The Sopwith Strutter was a British single- or two-seat multi-role

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 ...

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

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 ...

.Lake 2002, p. 40. It was the first British two-seat

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 ...

fighter and the first British aircraft to enter service with a synchronised

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...

. It was given the name Strutter because of the long and short

cabane struts 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 c ...

that supported the top wing. The type was operated by both British air services and was in widespread but lacklustre service with the French .

Design and development

In December 1914, the

Sopwith Aviation Company The Sopwith Aviation Company was a British aircraft company that designed and manufactured aeroplanes mainly for the British Royal Naval Air Service, the Royal Flying Corps and later the Royal Air Force during the First World War, most famously ...

designed a small, two-seat biplane powered by an

Gnome A gnome is a mythological creature and diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, first introduced by Paracelsus in the 16th century and later adopted by more recent authors including those of modern fantasy literature. Its characte ...

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 ...

, which became known as the "Sigrist Bus" after

Fred Sigrist Reid and Sigrist was an English engineering company based at New Malden in Surrey. It later acquired sites at Desford and Braunstone in Leicestershire. Initially it developed and manufactured aircraft instrumentation and pilot selection aids but ...

, the Sopwith works manager. The Sigrist Bus first flew on 5 June 1915 and although it set a new British altitude record on the day of its first flight, only one was built, serving as a company runabout.Bruce 1982, p. 499.Jarrett 2009, p. 56. The Sigrist Bus formed the basis for a new, larger, fighter aircraft, the Sopwith LCT (Land Clerget Tractor), designed by

Herbert Smith Herbert Smith LLP was a multinational law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. The firm was founded in the City of London in 1882 by Norman Herbert Smith and merged with the Australian law firm Freehills on 1 October 2012, forming Herber ...

and powered by a

Clerget Clerget-Blin (full name being ''Société Clerget-Blin et Cie'') was a French precision engineering company formed in 1913 by the engineer and inventor Pierre Clerget and industrialist Eugène Blin. In 1939, the company was absorbed into the ''G ...

engine. Like the Sigrist Bus, each of the upper wings (there was no true centre section) was connected to 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 ...

by a pair of short (half) struts and a pair of longer struts, forming a "W" when viewed from the front; this giving rise to the aircraft's popular

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

of the Strutter. The first prototype was ready in mid-December 1915, undergoing official testing in January 1916.Bruce 28 September 1956, p. 544. The Strutter was of conventional wire-braced, wood and fabric construction. The pilot and gunner sat in widely separated tandem cockpits, with the pilot in front, giving the gunner a good field of fire for his Lewis gun. The aircraft had a variable-incidence

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 ...

that could be adjusted by the pilot in flight and airbrakes under the lower wings to reduce landing distance.Jarrett 2009, pp. 56, 8. Sopwith Strutter RAFM

The Vickers-Challenger synchronisation gear was put into production for the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

(RFC) in December 1915 and in a few weeks, a similar order for the Scarff-Dibovski gear was placed for the RNAS.Bruce 28 September 1956, p. 543.Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 586. Early production Strutters were fitted with one or the other of these gears for the fixed

.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 ...

-in

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 ...

; due to a shortage of the new gears some early aircraft were built with only the observer's gun. Later aircraft were either fitted with the

Ross Ross or ROSS may refer to: People * Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan * Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning * Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland Places * RoSS, the Republic of Sou ...

or the Sopwith-Kauper gears.Bruce 1957, p. 542. No early mechanical synchronisation gear was reliable and it was not uncommon for propellers to be damaged or shot away. The

Scarff ring The Scarff ring was a type of machine gun mounting developed during the First World War by Warrant Officer (Gunner) F. W. Scarff of the Admiralty Air Department for use on two-seater aircraft. The mount incorporated bungee cord suspension in eleva ...

mounting was also new and production was at first slower than that of the aircraft requiring them. Various makeshift Lewis mountings as well as the older Nieuport ring mounting, were fitted to some early Strutters as a stopgap.Bruce 1957, pp. 542–543. The two-seaters could carry four bombs underwing, which could be replaced by two bombs for anti-submarine patrols.Jarrett 2009, p. 59. From the beginning, a light bomber version was planned, with the observer's cockpit eliminated to allow more fuel and bombs to be carried in the manner of the Martinsyde Elephant and the B.E.12, with an internal bomb bay capable of carrying four bombs.Bruce 2000, p. 6.

