The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 is a British
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 ...
fighter aircraft
Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...
of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. It was developed at the
Royal Aircraft Factory
Royal may refer to:
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* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a cit ...
by a team consisting of
Henry Folland
Henry Philip Folland OBE (22 January 1889 – 5 September 1954) was an English aviation engineer and aircraft designer.
Early years
Folland was born on 22 January 1889 to Frederick and Mary Folland at 2 King Street, Holy Trinity, Cambridge.1 ...
,
John Kenworthy
John Kenworthy B.Sc., F.R.Aes (1883–1940) was an English aviation engineer and aircraft designer.
John Kenworthy appears in the 1901 Census of Darlington, aged 17, living with four sisters, one brother and his parents George and Ellen Kenworth ...
and Major
Frank Goodden
Major Frank Widenham Goodden (3 October 1889 – 28 January 1917) was a pioneering British aviator who served as chief test pilot for the Royal Aircraft Factory during the First World War.
Early life and pre-war flying career
Goodden was born in ...
. It was one of the fastest aircraft of the war, while being both stable and relatively manoeuvrable. According to aviation author Robert Jackson, the S.E.5 was: "the nimble fighter that has since been described as the '
Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...
of World War One'".
[Jackson 2007, p. 18.]
In most respects the S.E.5 had superior performance to the rival
Sopwith Camel
The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...
, although it was less immediately responsive to the controls. Problems with its
Hispano-Suiza
Hispano-Suiza () is a Spanish automotive–engineering company. It was founded in 1904 by Marc Birkigt and Damian Mateu as an automobile manufacturer and eventually had several factories in Spain and France that produced luxury cars, aircraft en ...
engine, particularly the geared-output
H-S 8B-powered early versions, meant that there was a chronic shortage of the type until well into 1918. Thus, while the first examples had reached the
Western Front before the Camel, there were fewer squadrons equipped with the S.E.5 than with the
Sopwith fighter.
Together with the Camel, the S.E.5 was instrumental in regaining allied
air superiority
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of c ...
in mid-1917 and maintaining it for the rest of the war, ensuring there was no repetition of "
Bloody April
Bloody April was the (largely successful) British air support operation during the Battle of Arras in April 1917, during which particularly heavy casualties were suffered by the Royal Flying Corps at the hands of the German ''Luftstreitkräfte ...
" 1917 when losses in the
Royal Flying Corps
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colors =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, decorations ...
were much heavier than in the
Luftstreitkräfte
The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Force)—known before October 1916 as (Flyer Troops)—was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, alt ...
. The S.E.5s remained in RAF service for some time following the
Armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
that ended the conflict; some were transferred to various overseas military operators, while a number were also adopted by civilian operators.
Development
Origins
![Royal Aircraft Factory SE5a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Royal_Aircraft_Factory_SE5a.jpg)
The S.E.5 (Scout Experimental 5) was designed by
Henry Folland
Henry Philip Folland OBE (22 January 1889 – 5 September 1954) was an English aviation engineer and aircraft designer.
Early years
Folland was born on 22 January 1889 to Frederick and Mary Folland at 2 King Street, Holy Trinity, Cambridge.1 ...
,
John Kenworthy
John Kenworthy B.Sc., F.R.Aes (1883–1940) was an English aviation engineer and aircraft designer.
John Kenworthy appears in the 1901 Census of Darlington, aged 17, living with four sisters, one brother and his parents George and Ellen Kenworth ...
and Major
Frank Goodden
Major Frank Widenham Goodden (3 October 1889 – 28 January 1917) was a pioneering British aviator who served as chief test pilot for the Royal Aircraft Factory during the First World War.
Early life and pre-war flying career
Goodden was born in ...
of the
Royal Aircraft Factory
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a cit ...
in
Farnborough Farnborough may refer to:
Australia
* Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone
United Kingdom
* Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England
** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a railw ...
. It was built around the new 150 hp (112 kW)
Hispano-Suiza 8
The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914, and was the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiza ...
, a
V8 engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and us ...
that, while providing excellent performance, was initially underdeveloped and unreliable. The first of three prototypes flew on 22 November 1916. The first two prototypes were lost in crashes (the first killing the chief test pilot at the Royal Aircraft Factory, Major Frank Goodden, on 28 January 1917) due to a weakness in their wing design. The third prototype underwent modification before production commenced; the S.E.5 was known in service as an exceptionally strong aircraft which could be dived at very high speed – the squarer wings also gave much improved lateral control at low airspeeds.
[Hare 2013, p. 46.]
Like the other significant Royal Aircraft Factory aircraft of the war (
B.E.2
The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine tractor two-seat biplane designed and developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory. Most of the roughly 3,500 built were constructed under contract by private companies, including establish ...
,
F.E.2 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 ...
) the S.E.5 was inherently stable, making it an excellent gunnery platform, but it was also quite manoeuvrable. It was one of the fastest aircraft of the war at 138 mph (222 km/h), equal at least in speed to the
SPAD S.XIII
The SPAD S.XIII is a French biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War, developed by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) from the earlier and highly successful SPAD S.VII.
During early 1917, the French designer Louis Béc ...
and faster than any standard German type of the period. While the S.E.5 was not as agile and effective in a tight
dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is an aerial battle between fighter aircraft conducted at close range. Dogfighting first occurred in Mexico in 1913, shortly after the invention of the airplane. Until at least 1992, it was a component in every majo ...
as the Camel it was much easier and safer to fly, particularly for novice pilots.
