The Bristol Type 6 T.T.A was a British two-seat, twin-engine

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

, designed in 1915 as a defence fighter. Two prototypes were built, but the T.T.A. did not go into production.

Development

The Bristol T.T.A was designed in 1915 to a

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

requirement for a local defence aircraft. The T.T.A was a two-seat, twin-engine biplane with ''T.T.'' standing for twin

tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...

; the Bristol Type number 6 was added retrospectively in 1923. The guiding principles in the design were compactness and a wide field of fire from both cockpits. The T.T.A was an unswept biplane with slight stagger, the wings having constant chord and carrying long

aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

s on the upper planes. The wings were of three-bay construction, the inner

interplane strut In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of strut, which act in ...

s supporting the engines in rectangular nacelles midway between the wings. Twin-wheeled

undercarriage Undercarriage is the part of a moving vehicle that is underneath the main body of the vehicle. The term originally applied to this part of a horse-drawn carriage, and usage has since broadened to include: *The landing gear of an aircraft. *The ch ...

units were mounted below each engine, with a tailskid and a noseskid to prevent nosing over. The large area

tailplane A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplane ...

was the same shape as that of the Scout D, with the same unbalanced

elevator An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...

s, but the finless

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

was balanced. The gunner sat in a cockpit in the nose of the aircraft, armed with two free-mounted 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis Guns. The pilot, sitting behind the wing trailing edge, had a rear-pointing Lewis gun. The original design, (the Bristol T.T.), envisaged the use of two 150 hp (110 kW) R.A.F. 4a engines, but the

B.E.12 The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.12 was a British single-seat aeroplane of The First World War designed at the Royal Aircraft Factory. It was essentially a single-seat version of the B.E.2. Intended for use as a long-range reconnaissance and bomb ...

and

R.E.8 The Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 was a British two-seat biplane reconnaissance and bomber aircraft of the First World War designed and produced at the Royal Aircraft Factory. It was also built under contract by Austin Motors, Daimler, Standard ...

aircraft had been given priority for these engines and Bristol were advised to use 120 hp (90 kW)

Beardmore Beardmore can refer to: *Andrew Beardmore, better known as Andy Moor, English trance DJ, producer and remixer *Bob Beardmore, British rugby league footballer *Bud Beardmore (1939–2016), American lacrosse coach *Jim Beardmore, Former All-American ...

engines. With these engines, the aircraft was designated T.T.A, two prototypes were ordered and the first completed on 26 April 1916. The second followed in May, and both aircraft flew to

Upavon Upavon is a rural village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, England. As its name suggests, it is on the upper portion of the River Avon which runs from north to south through the village. It is on the north edge of Salisbury Plain ...

for service tests. Top speed and climb rate were better than the T.T.'s higher powered but larger competitor, the F.E.4, but the aircraft was not liked and gained no production orders.

Specifications

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * {{Bristol aircraft, T.T.A 1910s British fighter aircraft T.T.A Aircraft first flown in 1916