Operational history

In British service

The prototype two seater flew in December 1915 and production deliveries started to reach the RNAS in February 1916. By the end of April, No. 5 Wing RNAS had a flight equipped with the new aircraft. The Sopwiths were used to escort the wing's Caudron G.4 and Breguet Bre.4 bombers and for bombing.Bruce 28 September 1956, p. 545.Thetford 1978, p. 292. The

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 ...

had ordered the type for the RFC in March but because Sopwith's production capacity was contracted to the navy, the RFC orders had to be placed with Ruston Proctor and

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 ...

.Bruce 1982, p. 500. Sub-contract production from these manufacturers did not get into its stride until August. Since the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

was planned for the end of June and with the RFC having a shortage of modern aircraft, it was agreed that a number of Sopwiths would be transferred from one service to the other, allowing 70 Squadron to reach the front by early July 1916 with Sopwith-built Strutters, originally intended for the Navy.Bruce 1982, pp. 501, 503. Sopwith 1 2-1 Strutter-2006

At first, 70 Squadron did very well with their new aircraft. The period of German

ascendency Ascendency or ascendancy is a quantitative attribute of an ecosystem, defined as a function of the ecosystem's trophic network. Ascendency is derived using mathematical tools from information theory. It is intended to capture in a single index ...

known as the Fokker scourge was over and the Strutter's long range and excellent armament enabled offensive patrolling deep into German-held territory.Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 587. By the time 45 Squadron reached the front in October, the new Albatros fighters were arriving at the . By January 1917, when 43 Squadron arrived in France, the Strutter was outclassed as a fighter; a more powerful Clerget 9B improved performance slightly but too late to reverse the situation.Bruce 1982, p. 504. It was still a useful long-range reconnaissance aircraft when it could be provided with adequate fighter escort but was one of the types to suffer severely during "

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 ...

", 43 squadron alone suffering 35 casualties, from an officer establishment of 32. Like other early Sopwith types, the Strutter was very lightly built and its structure did not stand up very well to arduous war service. It was far too stable to make a good dogfighter and the distance between the pilot and the observer's cockpits impeded their communication. The last operational Strutters in the RFC were replaced by

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 ...

s in late October 1917.Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 588. The type's long range and stability were good qualities for a home defence fighter and it served with 37, 44 and 78 squadrons. Most of the Strutters supplied to home defence units had been built as two-seaters but many were converted locally to single-seaters to improve performance. Some of these single-seaters were similar to the bomber variant but others were of a different type, known (like similarly adapted Sopwith Camels) as the Sopwith Comic. The cockpit was moved back behind the wings and one or two Lewis guns, either mounted on

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 ...

s or fixed to fire upwards, outside the arc of the propeller, replaced the synchronised Vickers. The RNAS used most of their Strutters as bombers (in the Aegean and Macedonia as well as in France) and as shipboard aircraft, where it was known as the Ship's Strutter and flew from

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

s, other warships of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

and . The RNAS and the RFC (and after April 1918 the

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 ...

AF used the type as a trainer after it had been withdrawn from operational service and like the

Sopwith Pup The Sopwith Pup is a British single-seater biplane fighter aircraft built by the Sopwith Aviation Company. It entered service with the Royal Naval Air Service and the Royal Flying Corps in the autumn of 1916. With pleasant flying characteristi ...

, it proved a popular personal aircraft for senior officers.