[Cheesman 1960, p. 56.] According to "Dodge" Bailey, Chief Test Pilot of the
Shuttleworth Collection
The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located at the Old Warden Aerodrome, Old Warden in Bedfordshire, England. It is the oldest in the world and one of the most prestigious, due to the variety of old a ...
, it had "somewhat similar handling characteristics to a
de Havilland Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. ...
, but with better excess power".
S.E.5a
Only 77 original S.E.5 aircraft had been completed prior to production settling upon an improved model, designated as the ''S.E.5a''. The initial models of the S.E.5a differed from late production examples of the S.E.5 only in the type of engine installed – a geared 200 hp
Hispano-Suiza 8b
The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914, and was the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiza 8A ...
, often turning a large clockwise-rotation four-bladed propeller, replacing the 150 hp H.S. 8A model. In total 5,265 S.E.5s were constructed by six manufacturers:
Austin Motors
The Austin Motor Company Limited was an English manufacturer of motor vehicles, founded in 1905 by Herbert Austin in Longbridge. In 1952 it was merged with Morris Motors Limited in the new holding company British Motor Corporation (BMC) Limit ...
(1,650),
Air Navigation and Engineering Company
Air Navigation and Engineering Company Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1919 to 1927.
History
The company was formed in 1919 when the Blériot & SPAD Manufacturing Company Limited was renamed. The company was ...
(560),
Curtiss
Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company (1909 – 1929) was an American aircraft manufacturer originally founded by Glenn Hammond Curtiss and Augustus Moore Herring in Hammondsport, New York. After significant commercial success in its first decade ...
(1),
Martinsyde
Martinsyde was a British aircraft and motorcycle manufacturer between 1908 and 1922, when it was forced into liquidation by a factory fire.
History
The company was first formed in 1908 as a partnership between H.P. Martin and George Handasyde ...
(258), the
Royal Aircraft Factory
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a cit ...
(200),
Vickers
Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public in 18 ...
(2,164) and
Wolseley Motors Limited (431).
Shortly following the
American entry into World War I
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry
...
, plans were mooted for several American aircraft manufacturers to commence mass production of aircraft already in service with the Allied powers, one such fighter being the S.E.5. In addition to an order of 38 Austin-built S.E.5a aircraft which were produced in Britain and assigned to the
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...
to equip already-deployed US Army squadrons, the US Government issued multiple orders to the
Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company
Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company (1909 – 1929) was an American aircraft manufacturer originally founded by Glenn Hammond Curtiss and Augustus Moore Herring in Hammondsport, New York. After significant commercial success in its first decades ...
for the manufacture and delivery of around 1,000 S.E.5s to be produced in the United States.
However, only one Curtiss-built aircraft would be completed prior to the end of the conflict, after which demand for the S.E.5 had effectively evaporated, production being quickly halted after a further 56 aircraft were assembled using already-delivered components.
["Eberhart SE-5E."](_blank)
''National Museum of the US Air Force'', 7 April 2015.
At first, airframe construction outstripped the very limited supply of French-built Hispano-Suiza engines and squadrons earmarked to receive the new fighter had to soldier on with
Airco DH 5s and
Nieuport 24
The Nieuport 24 (or Nieuport XXIV C.1 in contemporary sources) was a World War I French sesquiplane fighter aircraft designed by Gustave Delage as a development of the successful Nieuport 17.
The Nieuport 24 had the misfortune to be the penul ...
s until early 1918. The troublesome geared "-8b" model was prone to have serious gear reduction system problems, sometimes with the propeller (and even the entire gearbox on a very few occasions) separating from the engine and airframe in flight, a problem shared with the similarly-powered
Sopwith Dolphin
The Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin was a British fighter aircraft manufactured by the Sopwith Aviation Company. It was used by the Royal Flying Corps and its successor, the Royal Air Force, during the World War I, First World War. The Dolphin entered se ...
.
The introduction of the 200 hp (149 kW)
Wolseley Viper
The Wolseley Viper is a British-built, high-compression derivative of the Hispano Suiza HS-8 liquid-cooled V-8 engine, built under licence by Wolseley Motors during World War I.
It powered later models of the S.E.5a, SPAD VII and other Brit ...
, a high-compression, direct-drive version of the Hispano-Suiza 8a made under licence by
Wolseley Motors Limited, solved the S.E.5a's engine problems and was promptly adopted as the type's standard powerplant.
[Mortimer 2014, p. 66.] A number of aircraft were subsequently converted to a two-seat configuration in order to serve as
trainer aircraft
A trainer is a class of aircraft designed specifically to facilitate flight training of pilots and aircrews. The use of a dedicated trainer aircraft with additional safety features—such as tandem flight controls, forgiving flight characteristi ...
.
[Hare 2013, p. 86.]
S.E.5b
![Civilian and military visitors inspecting R](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Civilian_and_military_visitors_inspecting_R.A.F._S.E.5b_aircraft_RAE-O409.jpg)
The S.E.5b was a variant of the S.E.5 with a streamlined nose and upper and lower wings of different span and chord. The single example, a converted S.E.5a, first flew in early April 1918. It had a spinner on the propeller and a retractable underslung radiator. Its performance was little better than the S.E.5a, with the extra drag of the big upper wing offsetting gains from the more streamlined fuselage. The S.E.5b was not considered for production. In January 1919, it was tested with standard S.E.5a wings and in this form survived as a research aircraft into the early twenties.
