Описание
Страна: Великобритания
Год: 1917
Single-engine, two-seat, single-bay triplane bomber
H.King Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 (Putnam)
2B.2 Rhino
The fact that the Rhino, or Sopwith 2B.2, was a triplane tended to screen from view, and thus from full appreciation, aspects of design and equipment that merit careful study, and command far more respect than derision. Certainly it was a worthier Sopwith product than - and in some ways very sharply in contrast with - that other large single-engined multi-seat triplane the L.R.T.Tr. of 1916, a fact that must be attributed at least in part to its later design, for work on this was not in hand until the latter part of 1917. The Rhino was, in any case, produced to meet wholly different requirements (being a bomber, and not a fighter); and even though it shared the distinction of having a water-cooled engine, the unit concerned was of the tall-and-slender B.H.P. six-in-line type, as fitted in the comparable D.H.9. As triplanes go (or went) the Rhino was a notable example.
To the form of the 230 hp B.H.P. engine must be attributed in part the very deep fuselage, though another influential factor was the internal bomb-stowage beneath the pilot's seat. The matter of bomb-stowage is one that renders this Sopwith private-venture bomber (for its construction was authorised under Licence No.14) an especially valuable object-lesson when compared with the D.H.9 - a bomber strongly stamped by heredity, expediency and official dictation. True, the D.H.9 itself possessed internal bomb-stowage; but this was a secondary, as distinct from a primary, feature, and was forward of, and not below, the pilot.
The first of the two Rhinos built (X7) was air-tested at Brooklands late in October 1917, was delivered to Martlesham Heath for official trials on 4 January, 1918, and was followed to Brooklands by a second specimen (X8) in February 1918. The differences between these two machines were interesting (as will be recounted) though fairly minor ones, whereas those which distinguished the Rhino from the L.R.T.Tr. were fundamental. First, whereas the big fighter had been a three-bay 'three-winger' with surfaces of high aspect ratio, and further characterised by a huge landing gear, the new bomber was not even of two-bay, but of single-bay, form, with low-aspect wings and a landing gear that looked minute. Lacking on the Rhino, of course, was the gun-nacelle perched on the topmost wing, though height was emphasised by the very broad centre section which, notwithstanding the widely splayed struts supporting it, overhung those struts by a noticeable margin. Chord of the top wing was constant, but at the roots of the middle and bottom wings were trailing-edge cut-outs, while between the spars of the middle wing were oblong apertures to improve the pilot's view (for his seat was above and a little behind). More prominent still were the large horn-balances for the ailerons on all three wings and the strut between the middle and bottom ailerons on each side (the middle and upper ailerons being connected by cable only). Later the horn-balanced ailerons of X7 were replaced by plain surfaces, as fitted also on X8: and when plain ailerons were fitted the mainplane tips were reshaped.
That the tail surfaces resembled those of the Bulldog is not surprising, for the two aircraft types were more or less contemporary; thus, taken in sum, the foregoing facts may help to emphasise that - its physical appearance and unenviable reputation notwithstanding - the Rhino was a relatively late-comer to the Sopwith menage or menagerie, and by no means as quaint or 'old-fashioned' as sometimes suggested. This point is further stressed by the recognition that almost the last of the military Sopwiths (the Snark single-seat fighter and the Cobham twin-engined bomber) were themselves triplanes. Nor must we forget here Herbert Smith's Mitsubishi triplane for the Japanese Navy (1922).
A particular point was made early in this account of the influence exercised by the fitting of a 230 hp B.H.P. engine - a powerplant chosen for large-scale production (especially by the Siddeley-Deasy Car Co) and precursor of the Siddeley Puma as installed in the Cobham, the Sopwith 'twin' just named. The cooling of the Rhino's engine was achieved in part by admitting air through a deep nose-intake, into which the front end of the crankcase projected, but more particularly by two low-set radiators in the sides of the cowling and flanking the bottom half of the crankcase, below the engine's eight supporting 'feet'. The radiators were of the general type used on production Dolphins: that is, each block was fronted by an adjustable flap to regulate the exposure of cooling surface. By reason of the cowling shape, and because each of the two cylinder blocks of the B.H.P engine (for two it had, even though it was a 'six-in-line') comprised the cylinder heads, water jackets, valve passages and inlet manifold for three cylinders, these cylinder blocks were largely exposed. This necessitated provision of a fairing at the forward end, though even so, the cast-on legend '230 BHP' was clearly visible on the front cylinder block. Though changes in coolant, fuel and oil systems were made in the course of development none appears to have been basic; so attention may now be transferred to armament.
Although - as on the 1 1/2 Strutter - bomb-sighting presented major problems, the stowage of the bombs themselves was exemplary. As already noted, this stowage was beneath the pilot's seat; but, although this situation was favourable to c.g. location, it inhibited - jointly with a petrol tank - the fitting of a Negative Lens sight for the pilot's use (as, for example, on the D.H.9 and comparable types) while the employment of an external sight, of C.F.S. or other pattern, was rendered difficult, if not impossible, by the fuselage shape, with its tumblehome decking. The bombs - four 112 lb or nine 50 lb or twenty 20 lb - were in a cellular 'crate' which was winched into place, complete with closely associated bomb-release gear, by a system of pulleys attached to the middle-wing spar, or spars, inside the fuselage.