In French service

The largest user of the Sopwith was actually the French . By May 1916 it was obvious that the pusher

Farman Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...

and Breguet bombers and reconnaissance aircraft were obsolete and with the failure of their

aircraft replacements, particularly the

Nieuport 14 The Nieuport 14 (or Nieuport XIV A.2 in contemporary sources) was a military reconnaissance sesquiplane produced in France during the First World War. The French Army deployed it in 1916 but the type was quickly withdrawn from front-line servic ...

, the Sopwith was ordered in large numbers from French manufacturers in three versions, the SOP. 1A.2 (two-seat reconnaissance), SOP. 1B.2 (two-seat bomber) and SOP. 1B.1 (single-seat bomber).Bruce 2000, pp. 10–11. While in French service, they equipped a large portion of the French bomber and artillery-observation squadrons and carried out many bombing attacks against industrial and military targets, including the German front lines. It was not as successful against fighters, suffering substantial casualties and downing fewer enemy aircraft than either the aircraft used before it or after. With the belated introduction of the Breguet 14 A.2 and B.2, the last of the Sopwiths were withdrawn from operational service in early 1918 although they would continue in service with training units until after the end of the war.

In other foreign service

Three Belgian squadrons also flew French-built Sopwiths, and surplus French Sopwiths were used by several countries postwar. During the war, several Strutters that were interned after landing in the Netherlands were purchased for the Dutch . Over 100 Strutters were also built in Russia by

Duks Dux (russian: Завод «Дукс», Zavod "Duks") was a bicycle/automobile/aircraft factory in Moscow, Russia before and during World War I. The factory was founded in 1893. The name comes from the Latin word (leader). Julius Möller (als ...

and

Lebedev Lebedev (russian: Ле́бедев), or Lebedeva (feminine; Ле́бедева) is a common Russian family name derived from the word лебедь (''lebed'', meaning " swan"). Geographical distribution As of 2014, 83.5% of all known bearers of th ...

,Jarrett 2009, p. 60. supplemented by large numbers delivered directly from Britain and France. The Strutter remained in large scale use by both the Soviet forces and White Russians during the

Russian civil war , date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...

and Polish-Soviet war.Jarrett 2009, p. 66. Three were captured during this war and used by the Poles in 1919–1920.Kopański 2001, pp. 73–78. Other captured ones were used by Baltic states. The American Expeditionary Force purchased 384 two-seat Strutter observation aircraft and 130 single-seat bombers from France in 1917–18.Swanborough and Bowers 1963, p. 560. While mainly used for training, they were used operationally by the

90th Aero Squadron The 90th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Corps Observation Squadron, performing short-range, tactical reconnaissance over the III Co ...

as an interim measure, due to a shortage of later types.Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 590. The

U.S. 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 o ...

used a number of the two-seat Sopwiths, along with

Nieuport 28 The Nieuport 28 C.1, a French biplane fighter aircraft flown during World War I, was built by Nieuport and designed by Gustave Delage. Owing its lineage to the successful line of sesquiplane fighters that included the Nieuport 17, the Nieu ...

s and Hanriot HD.1s and 2s as ships' aircraft in the early postwar years, testing the use of aircraft from platforms mounted on the turrets of battleships. The Strutter also served with the

Imperial Japanese Army Air Force The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...

– some examples serving in the Japanese expeditionary force in Siberia during 1918. Around 1,500 Strutters were built for the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

and the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

and between 4,200 and 4,500 were built in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Variants and designations

;Sopwith Land Clerget Tractor (or Sopwith LCT): Sopwith company designation. ;Sopwith Type 9400:

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

designation for two seater, number from serial of last aircraft in first batch ordered. ;Sopwith Type 9700:

designation for single- seater bomber, number likewise assigned. ;Sopwith Two seater:

RFC RFC may refer to: Computing * Request for Comments, a memorandum on Internet standards * Request for change, change management * Remote Function Call, in SAP computer systems * Rhye's and Fall of Civilization, a modification for Sid Meier's Civ ...