[Hare 2013, pp. 98-100.]
Design
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 was a conventional
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 ...
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 ...
fighter aircraft. The fuselage was a wire-braced
box girder structure while the wings were furnished with wooden
spars
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve, also known as the SPARS (SPARS was the acronym for "Semper Paratus—Always Ready"), was the women's branch of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. It was established by the United States ...
and internal
ribs
The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels.
The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a semi- ...
. The fuselage was narrower than many contemporary aircraft, which provided the pilot with good all-round visibility.
The aircraft had considerable structural strength, which was credited with improving the type's
crashworthiness
Crashworthiness is the ability of a structure to protect its occupants during an impact. This is commonly tested when investigating the safety of aircraft and vehicles. Depending on the nature of the impact and the vehicle involved, different crit ...
and survivability. It could also withstand
high-g manoeuvres and was relatively resistant to battle-damage.
[Nijboer and Patterson 2016, p. 20.]
Unlike many of its peers, which were highly agile but unforgiving, the S.E.5 was comparatively stable and easy to fly; its stability enabling pilots to more readily fire upon enemies from further away with a greater degree of accuracy. It had a noticeably lower accident rate than comparable aircraft.
The exception to its generally stability was an excessive amount of adverse
yaw. The yaw could be compensated for by balanced application of the
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 ...
and
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 ...
, whilst adjustment of the
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, ...
trim
Trim or TRIM may refer to:
Cutting
* Cutting or trimming small pieces off something to remove them
** Book trimming, a stage of the publishing process
** Pruning, trimming as a form of pruning often used on trees
Decoration
* Trim (sewing), or ...
made it possible to fly in a 'hands off' manner.
The S.E.5 was powered by various engines, initially adopting a
Hispano-Suiza 8
The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914, and was the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiza ...
V8 engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and us ...
. The Hispano-Suiza engine was advanced for the era, incorporating such features as an aluminium cylinder block with steel liners, dual ignition and forced lubrication that aided cooling; especially compared with contemporary
rotary engine
The rotary engine is an early type of internal combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration. The engine's crankshaft remained stationary in operation, while the entire crankcase and i ...
s, it had the advantage of being easy to operate by most pilots. An expansion tank for the cooling system was integrated into the
leading edge
The leading edge of an airfoil surface such as a wing is its foremost edge and is therefore the part which first meets the oncoming air.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, ...
of the upper wing's centre section.
["Flying the SE.5a."](_blank)
''thevintageaviator.co.nz'', Retrieved: 8 January 2017. One of its greatest advantages over the Sopwith Camel was its superior performance at altitude, making it a much better match for the
Fokker D.VII
The Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the second half of 1918. In service with the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the D.VII qu ...
when that fighter arrived at the front.
The S.E.5 was armed with a single
synchronised .303 .303 may refer to:
* .303 British, a rifle cartridge
* .303 Savage, a rifle cartridge
* Lee–Enfield
The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the B ...
-inch
Vickers machine gun
The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a Water cooling, water-cooled .303 British (7.7 mm) machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The gun was operated by a three-man crew but typically required more me ...
in contrast to the Camel's two, but it also had a wing-mounted
Lewis gun fitted on a
Foster mounting
The Foster mounting was a device fitted to some fighter aircraft of the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. It was designed to enable a machine gun (in practice, a Lewis Gun) to fire ''over'', rather than ''through'' the arc of the spin ...
, which enabled the pilot to fire at an enemy aircraft from below.
This armament configuration was much appreciated by the pilots of the first S.E.5 squadrons as the new hydraulic-link
"C.C." synchronising gear for the Vickers machine gun was unreliable at first. The Vickers gun was mounted on the forward left dorsal surface of the
fuselage
The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...
with the breech inside the
cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft.
The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...
, at a slight upwards angle. Typically, spare magazines for the Lewis gun would have been placed within most of the free space in the cockpit including the forward areas, such as the instrumentation panel.
The standard instrument panel included a
compass
A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with ...
,
altimeter
An altimeter or an altitude meter is an instrument used to measure the altitude of an object above a fixed level. The measurement of altitude is called altimetry, which is related to the term bathymetry, the measurement of depth under water. The m ...
, tachometer, oil pressure indicator, airspeed gauge, radiator temperature dial, fuel air pressure indicator, fuel selector, and air exchange; these were somewhat difficult to view due to their low-set position in the cockpit.
[Nijboer and Patterson 2016, pp. 20, 23.] According to "Dodge" Bailey, Chief Test Pilot of the
Shuttleworth Collection
The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located at the Old Warden Aerodrome, Old Warden in Bedfordshire, England. It is the oldest in the world and one of the most prestigious, due to the variety of old a ...
, the S.E.5's cockpit was "the best of the bunch from the era".
It was set amidships, making it difficult to see over the long front fuselage, but otherwise visibility was good.
Individual in-service S.E.5s would often receive customisations and user-specified tweaks at the request of their pilots.
Popular changes included reducing the
dihedral of the wings in order to increase its manoeuvrability and the removal of the head fairing to increase the pilot's visibility to the rear.
James McCudden
James Thomas Byford McCudden, (28 March 1895 – 9 July 1918) was a British flying ace of the First World War and among the most highly decorated airmen in British military history.
Born in 1895 to a middle class family with military traditions ...
