accommodated the seat, slung from the fuselage on piano wires. By means of the wire strainers incorporated in the seat suspension, the position of the seat may be altered to suit the pilot. Control is by means lever, which operates the elevator pivoted foot-bar actuating the rudder. The vertical lever terminates in a form of handle similar to those known from the Prier type Bristol monoplanes, on which is mounted the switch. Between the pilot's seat and the engine are mounted the tanks, which have a capacity sufficient for a flight of three hours' duration.
   Attached to the upper longeron at the rear end of the fuselage, is a flat, non-lifting stabilising plane, to the trailing edge of which is hinged the divided elevator. The rudder is pivoted round an extension of the sternpost of the fuselage, and is partly balanced by a small portion of it projecting forward from the rudderpost above the stabilising plane. All control cables are in duplicate and have a very high factor of safety.
   The main planes are chiefly remarkable on account of their unusually short span, and on closer inspection the wing section proves to be highly interesting, as it does not resemble any of the standard sections employed by other well-known firms. As a matter of fact, the section is the same, of course to a reduced scale, as that on the two-seater Bristol machines, which has been found by the Eiffel laboratory to give an exceedingly good lift/drift ratio. This wing section was, as our readers are no doubt aware, designed by Mr. Coanda, and is probably one of the contributory causes to the high speed and good speed range of the machine. Double acting ailerons are fitted to both upper and lower planes, so that the machine must have ample lateral control. Internally the wings are braced by piano wire, whilst the external diagonal bracing is effected by stranded cables having a high factor of safety. Only a single pair of spruce struts on each side of the fuselage separate the main planes, so that there is very little head resistance.
   The chassis has been reduced to an absolute minimum. Two pairs of V struts joined at their lower extremities by a transverse member constitute the rigid portion of the chassis. The tubular axle rests in the angle between the struts, from which it is sprung by means of rubber cord. The tail planes are protected against contact with the ground by means of a short skid projecting through the fuselage covering, and sprung inside the fuselage by means of rubber cord. The main characteristics of the machine are :-
Weight of machine empty 616 lbs.
Minimum speed 47 m.p.h.
Useful load carried 340 lbs.
Range of flight 3 hours.
Maximum speed 95 m.p.h.


Flight, May 22, 1914.

THE AERIAL DERBY.

THE PILOTS AND HOW TO RECOGNISE THE MACHINES.

No. 18. The 80 h.p. Bristol Biplane,
   as has already been explained, will look, when flying at a height, somewhat similar to the Vickers biplane, but may be identified by its narrower fuselage.

THE MACHINES AND HOW TO RECOGNISE THEM.

No. 18. The 80 h.p. Bristol Biplane is similar to the machine exhibited at the last Olympia Aero Show, on which some time ago Mr. Busteed flew from Salisbury Plain to Brooklands in 27 mins., and as this new machine is, if anything, faster than the old one, it should stand an excellent chance of being one of the first to finish the course.


Flight, March 26, 1915.

EDDIES.

   Although accounts of duels in the air are frequent enough in the daily press, these reports are generally more or less coloured, and frequently sound highly improbable. I was therefore very interested the other day in hearing from a pilot who was home on leave a description of a fight between an English and a German machine. My informant was stationed at - well, never mind, "somewhere in France" - when one day a German machine having slightly backswept wings (probably an Aviatik biplane) appeared over the town flying at a great height, and dropped three bombs in quick succession. After this heroic feat, the machine turned tail and headed towards the German lines. Two Bristol scouts were quickly away in pursuit, one of which returned after about an hour's absence, the pilot having been unable to find his quarry. Everybody was scanning the skies anxiously awaiting the return of the second Bristol when suddenly the Aviatik hove in sight again, probably, my informant thinks, to try to find out what damage his bombs had done. Presently the second Bristol scout was seen some little distance behind the Aviatik, going - in the fluent flow of the story I did not quite catch the words used by my informant, but it was something to do with leather, and intended to convey the impression that the Bristol was not actually crawling along. It did not take the British 'bus long to overhaul the Aviatik, and as he flew past it, reports could be distinctly heard from the rifles which had been strapped on each side of the fuselage. Getting a short distance ahead of the German biplane, the Bristol was seen to swerve sharply and fly right across its course, evidently trying to head the German off. This performance was repeated several times, the Bristol crossing the nose of the Aviatik at very close quarters. Suddenly the Aviatik was seen to put its nose down, and presently flames were visible behind the engine, the machine falling to the ground a blazing wreck. The officer piloting the Bristol returned shortly afterwards, and was, needless to say, received with enthusiasm.


Flight, November 12, 1915.

CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS.-X.