designation. ;Sopwith Strutter: Unofficial name due to configuration of struts, also used by US Navy. ;Sopwith Comic: Single seat home defence fighter ;Ship(s) Strutter: Shipboard version ;SOP. 1: French built version. ::SOP. 1A.2 two-seat reconnaissance aircraft ::SOP. 1B.1 single-seat bomber ::SOP. 1B.2 two-seat bomber ::SOP. 1E.2 two-seat trainer ;LeO 1: Lioré et Olivier licence-built version. ;So-shiki Model 1: Japanese licence-built bomber version.Jarrett 2009, p. 65. ;So-Shiki Model 2: Japanese licence-built LeO 1 reconnaissance version.

Operators

Military

; *

Afghanistan Air Force Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

received a single aircraft from the Soviet Union in September 1921, which remained in existence until at least December 1924. ; *

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 ...

** No. 2 Squadron AFC operated one aircraft for training only. ** No. 4 Squadron AFC used Strutters for training. ** No. 6 (Training) Squadron AFC in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

; * ''Aviation Militaire Belge'' ** ''2ème Escadrille'' ** ''3ème Escadrille'' ** ''4ème Escadrille'' ** ''6ème Escadrille'' ; * ''Escola de Aviação Militar'' used three aircraft for liaison and army co-operation duties. ; :

Czechoslovak Legion , image = Coat of arms of the Czechoslovak Legion.svg , image_size = 200px , alt = , caption = Czechoslovak Legion coat of arms , start_date ...

used four SOP 1 A.2 delivered by the French Aviation Mission in Russia, and at least one Strutter captured from bolsheviks. ; *

Estonian Air Force The Estonian Air Force ( et, Õhuvägi, ) is the aviation branch of the Estonian Defence Forces. The air force traces its history to 1918, and was re-established in its current form in 1991. As of 2016, the Estonian Air Force has a strength of ...

operated a single ex-Soviet aircraft. ; * ''Aéronautique Militaire'' – A total of 72 ''Escadrilles'' equipped either wholly or partly.Jarrett 2009, p. 64. * ''Aéronautique Navale'' ; *

Hellenic Navy The Hellenic Navy (HN; el, Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, War Navy, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Hellenic Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy historically hails from the naval forces of vari ...

– Six aircraft used in the

Asia Minor Campaign Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Afr ...

against Turkey, 1918–21. ; *

Imperial Japanese Army Air Service The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...

; *

Latvian Air Force Latvian Air Force ( lv, Latvijas Gaisa spēki) is the aviation branch of the National Armed Forces. The first air force (AF) units were established 1992. It has no air combat capability, thus the defense of Latvian air space is maintained by NATO ...

operated four ex-Soviet aircraft.Jarrett 2009, pp. 65–66. *

Aizsargi Aizsargi (literally: "Defenders", "Guards") was a volunteer paramilitary organization or militia ( lv, Aizsargu organizācija, "Guards Organization", AO) in Latvia during the interbellum period (1918–1939). The Aizsargi was created on March 3 ...

; *

Lithuanian Air Force The Lithuanian Air Force or LAF ( lt, Lietuvos karinės oro pajėgos, abbreviated as ''LK KOP'') is the military aviation branch of the Lithuanian armed forces. It is formed from professional military servicemen and non-military personnel. Units ...

operated a single ex-Soviet aircraft that landed behind Lithuanian lines during the

Lithuanian–Soviet War The Lithuanian–Soviet War or Lithuanian–Bolshevik War ( lt, karas su bolševikais) was fought between newly independent Lithuania and the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic in the aftermath of World War I. It was part of the la ...