, an
ace
An ace is a playing card, Dice, die or domino with a single Pip (counting), pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit (cards), suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large a ...
pilot and former RFC mechanic, was famous for his prolific fine-tuning of his aircraft in order to produce improved performance from it; McCudden was able to increase the top speed by 9 mph and to raise the service ceiling from the standard 17,000 ft to 20,000 ft. His adaptions included replacing the standard pistons with high compression versions, shortening the exhaust (saving weight and improving exhaust scavenging), and changes to mixture, ignition and other engine settings as well as fitting a salvaged German propeller spinner (which he himself credited as gaining 3 mph alone).
Aviation authors Donald Nijboer and Dan Patterson describe the S.E.5 as "arguably the best British-built fighter of World War I".
Operational history
![Albert Ball SE5a cockpit](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Albert_Ball_SE5a_cockpit.jpg)
In March 1917, the S.E.5 entered service with
No. 56 Squadron RFC, although the squadron did not deploy to the
Western Front until the following month.
[Jackson 2007, p. 11.] Everyone was suspicious of the large "greenhouse" windscreens fitted to the first production models. These were designed to protect the pilot in his unusually high seating position, which was in turn intended to improve vision over the upper wing. The squadron did not fly its first patrol with the S.E.5 until 22 April,
[Bruce 1953, p. 87.] by which time, on the insistence of Major Blomfield, 56 squadron's commanding officer,
all aircraft had been fitted with small rectangular screens of conventional design. The problem of the high seating position was solved by simply lowering it, pilots in any case preferring a more conventional (and comfortable) seating position. No complaints seem to have been made about the view from the cockpit; in fact, this was often cited as one of the strong points of the type.
While pilots, some of whom were initially disappointed with the S.E.5, quickly came to appreciate its strength and fine flying qualities, it was popularly judged to have been underpowered; this failing was addressed by the introduction of the more powerful S.E.5a. In June 1917, the S.E.5a entered service and quickly began to replace the S.E.5.
At this time 56 Squadron was still the only unit flying the new fighter; in fact it was the only operational unit to be fully equipped with the initial 150 hp S.E.5 – all other S.E.5 squadrons officially used the 200 hp S.E.5a from the outset – although a few S.E.5s were issued to other squadrons due to an acute shortage of the S.E.5a. Deliveries of the S.E.5a suffered from delays due to a shortage of available engines with which to power the type.
Due to the shortage of aircraft, there was a very slow initial build-up of new S.E.5a squadrons, which lasted well into 1918. Once the
Wolseley Viper
The Wolseley Viper is a British-built, high-compression derivative of the Hispano Suiza HS-8 liquid-cooled V-8 engine, built under licence by Wolseley Motors during World War I.
It powered later models of the S.E.5a, SPAD VII and other Brit ...
-powered model became plentiful, many more units were re-equipped with the type. By the end of the war, the S.E.5a was employed by a total of 21
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
squadrons as well as two U.S. units. Many of the top Allied
aces
ACeS (PT Asia Cellular Satellite) was a regional satellite telecommunications company based in Jakarta, Indonesia. It offered GSM-like satellite telephony services to Asian market. The coverage area included Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Phili ...
of the Great War flew this fighter, including
Billy Bishop
Air Marshal William Avery Bishop, (8 February 1894 – 11 September 1956) was a Canadian flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial com ...
,
Andrew Beauchamp-Proctor
Andrew Frederick Weatherby (Anthony) Beauchamp-Proctor, (4 September 1894 – 21 June 1921) was a South African airman and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to Britis ...
,
Edward Mannock
Edward Corringham "Mick" Mannock (24 May 1887 – 26 July 1918) was a British flying ace in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force during the First World War. Mannock was a pioneer of fighter aircraft tactics in aerial warfare. At the time ...
and
James McCudden
James Thomas Byford McCudden, (28 March 1895 – 9 July 1918) was a British flying ace of the First World War and among the most highly decorated airmen in British military history.
Born in 1895 to a middle class family with military traditions ...
. Legendary British ace
Albert Ball
Albert Ball, (14 August 1896 – 7 May 1917) was a British fighter pilot during the First World War. At the time of his death he was the United Kingdom's leading flying ace, with 44 victories, and remained its fourth-highest scorer b ...
was initially disparaging of the S.E.5, but in the end claimed 11 of his 44 victories flying it. McCudden wrote of the S.E.5: "It was very fine to be in a machine that was faster than the Huns, and to know that one could run away just as things got too hot."
[McCudden 2000 (1919), p. 168.]
Sholto Douglas
Sholto Douglas was the mythical progenitor of Clan Douglas, a powerful and warlike family in medieval Scotland.
A mythical battle took place: "in 767, between King '' Solvathius'' rightful king of Scotland and a pretender ''Donald Bane''. The vic ...
who commanded
No. 84 Squadron RFC which was initially equipped with the S.E.5a, listed the type's qualities as being: "Comfortable, with a good all-round view, retaining its performance and manoeuvrability at high level, steady and quick to gather speed in the dive, capable of a very fine zoom, useful in both offence and defence, strong in design and construction,
ndpossessing a reliable engine".
Soon after the
Armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
the S.E.5a was withdrawn from RAF service. It was retained for a time in Canada, and in 1921 a Viper-engined S.E.5a was taken to Japan by the British Aviation Mission to the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
.
Australia received 35 S.E.5a under the Imperial Gift in 1919, and the type went on to be the newly formed R.A.A.F.’s main fighter type until the late 1920’s.