   UNDERCARRIAGES of the "Vee" type and constructed of steel tubes were dealt with in our last issue, and some of the relative advantages of the two forms of construction, steel and wood, were pointed out. In our present page of illustrations are shown a few examples of how the construction of a "Vee" undercarriage may be carried out when the material employed is wood. A very simple type of chassis, offering a minimum of head resistance, is that of the Bristol scouting biplane, the first of which was exhibited, as our readers will remember, at the Olympia Aero Show in 1914. A good deal of criticism of this chassis was vouchsafed at the time from various quarters, mainly on the grounds that spruce struts had been used, and that the rear struts were much more nearly vertical than is usual practice. Since then, however, Bristol scouts have done some exceedingly good work, and as far as one can gather, the undercarriage has, without being materially altered, proved equal to the work for which it was designed. The four struts that constitute the chassis are secured at the top to the lower longitudinals of the body by steel clips, and are joined together two and two at their lower ends by other steel clips bolted through the lower, flat portion of the struts. From these clips project outwards on each side short lugs, to which are anchored the rubber cords that provide the flexible suspension of the wheels.
   The single tubular axle rests in the angle between the struts, and is prevented from moving sideways by steel wires running from the rear chassis strut on one side to the opposite end of the axle. No radius rods are fitted, the rear struts being so nearly vertical that they prevent the axle from moving back to any appreciable extent.
<...>


Flight, January 13, 1916.

A Model Bristol Scout.

   From South Lowestoft Mr. Lewis E. Richards sends a photo, of a beautifully-made Bristol scout, of which he says :-
   "Enclosed herewith are photos, of a model Bristol Scout, Type C, 1915, constructed a few months back, which might interest your Model Section.
   "Made almost entirely of mahogany and copper, to a scale of 1/12th , it was primarily intended as an exhibition working model, having in view the suggestion I put forward in your columns last February in connection with the Flying Services Fund.
   "Not the least interesting features incorporated in its construction are a special copper stamping for the engine housing, and a laminated air screw, whose shafting is coupled to a motor and driven by a dry battery in the fuselage.
   "Controls are functioned by levers situated in the cabane, including a device for starting up and switching off the motor. To facilitate dismantling and inspection, all members are readily and easily detachable.
   "Details have engaged closest attention, and to ensure accuracy, blue prints were supplied through the courtesy of Messrs. The British and Colonial Aeroplane Co., Ltd., to whom I am greatly indebted for their kind and valued assistance.
   "The planes are only shown in section, pressure of business having prevented their completion."


Flight, January 23, 1919.

"MILESTONES"

THE "BRISTOL" MACHINES

   As one of the pioneer firms in the aircraft industry particular interest attaches to the products of the British and Colonial Aeroplane Co., Ltd., of Filton, Bristol, who commenced their career quite in the earliest days with "box kites" of the Farman type, later followed by more original designs by, in succession, Prier, GordonT England, and Coanda. It was, however, to neither of these designers that the honour of designing the "Bristol" War machines fell. This responsibility rested upon Capt. F. S. Barnwell, R.A.F., who joined the firm as designer before the War, and produced, in collaboration, we believe, with Mr. Busteed, the little Bristol scout of pre-War days. The first of these machines was exhibited at the Olympia Aero Show of 1914, scale drawings of which were published in "FLIGHT" of April 25, 1914. Later in the year a similar machine was flown by Lord Carberry in the London-Paris-London race. The first Bristol scout was not greatly different from the type D scout illustrated herewith, although there are certain variations as regards dimensions, etc.

The Bristol Scout, Type D.

   The original Bristol scout had an area of only 156 sq. ft., whereas the type D shown in the accompanying illustrations has a total wing area of 200 sq. ft. In general outline the type D is very similar to the original Bristol scout, the rudder, tail plane and fins, as well as the body and main planes, being of almost identical shape. The body is somewhat deeper in front, and the cowling is slightly different, but otherwise the machine remains true to its prototype. Unlike several other makes of single-seater tractors, the Bristol has its wing bracing wires arranged in the plane of the staggered struts, a feature that has been considered undesirable on account of the extra drag stress it may impose on the internal bracing of the top plane, but in the case of the Bristol any such tendency is countered by fitting external drag wires running from the upper and lower ends of the rear inter-plane struts to the front of the fuselage. That this form of bracing is adequate would appear to be proved by the fact that to the best of our knowledge no Bristol scout has ever shed its wings in the air. Several variations of the Bristol type D have been built. With the exception of the fitting of different engines and minor alterations, they have not, however, been greatly different from the machine illustrated. To mention only one, there was the 110 h,p. Clerget-engined machine, which had a slightly different cowl, and had a rotating "spinner" fitted over the propeller boss. Unfortunately we have not received any particulars of the performance, etc., of this machine, and so are unable to include it in the accompanying tables.