. Two others may also have been operated. * Arma de Aviación Militar operated one example (

TNCA The Talleres Nacionales de Construcciones Aeronáuticas (TNCA) (national aviation workshops) was an aircraft manufacturer established outside Mexico City in 1915. TNCA closed in 1930, was briefly revived in 1941 under the name ''Talleres Generales ...

registration 1-S-68) from c1920–1924.Flores ''Aeroplane'', May 2010, p. 94. ; * Luchtvaart Afdeling used five Strutters that forced landed in neutral the Netherlands and were interned and subsequently purchased. ; * Polish Air Force operated three aircraft captured from the Soviets in 1919–1920. ; *

Romanian Air Corps The Romanian Air Corps or Aviation Corps (RAC) ( ro, Corpul de Aviație) was the air arm of the Romanian army until the formation of the Romanian Air Force. It was established on 1 April 1913 as the Military Aeronautics Service () and subordina ...

; *

Imperial Russian Air Force The Imperial Russian Air Service (russian: Императорскій военно-воздушный флотъ, , Emperor's Military Air Fleet) was an air force founded in 1912 for Imperial Russia."''12 августа 1912 года прика ...

and White Russian forces ; *

Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...

; A single aircraft acquired from Russia in 1918. ; *

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

Bruce 1982, p. 508. ** No. 37 Squadron RFC ** No. 39 Squadron RFC ** No. 43 Squadron RFC ** No. 44 Squadron RFC ** No. 45 Squadron RFC ** No. 46 Squadron RFC ** No. 70 Squadron RFC ** No. 78 Squadron RFC ** No. 143 Squadron RFC *

** No. 2 (Naval) Squadron ** No. 5 (Naval) Squadron ** No. 8 (Naval) Squadron ; *

Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps The Aviation Section, Signal Corps, was the aerial warfare service of the United States from 1914 to 1918, and a direct statutory ancestor of the United States Air Force. It absorbed and replaced the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps, and con ...

United States Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial war ...

88th Aero Squadron The 88th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Corps Observation Squadron, performing short-range, tactical reconnaissance over the III Cor ...

99th Aero Squadron The 99th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I. The squadron was assigned as a Corps Observation Squadron, performing short-range, tactical reconnaissance over the V Corps ...

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 ...

Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p. 495.

Civil

; Two aircraft registered in 1928. R-105 (later LV-BAA) and R-106 (later LV-CAA). One of these two preserved in Florida. ; 55 aircraft on French civil register in 1922. ; At least seven aircraft registered. ; Possibly one aircraft from Switzerland in 1926. ; Two aircraft, CH-53 registered 9 April 1921, cancelled 9 October 1923. CH-67 registered 5 December 1923, cancelled December 1926 as sold to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. ; One civil registered aircraft, G-EAVB.

Survivors

Original Sopwith Strutter aircraft are preserved at the following locations.Jarrett 2009, p.70. ;Belgium * S-88 – On static display at the

Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and of Military History The Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History (french: Musée Royal de l'Armée et d'Histoire Militaire, often abbreviated to MRA, nl, Koninklijk Museum van het Leger en de Krijgsgeschiedenis, KLM) is a military museum that occup ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

. ;Canada * Replica – Airworthy at The Great War Flying Museum in

Caledon, Ontario Caledon (; Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population 76,581) is a town in the Regional Municipality of Peel in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada. From a shortened form of Caledonia, the Roman name for North Britain; Caledon is a developing u ...

. ;France * 556 – Sop.1A.2 on static display at the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace in

Paris, Île-de-France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. * 2897 – Sop.1B.2 airworthy at the Memorial Flight Association in La Ferté-Alais, Île-de-France. ;New Zealand * Unknown – Under restoration at The Vintage Aviator Limited in Masterton, Wellington. It was previously owned by Fantasy of Flight in

Polk City, Florida Polk City is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,562 at the 2010 census. As of 2018, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 2,422. It is part of the Lakeland– Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistic ...