A number of machines found roles in civilian flying after the war. On 30 May 1922, the first use of
skywriting
Skywriting is the process of using one or more small aircraft, able to expel special smoke during flight, to fly in certain patterns that create writing readable from the ground. These messages can be advertisements, general messages of celebrat ...
for
advertising
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
occurred when Cyril Turner, a former RAF officer, spelt out "London
Daily Mail
The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
" in black smoke from an S.E.5a at
The Derby. Others were used for
air racing
Air racing is a type of motorsport that involves airplanes or other types of aircraft that compete over a fixed course, with the winner either returning the shortest time, the one to complete it with the most points, or to come closest to a prev ...
; one such privately owned aircraft won the
Morris Cup
Morris may refer to:
Places
Australia
*St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia
Canada
* Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry
* Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba
** Morris, Manitob ...
race in 1927.
Variants
;S.E.5
: First production version. Single-seat fighter biplane, powered by a 150 hp (112 kW) Hispano-Suiza 8a piston engine.
;S.E.5a
: Improved production version, powered by a 200 hp (149 kW) Hispano-Suiza 8B, 8Ba or 8Bb V-8 (early version) or 200 hp (149 kW)
Wolseley Viper
The Wolseley Viper is a British-built, high-compression derivative of the Hispano Suiza HS-8 liquid-cooled V-8 engine, built under licence by Wolseley Motors during World War I.
It powered later models of the S.E.5a, SPAD VII and other Brit ...
piston engine.
;S.E.5b
: Experimental prototype, with
sesquiplane
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 a ...
wings, streamlined nose and retractable radiator.
;Eberhart S.E.5e
: S.E.5a assembled from spare parts by American company
Eberhart Aeroplane, 180 hp
Wright-Hispano E
The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914, and was the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiz ...
engine and plywood-covered fuselages, about 60 built.
[Hare 1990, p. 297.]
;T.E.1
: Drawings for a two seat fighter described as "based on a scaled-up S.E.5" were prepared early in 1917 - the type was to have had a 31-foot 3-inch wingspan, 200 hp Hispano-Suiza 8 engine, and to have been armed with a single forward firing Vickers and a Scarff mounted Lewis for the observer. Six examples ordered (A 8951 - A 8956) but because of the success of the
Bristol fighter, and in view of the shortage of Hispano-Suiza engines, none was ever completed.
Operators
;Argentina
*
Argentine Navy
The Argentine Navy (ARA; es, Armada de la República Argentina). This forms the basis for the navy's ship prefix "ARA". is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the ...
– One SE.5a aircraft, in service from 1926 – 1929.
;Australia
*
Australian Flying Corps
The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...
/
Royal Australian Air Force
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
:World War I
:*
No. 2 Squadron AFC in France.
:*
No. 5 (Training) Squadron AFC in the United Kingdom.
:*
No. 6 (Training) Squadron AFC – One aircraft only.
:Post-war
:*
No. 1 Squadron RAAF
, colors=
, colors_label=
, march=
, mascot=
, battles=World War IWorld War II Malayan Emergency
, anniversaries=
, decorations=
, battle_honours= Egypt 1915–1917 Palestine 1917–1918 Malaya 1948–1960
, commander1= Richard Williams (1917†...
:*
No. 3 Squadron RAAF
:*
No. 1 Flying Training School RAAF
;Brazil
* Aviação Militar (Brazilian Army Aviation) – One SE.5a aircraft, donated by Handley Page, in service during 1920.
;Canada
*
Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environme ...
*
Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
;Chile
*
Chilean Air Force
"With full speed to the stars"
, colours = Indigo White
, colours_label =
, march = Alte Kameraden
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 21 March ...
;Ireland
* Irish Air Service
*
Irish Air Corps
"Watchful and Loyal"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
, battles = ''see list of wars''
, decorations =
, battle_honours =
, battle_honours_label =
, fl ...
;Poland
*
Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mil ...
**
Polish 7th Air Escadrille
Polish 7th Air Escadrille ( pl, 7. Eskadra Lotnicza), better known as the Kościuszko Squadron, was one of the units of the Polish Air Force during the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1921. Formed in late 1918, it was re-formed in late 1919 from US ...
operated one S.E.5a in 1920, during the
Polish-Soviet war
;South Africa
*
South African Air Force
"Through hardships to the stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, equipment ...
;United Kingdom
*
Royal Flying Corps
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colors =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, decorations ...
/
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
:*
No. 1 Squadron RAF
Number 1 Squadron, also known as No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron, is a squadron (aviation), squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was the first squadron to fly a VTOL aircraft. It currently operates Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft from RAF Lossiemouth.
Th ...
:*
No. 17 Squadron RAF
Number 17 Squadron (sometimes written as No. XVII Squadron), currently No. 17 Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES), is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was reformed on 12 April 2013 at Edwards Air Force Base, California, as the Operational E ...
:*
No. 24 Squadron RAF
No. 24 Squadron (also known as No. XXIV Squadron) of the Royal Air Force is the Air Mobility Operational Conversion Unit (AMOCU). Based at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, 24 Squadron is responsible for aircrew training on C-130J Hercules, A400 ...
:*
No. 29 Squadron RAF
No. 29 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was first raised as a unit of the Royal Flying Corps in 1915, and is one of the world's oldest fighter squadrons. The second UK, British squadron to receive the Eurofighter Typhoon, it is currently the Oper ...
:*
No. 30 Squadron RAF
Number 30 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Airbus A400M Atlas transport aircraft and is based at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.