Between Rhinos X7 and X8 (Nos.1 and 2 as they were otherwise known) the differences were largely in respect of gun-armament. Whereas on X7 the pilot's Vickers gun was mounted on the fuselage centre line immediately ahead of the cockpit (with the feed block faired over, the fairing also affording some protection to the pilot) on X8 the gun was wholly forward of the pilot's normal-type windscreen - a fitting absent on X7 - and there was a fairing ahead of the feed block.
Rear armament on X7 was a Lewis gun on a rocking-pillar mounting at the rear of the second cockpit (as on the Bulldog) but X8 had a redesigned gunner's position, with a Scarff ring-mounting fitted on the top longerons, the gunner thus having a deep protective coaming ahead of him. Provision for a downward-firing 'belly gun' has been mentioned in connection with the Rhino, and would not seem incompatible, for such an installation was not unknown on the D.H.9.
Certainly, X8 was tested at Martlesham Heath during February and March 1918 not only with a revised armament installation and plain ailerons but with a Lang 4020 propeller instead of other patterns tried. This being so - and also having regard to the Sopwith type-number used jointly with the Rhino's name to head this present chapter - it may be remarked that a magnifying glass proclaims the following stamping on the propeller hub seen in the Sopwith 'nose close-up’ picture S.182: 'DRG. L.4020. 230 H.P. B.H.P. SOPWITH. 2.B.2.'
Its unimpressive showing and seemingly derisory name notwithstanding, the Rhino, if developed with a later engine (see under 'Cobham') might have made a distinctly useful addition to the final rhino-like bombing 'charge' by the RAF. And should this prospect, jointly with the pictures shown, occasion shock, then one would only remark that this merely shows how deceptive (as well as instructive) photographs can be; for the Rhino was little bigger than a Hawker Hart!
Rhino (230 hp B.H.P.)
Span 41 ft (12.5 m)*; length 30 ft 3 in (9.2 m); height 10 ft (3 m); wing area 612 sq ft (56.8 sq m). Empty weight 2,185 lb (990 kg); maximum weight 3,590 lb (1,628 kg). Maximum speed at 10,000 ft (3,050 m) 103 mph (166 km/h); climb to 10,000 ft (3,050 m) 24 min 50 sec; service ceiling 12,000 ft (3,658 m); endurance 3 3/4 hr.
* Although the span would clearly differ according to the type of ailerons fitted, the generally quoted figure of 33 ft (10 m) is apparently incorrect whatever allowances are made.
N.B. Rhino X8 without bombs and weighing 3,061 lb (1,388 kg) is known to have reached a service ceiling of 14,500 ft (4,420 m). In this instance the fuel and oil load was 465 lb (211 kg), though in another case, with a military load of 538 lb (244 kg) the fuel and oil load was 507 lb (230 kg).
Описание:
- H.King Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 (Putnam)
- F.Manson British Bomber Since 1914 (Putnam)
- P.Lewis British Bomber since 1914 (Putnam)
- J.Bruce British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 (Putnam)
- H.King Armament of British Aircraft (Putnam)
Фотографии
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P.Lewis - British Bomber since 1914 /Putnam/
Early version of Sopwith 2.B.2 Rhino using ailerons equipped with horn balances.
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H.King - Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 /Putnam/
The Sopwith caption to this undated view of Rhino X7 (presumed), with horn-balanced ailerons, and pillar mounting for the Lewis gun hard astarboard, reads: 'S.64 - Rhino Triplane 220 hp B.H.P. - 1st. Machine - Type 2.B.2'.
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H.King - Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 /Putnam/
Rhino X7 (presumed) without horn-balanced ailerons, the photograph bearing the maker's caption: 'S.146 - Sopwith Rhino Triplane. 220 hp B.H.P. - Type 2.B.2 - 1st. Machine - Dec. 1917'.
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J.Bruce - British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 /Putnam/
The Rhino with plain ailerons.
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P.Lewis - British Bomber since 1914 /Putnam/
Sopwith 2.B.2 Rhino X8 with plain ailerons.
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J.Bruce - British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 /Putnam/
The inelegant Sopwith Rhino triplane prototype with original horn-balanced ailerons. Designed as a day bomber and powered by a 230 hp B.H.P. engine, horn-balanced ailerons were fitted to all three wings. Later prototypes featured rounded wingtips, eliminating the aileron horn balances. The Rhino had an internal bomb bay, which made the fuselage deeper than its contemporaries. Speed and ceiling were low and the aircraft was not produced in quantity and did not see service. Like many British designs, all the wings were essentially identical to facilitate mass production despite the fact that the top wing of biplanes and multiplanes generated more lift and thus should be larger.
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J.Bruce - British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 /Putnam/
Rhino with modified rear cockpit and Scarff ring-mounting for observer’s gun. The serial number is X.8.
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H.King - Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 /Putnam/
An especially fine study of the engine and Vickers gun installations on Rhino X8. The photograph bears the Sopwith number S.182 and is captioned '2nd. Machine', and dated 'Feb. 15/1918'.
The second Sopwith Rhino differed from the first in the installation of the Vickers gun, seen above, and in having a Scarff ring-mounting, the base of which is just visible on the extreme left. -
H.King - Sopwith Aircraft 1912-1920 /Putnam/
Vickers gun and uncowled B.H.P. of Rhino X8.