, and was operated by Argentina before that."Rare Sopwith for New Zealand." ''Aeroplance Monthly'', April 2011, p. 6. ;Scotland * Replica – Undergoing work to airworthy at the

National Museum of Flight The National Museum of Flight is Scotland's national aviation museum, at East Fortune Airfield, just south of the village of East Fortune, Scotland. It is one of the museums within National Museums Scotland. The museum is housed in the original ...

in East Fortune, East Lothian.

Specifications ( Strutter – two seater, 130 hp Clerget)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Andersson, Lennart. "Turbulent Origins: The First 30 Years of Aviation in Afghanistan". ''

Air Enthusiast ''Air Enthusiast'' was a British, bi-monthly, aviation magazine, published by the Key Publishing group. Initially begun in 1974 as ''Air Enthusiast Quarterly'', the magazine was conceived as a historical adjunct to '' Air International'' maga ...

'', No 105, May/June 2003, pp. 19–27. ISSN 0143-5450. * Bruce, J.M
"The Sopwith 1½ Strutter: Historic Military Aircraft No. 14 Part I."
''Flight'', 28 September 1956, pp. 542–546. * Bruce, J.M
"The Sopwith 1½ Strutter: Historic Military Aircraft No. 14 Part II."
''Flight'', 5 October 1956, pp. 586–591. * Bruce J.M. ''British Aeroplanes 1914–18''. London: Putnam, 1957. * Bruce, J.M. ''The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing)''. London: Putnam, 1982. . * Bruce, J.M. ''Sopwith 1½ Strutter: Windsock Datafile 34''. Berkhampstead, UK: Albatros Productions, Second edition, 1998. . * Bruce, J.M. ''Sopwith 1½ Strutter: Volume 2: Windsock Datafile 80''. Berkhampstead, UK: Albatros Productions, 2000. . * Flores, Santiago A. "Skywriters: Mexican Strutter". ''Aeroplane'', Vol. 38, No. 5, Issue No 445, May 2009, p. 94. London: IPC. ISSN 0143-7240. * Gerdessen, F. "Estonian Air Power 1918–1945". ''

'', No. 18, April – July 1982, pp. 61–76. ISSN 0143-5450. * Herris, Jack and Pearson, Bob ''Aircraft of World War I''. London: Amber Books, 2010: . * Jarrett, Philip. "Database:The Sopwith 1½ Strutter". ''Aeroplane'', Vol. 37, No, 12, Issue No 440, December 2009, pp. 55–70. London:IPC. ISSN 0143-7240. * King, H.F. ''Sopwith Aircraft 1912–1920'' London: Putnam, 1981. . * * Kopański, Tomasz Jan. ''Samoloty brytyjskie w lotnictwie polskim 1918–1930 (British aircraft in the Polish air force 1918–1930)''(in Polish). Warsaw: Bellona, 2001. . * Lake, Jon. ''The Great Book of Bombers: The World's Most Important Bombers from World War I to the Present Day''. St. Paul, Minnesota: MBI Publishing Company, 2002. . * Swanborough, F.G. and Peter Bowers. ''United States Military Aircraft since 1909''. London: Putnam, 1963. * Swanborough Gordon and Peter Bowers. ''United States Navy Aircraft since 1911''. London: Putnam, Second edition 1976. . * Taylor, John W.R. "Sopwith 1½ Strutter". ''Combat Aircraft of the World from 1909 to the Present''. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1969. . * Thetford, Owen. ''British Naval Aircraft since 1912''. London: Putnam, Fourth edition 1978. . * Visatkas, C. "The Annals of Lithuanian Aviation". ''

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External links

Sopwith Strutter in Russia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sopwith 1 Strutter 1910s British bomber aircraft 1910s British fighter aircraft 1910s British military reconnaissance aircraft Military aircraft of World War I Biplanes 1 Strutter Lioré et Olivier aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1915 Rotary-engined aircraft

Design and development

Operational history

In British service

In French service

In other foreign service

Variants and designations

Operators

Military

Civil

Survivors

Specifications ( Strutter – two seater, 130 hp Clerget)

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links