The squadron was first formed as a unit of the Royal Flying Corps in 1915, serving through the rest of t ...
:*
No. 32 Squadron RAF
Number 32 (The Royal) Squadron (sometimes abbreviated as No. 32 (TR) Squadron) of the Royal Air Force operates in the Very Important Person, VIP and general air transport roles from RAF Northolt in Greater London.
Originally formed in 1916 as ...
:*
No. 40 Squadron RAF
No. 40 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed in 1916 at Gosport as No. 40 Squadron Royal Flying Corps and was disbanded for the last time in 1957. The squadron also included many non-British members, including volunteers from the Royal Austra ...
:*
No. 41 Squadron RAF
No. 41 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is the RAF's Typhoon Test and Evaluation Squadron ("TES"), based at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire. Its official title is "41 TES". The squadron was formed in 1916 during First World War as part of the Royal ...
:*
No. 47 Squadron RAF
No. 47 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Lockheed C-130 Hercules from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, England.
History
First formation
No. 47 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed at Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire on 1 March 19 ...
:*
No. 50 Squadron RAF
:*
No. 56 Squadron RAF
Number 56 Squadron, nicknamed ''the Firebirds'' for their ability to always reappear intact regardless of the odds, is one of the oldest and most successful Squadron (aviation), squadrons of the Royal Air Force, with battle honours from many of ...
:*
No. 60 Squadron RAF
No. 60 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed in 1916 at Gosport. It is currently part of No. 1 Flying Training School RAF, No. 1 Flying Training School based at RAF Shawbury in Shropshire flying the Eurocopter EC135, Airbus H135 Juno HT1.
...
:*
No. 61 Squadron RAF
No. 61 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was first formed as a fighter squadron of the British Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. It was reformed in 1937 as a bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force and served in t ...
:*
No. 64 Squadron RAF
No. 64 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was first formed on 1 August 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. It was disbanded on 31 January 1991 at RAF Leuchars.
History
1916 to 1919
No. 64 Squadron Royal Flying Corps w ...
:*
No. 68 Squadron RAF
The name No. 68 Squadron has been used for two quite different units, only one of which was strictly a unit of the Royal Air Force. "No. 68 Squadron RFC" was for a time the official British military designation for No. 2 Squadron Australian Flying ...
:*
No. 72 Squadron RAF
Number 72 (Fighter) Squadron of the Royal Air Force is a training squadron that is currently based at RAF Valley using the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II, Beechcraft Texan T.1 to deliver Basic Fast Jet Training (BFJT).
It was previously based at RAF ...
:*
No. 74 Squadron RAF
Number 74 Squadron, also known as "Tiger Squadron" from its tiger-head motif, was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It operated fighter aircraft from 1917 to the 1990s, and then trainers until its disbandment in 2000. It was the Royal Air Forc ...
:*
No. 78 Squadron RAF
No. 78 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, is the squadron number plate of RAF (Unit) Swanwick based at London Area Control Centre, Swanwick, Hampshire, Swanwick, Hampshire. The squadron was allocated the role in early 2021.
Between January 2008 and ...
:*
No. 81 Squadron RAF
No 81 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It flew Fighter aircraft during the Second World War, and reconnaissance aircraft in the Far East after the war and was disbanded in 1970.
History
First World War
No. 81 Squadron Royal Flyin ...
:*
No. 84 Squadron RAF
No. 84 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is at present a Search and Rescue Squadron based at RAF Akrotiri, using the Bell Griffin HAR.2 helicopter. It is currently one of the two operational parts of the RAF Search and Rescue Force left in serv ...
:*
No. 85 Squadron RAF
("We hunt by day and night")
, colors=
, colors_label= Post-1950 aircraft insignia
, march=
, mascot=
, equipment=
, equipment_label=
, battles=
, anniversaries=
, decorations=
, battle_honours= Western Front, 1917–1918; France & Low Countrie ...
:*
No. 87 Squadron RAF
No. 87 Squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during the First World War and Second World War.
World War I
87 Squadron Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was first formed on 1 September 1917 at Upavon from elements of the Central Flyi ...
:*
No. 92 Squadron RAF
Number 92 Squadron, also known as No. 92 (East India) Squadron and currently as No. 92 Tactics and Training Squadron, of the Royal Air Force is a test and evaluation squadron based at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. It was formed as part of the R ...
:*
No. 93 Squadron RAF
No. 93 Squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II. It was initially formed during World War I on 1 September 1917 but it did not become operational and was disbanded one year later in August 1918. The unit was ...
:*
No. 94 Squadron RAF
No. 94 Squadron RAF was a unit of the Royal Air Force that served during World War I & World War II. The squadron has been formed a total of four times.
World War I
The squadron was formed at Harling Road on 1 August 1917 as a training unit ...
:*
No. 111 Squadron RAF
("Standing by")
, colors=
, colors_label=
, march=
, mascot=
, equipment=
, equipment_label=
, battles=
, anniversaries=
, decorations=
, battle_honours= Palestine 1917–1918*, Megiddo, Home Defence 1940–1942*, France and Low Countries 1940, ...
:*
No. 143 Squadron RAF
No. 143 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a fighter unit in the First World War and reformed as an RAF Coastal Command fighter and anti-submarine unit in Second World War.
History
Formation and the First World War
No. 143 Sq ...
:*
No. 145 Squadron RAF
:*
No. 150 Squadron RAF
:*
No. 229 Squadron RAF
No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945.
