Felixstowe F.1
| Felixstowe F.1 | |
|---|---|
| 300px | |
| Prototype Felixstowe F.1 (No.3580) | |
| Role | Military flying boat |
| Manufacturer | RNAS Felixstowe |
| Designer | John Cyril Porte |
| Retired | January 1919[1] |
| Primary users | Royal Naval Air Service Royal Air Force |
| Number built | 4 |
| Developed from | Curtiss H-4 |
| Variants | Felixstowe F.2 |
The Felixstowe F.1 was an experimental British flying boat designed and developed by Lieutenant Commander John Cyril Porte RN at the naval air station, Felixstowe based on the Curtiss H-4 with a new hull.[2] Its design led to a range of successful larger flying boats that was assistance in promoting Britain as a leader in this field of aviation.[1]
Contents
Development
Before the war Porte worked with American aircraft designer Glenn Curtiss on a trans-atlantic flying boat. Due to the start of the Great War he returned to England, eventually to command of the naval air station at Felixstowe, Suffolk.[2] Porte decided that the original Curtiss flying-boats that the Royal Navy acquired could be improved and a number of modifications to in-service flying-boats were made.[2] The modifications had a mixed result so Porte using the experience gained, developed with his Chief Technical Officer John Douglas Rennie,[1] a new single-step hull known as the Porte I.[2]
The Porte I hull used the wings and tail unit of an original H-4 (No.3580) powered by two Hispano-Suiza 8 engines; the new flying boat was designated the Felixstowe F.1.[2][1] During trials of the F.1 two further steps were added to the hull and a deeper V-shape which greatly improved the performance on take off and landing.[2][1] Porte went on to design a similar hull, the Porte II for the larger Curtiss H-12 flying boat, which became the Felixstowe F.2.[3][2]
Operators
- Royal Air Force
- Seaplane Experimental Station, Felixstowe - Flying school[1]
Specifications
Data from [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: four
- Length: 36 ft in ( m)
- Wingspan: 72 ft in ( m)
- Wing area: 842 ft2 ( m2)
- Powerplant: 2 × Hispano-Suiza 8, 150 hp ( kW) each
-
- 2 × Anzani 10-cylinder, 100 hp ( kW) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: Unknown mph ( km/h)
Armament
- None
See also
- Related development
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
- Related lists
References
Notes
Bibliography
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Felixstowe Flying Boats. |
- Sons of Our Empire: Film of the Royal Naval Air Service at Felixstowe taken after the Battle of Jutland, including John Cyril Porte studying a map with some other officers, Curtiss Model H-2 and prototype Felixstowe F.1 (No. 3580) fitted with Anzani engines, Porte and Commodore George C. Cayley RN returning from a flight in a Felixstowe F.1; Porte, Cayley and Commander Hubert Lynes RN together, 1916.
- "The Felixstowe Flying-Boats - part 1" a 1955 Flight article
- "The Felixstowe Flying-Boats - part 2" a 1955 Flight article
- "F-Boats - A Postscript by an Ex-pilot" a 1956 Flight article on the Felixstowe flying boats
- Felixstowe Flying-Boats
