Following on from my series of posts covering the history of the Sopwith scouts throughout WWI I thought it may make for an interesting post to put together some pictures of all of the UK examples I have managed to get pictures of, including the Sopwith Baby I was able to get some shots of … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War Part 9 – A Photo Post Epilogue
The Sopwith aviation company left a long lasting mark on the landscape of military aviation and their final scout of the war was every bit as memorable. Following the design departure of the Dolphin, which, while very successful wasn’t widely accepted, Sopwith opted to return to their more familiar rotary powered designs. Conceived as a replacement … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War – Part 8: The Snipe
"A Machine of few vices and very capable is all aspects of flight” - Captain Crundall By 1917 Sopwith had laid some impressive foundations for fighting aircraft, providing many of the key aircraft of the war. Most of these types had all been based around the same basic design of the Tabloid from 1913. While … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War – Part 7: The Dolphin
Following on from last weeks post looking at the history of Sopwith's most famous design, this week I have chosen to take a look at the seven original Camels that remain as well as a look at two notable reproduction examples of the type. Original Aircraft - F.1 F6314 - Royal Air Force Museum Hendon Hendon’s example, … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War – Part 6: The Camel Part 2 -Survivors
“Its tricks took some learning……it really had people frightened.” - Arthur Cobby At last this Sopwith story reaches the crucial stage, where Sopwith went from being just one of a number of aircraft manufacturers, to being the one name everyone associates with the conflict. This time we take a look at the “Spitfire of the … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War – Part 5: The Camel Part 1 – The Legend
Following the success the company had been having with the Pup, Sopwith were keen to build further and make even more effective aircraft. The new design that Sopwith came out with began as a private venture by the Kingston based team, it featured the fuselage and tail of the pup, but had one major difference. … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War Part 4 – The Triplane
"Good god, your 1 1/2 Strutter has had a pup!" Those were the words of an RFC officer upon first seeing the new Sopwith Scout being testes in early 1916. Though very similar in construction to the Tabloid, this new Scout aircraft was far lighter than its older relative, allowing it to have a lower … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War Part 3: The Sopwith Pup
Following the early success brought about by the Tabloid, Schneider and Baby designs utilised in 1914 and 15, it was time for Sopwith's attentions to turn to a new design to meet the Royal Flying Corps needs. While those early designs had performed well they were still essentially a pre-war sports aircraft adapted to suit. … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War Part 2: The Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter
Sopwith History: 1913 was an important year for aviation, December especially, as it marked 10 years since the Wright Brothers had made that first daring leap into the sky and changed the world. It was by this time that Thomas Sopwith had also begun to make his name. After his first flight in a Farnham … Continue reading Sopwith’s First World War Part 1: The Tabloid
Warbird Tails 