History
Formation and World War I
No. 229 Squadron RAF was formed on 20 A ...
;United States
*
Air Service of the American Expeditionary Force
**
25th Aero Squadron
The 25th Aero Squadron was a United States Army Air Service unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I.
The squadron was assigned as a Day Pursuit (Fighter) Squadron as part of the 4th Pursuit Group, Second United States Army. I ...
(November 1918)
*
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
Surviving aircraft and replicas
Originals
![S](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/S.E.5_at_Old_Warden%2C_2014.jpg)
An original S.E.5a may be seen at the
Shuttleworth Collection
The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located at the Old Warden Aerodrome, Old Warden in Bedfordshire, England. It is the oldest in the world and one of the most prestigious, due to the variety of old a ...
at
Old Warden
Old Warden is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about south-east of the county town of Bedford.
The 2011 census shows its population as 328.
The ...
, England, UK. This aircraft was originally serial ''F904'' of
No. 84 Squadron RAF
No. 84 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is at present a Search and Rescue Squadron based at RAF Akrotiri, using the Bell Griffin HAR.2 helicopter. It is currently one of the two operational parts of the RAF Search and Rescue Force left in serv ...
, then flew as ''G-EBIA'' from September 1923 to February 1932.
It was stored between 1933 and 1955, before being restored to a flightworthy condition by staff at the
Royal Aircraft Establishment
The Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) was a British research establishment, known by several different names during its history, that eventually came under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), bef ...
and then passed onto the Shuttleworth Collection. An extensive refurbishment of this aircraft was performed in 2007. It has been re-registered as ''G-EBIA'', it was first painted as ''D7000'', then as ''F904''.
["RAF SE5a."](_blank)
''Shuttleworth'', Retrieved: 8 January 2017.
An original S.E.5e may be seen in the
National Museum of the United States Air Force
The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is the ...
at
Dayton
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...
, Ohio, USA. The museum acquired the S.E.5e through a donation by the estate of Lt. Col.
William C. Lambert
William C. Lambert (1894 – 1982) was an American fighter pilot who flew in World War I. He was probably the second-ranking American ace of World War I. He claimed 18 air-to-air victories, eight fewer than "Ace of Aces" Eddie Rickenbacker an ...
, USAF Ret, a First World War ace with 21.5 victories. Lambert flew the S.E.5a as an American member of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Air Force. The Air Force Museum Foundation also helped buy the aircraft. It is painted to represent an S.E.5e of the 18th Headquarters Squadron, Bolling Field, Washington, D.C., in 1925.
Another four original airframes are statically displayed at: the
Science Museum
A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in mu ...
, London, UK;
Royal Air Force Museum
The Royal Air Force Museum is a museum dedicated to the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom. The museum is a non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Defence and is a registered charity.
The museum is split into two separate sites:
* Ro ...
, London, UK;
South African National Museum of Military History
The South African National War Museum in Johannesburg was officially opened by Prime Minister Jan Smuts on 29 August 1947 to preserve the history of South Africa's involvement in the Second World War. In 1975, the museum was renamed the South Af ...
, Johannesburg, South Africa; and the
Australian War Memorial
The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...
, Canberra, Australia.
Reproductions
![RAF SE5A REplica EI-ARA A4850 Baldonnel 29](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/RAF_SE5A_REplica_EI-ARA_A4850_Baldonnel_29.07.67_edited-2.jpg)
Two full-scale replica S.E.5a aircraft were built by
Miles Aircraft
Miles was the name used between 1943 and 1947 to market the aircraft of British engineer Frederick George Miles, who, with his wife – aviator and draughtswoman Maxine "Blossom" Miles (née Forbes-Robertson) – and his brother George Herbert ...
in 1965 for use in film making and were transferred to the Irish civil aircraft register in 1967 while the two were employed in flying scenes for the 1966 war movie
The Blue Max
''The Blue Max'' is a 1966 British war film directed by John Guillermin and starring George Peppard, James Mason, Ursula Andress, Karl Michael Vogler, and Jeremy Kemp. The film was made in DeLuxe Color and filmed in CinemaScope. The plot is a ...
.
Three flightworthy reproductions (designated SE5a-1), along with a single static example, were constructed by The Vintage Aviator Limited in New Zealand. According to the group, the reproduction aircraft, which was the company's first project, combined some authentic components, such as the Hispano engines used, with newly-fabricated parts based on original archived drawings.
![US Army AF Lt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/US_Army_AF_Lt._JOSEPH_ELWOOD_BOUDWIN%2C_Jr.jpg)
The
Museum of Flight
The Museum of Flight is a private non-profit air and space museum in the Seattle metropolitan area. It is located at the southern end of King County International Airport (Boeing Field) in the city of Tukwila, immediately south of Seattle.< ...
in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
, US displays the reproduction SE.5a that Bobby Strahlman and his partners completed for collector Doug Champlin in 1989. This reproduction features one .303 Vickers and one .303-calibre Lewis machine gun, and carries the paint scheme of American ace George Vaughn who served with the Royal Flying Corps. The SE.5 was displayed at Champlin's fighter museum at
Mesa
A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by ...
,
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, AlÄ á¹£onak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
, US until the collection was transferred to Seattle in 2003.
"Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a Reproduction."
''Museum of Flight'', Retrieved: 8 January 2017.
Fictional portrayals
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 has been portrayed, both by original and replica aircraft, in various movies. These include ''Wings
A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...
'' (1927), '' Hell's Angels'' (1930), ''Flying Down to Rio
''Flying Down to Rio'' is a 1933 American pre-Code RKO musical film famous for being the first screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, although Dolores del RÃo and Gene Raymond received top billing and the leading roles. Among the fe ...
'' (1933), ''Crimson Romance
''Crimson Romance'' is a 1934 American drama film directed by David Howard (director), David Howard and written by Milton Krims and Doris Schroeder. The film stars Ben Lyon, Sari Maritza, Erich von Stroheim, James Bush (actor), James Bush, Willia ...
'' (1934), ''Test Pilot
A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testing ...
'' (1939) and '' The Aviator'' (2004). Converted ''Stampe et Vertongen
Stampe et Vertongen was a Belgian aircraft manufacturer formed in 1922 and based at Antwerp. The company specialised in design and construction of primary trainers/tourers and advanced trainers. One of their products - the Stampe-Vertongen SV.4 - ...
'' SV.4 trainer/tourer aircraft were used to portray S.E.5s in the 1976 Anglo-French production '' Aces High''.
The 1971 film ''Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...
'' makes reference to the use of the S.E.5 as a weapon to defend against the German Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...
s that were attacking Britain during the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The film, however, is set in the fall of 1915, a full year-and-a-half before the S.E. 5 entered squadron service. The dogfight scene near the film's conclusion features S.E.5a replicas.[Beck 2016, p. 317.]
Specifications (S.E.5a)
See also
;Notable S.E.5 pilots
* Albert Ball
Albert Ball, (14 August 1896 – 7 May 1917) was a British fighter pilot during the First World War. At the time of his death he was the United Kingdom's leading flying ace, with 44 victories, and remained its fourth-highest scorer b ...
, VC, DSO and two bars, MC
* Mick Mannock
Edward Corringham "Mick" Mannock (24 May 1887 – 26 July 1918) was a British flying ace in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force during the First World War. Mannock was a pioneer of fighter aircraft tactics in aerial warfare. At the time ...
, VC, DSO & two Bars, MC & Bar
* James McCudden
James Thomas Byford McCudden, (28 March 1895 – 9 July 1918) was a British flying ace of the First World War and among the most highly decorated airmen in British military history.
Born in 1895 to a middle class family with military traditions ...
, VC, DSO & Bar, MC & Bar, MM
* Andrew Beauchamp-Proctor
Andrew Frederick Weatherby (Anthony) Beauchamp-Proctor, (4 September 1894 – 21 June 1921) was a South African airman and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to Britis ...
, VC, DSO, MC and bar, DFC
* Cecil Lewis, MC
* Thomas Herbert, British Distinguished Flying Cross & American Distinguished Service Cross. Future Ohio Attorney General, Governor of Ohio, and Ohio Supreme Court Justice.
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
* Beck, Simon D. ''The Aircraft-Spotter's Film and Television Companion''. McFarland, 2016. .
* Bruce, J.M.
The S.E.5: Historic Military Aircraft No. 5
. ''Flight
Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...
'', 17 July 1953. pp. 85–89, 93.
* Bruce, J.M. "The S.E.5A". ''Aircraft in Profile, Volume 1/Part1''. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Profile Publications Ltd., 1965 (Revised 4th edition 1975). .
* Cheesman. ''Fighter Aircraft of the 1914–1918 War''. Letchworth:Harleyford, 1960.
* Franks, Norman L.R. ''SE 5/5a Aces of World War 1''. Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publications, 2007. .
* Hare, Paul R. "Mount of Aces – The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a". Stroud, UK: Fonthill Media, 2013.
* Hare, Paul R. ''The Royal Aircraft Factory''. London:Putnam, 1990. .
* Jackson, Robert. ''Britain's Greatest Aircraft''. Pen and Sword, 2007. .
* Kopański, Tomasz Jan. ''Samoloty brytyjskie w lotnictwie polskim 1918–1930'' (British Aircraft in the Polish Air Force 1918–1930)(in Polish). Warsaw: Bellona, 2001. .
* McCudden, James ''Flying Fury: Five Years in the Royal Flying Corps''. London:Greenhill, 2000 (reprint of 1919 edition). .
* Mortimer, Gavin. ''The First Eagles: The Fearless American Aces Who Flew with the RAF in World War I''. Voyageur Press, 2014. .
* Nijboer, Donald and Dan Patterson. ''Fighting Cockpits: In the Pilot's Seat of Great Military Aircraft from World War I to Today''. Voyageur Press, 2016. .
* Sturtivant, Ray ISO
ISO is the most common abbreviation for the International Organization for Standardization.
ISO or Iso may also refer to: Business and finance
* Iso (supermarket), a chain of Danish supermarkets incorporated into the SuperBest chain in 2007
* Iso ...
and Gordon Page. ''The SE5 File''. Tunbridge Wells, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1996. .
External links
"Walkaround of the SE.5a."
– Image gallery of the S.E.5a Reproduction Project at The Vintage Aviator Ltd, New Zealand.
"History of the SE.5a."
– Article on the history of the S.E.5a written by The Vintage Aviator Ltd, New Zealand.
– Contemporary German report (in ''Deutsche Luftfahrer Zeitschrift'') on the SE.5 translated for ''Flight''
Video of S.E. 5a reproduction with WW I-vintage Wright-Hispano V8 engine, being built in Texas
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1910s British fighter aircraft
Military aircraft of World War I
SE05
Biplanes
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1916