Felixstowe F.2

Felixstowe F.2
Felixstowe F.2A in flight.
Role	Military flying boat
National origin	United Kingdom
Manufacturer	S.E.Saunders Ltd Aircraft Manufacturing Co Ltd May, Harden & May
Designer	John Cyril Porte
First flight	July 1916
Introduction	1917
Primary users	Royal Naval Air Service Royal Air Force United States Navy
Number built	175
Developed from	Felixstowe F.1 Curtiss H-12
Variants	Felixstowe F.3 Felixstowe F.5 Felixstowe F5L

TheFelixstowe F.2was a 1917 Britishflying boatclass designed and developed byLieutenant CommanderJohn Cyril PorteRNat thenaval air station,Felixstoweduring theFirst World Waradapting a larger version of his superiorFelixstowe F.1hull design married with the largerCurtiss H-12flying boat. The Felixstowe hull had superior water contacting attributes and became a key base technology in most seaplane designs thereafter.

Design and development

Before the war Porte had worked with American aircraft designerGlenn Curtisson a flying boat,Americain which they intended to cross the Atlantic in order to win the£10,000 prizeoffered by the BritishDaily Mailnewspaper for the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic. Following the outbreak of war in Europe, Porte returned to England and rejoined theRoyal Navy,eventually becoming commander of thenaval air stationatFelixstowewhere he recommended the purchase fromCurtissof an improved version of theAmericaflying boat on which he had worked, theCurtiss H-4type,resulting in the RNAS receiving two prototypeAmericasand 62 H-4s.

The Curtiss H-4 was found to have a number of problems, being both underpowered and having a hull too weak for sustained operations and having poor handling characteristics when afloat or taking off.One flying boat pilot, Major Theodore Douglas Hallam, wrote that they were "comic machines, weighing well under two tons; with two comic engines giving, when they functioned, 180 horsepower; and comic control, being nose heavy with engines on and tail heavy in a glide."

To try to resolve the H-4's hydrodynamic issues, in 1915 Porte carried out a series of experiments on four H-4s fitted with a variety of modified hulls,using the results of these tests to design a new 36-foot-long (11 m) hull which was fitted to the wings and tail of an H-4,serial number3580,with a pair of 150 hp (112 kW)Hispano-Suiza 8engines as theFelixstowe F.1.Rather than the lightweight boat-type structure of the Curtiss boats, the F.1's hull was based around a sturdy wooden box-girder similar to that used in contemporary landplanes, to which were attached a single-step planing bottom and side sponsons. Once modified by the fitting of a further two steps, the new hull proved to give much better take off and landing characteristics and was much more seaworthy.

Porte then designed a similar hull, for the largerCurtiss H-12flying boat, which while larger and more capable than the H-4s, shared failings of a weak hull and poor water handling. The combination of the new Porte II hull,this time fitted with two steps, with the wings of the H-12, a new tail and powered by twoRolls-Royce Eagleengines was named the Felixstowe F.2; its first flight was in July 1916,proving greatly superior to the Curtiss on which it was based.The F.2 entered production as the Felixstowe F.2A, being used as a patrol aircraft, with about 100 being completed by the end of World War I. Another seventy were built, and these were followed by two F.2C which were built at Felixstowe.

In February 1917, the first prototype of theFelixstowe F.3was flown. This was larger and heavier than the F.2, giving it greater range and heavier bomb load, but poorer agility. Approximately 100 Felixstowe F.3s were produced before the end of the war.

TheFelixstowe F.5was intended to combine the good qualities of the F.2 and F.3, with the prototype first flying in May 1918. The prototype showed superior qualities to its predecessors but the production version was modified to make extensive use of components from the F.3, in order to ease production, giving lower performance than either the F.2A or F.3.

Felixstowe F.2B(N4545) in adazzle schemeduring an anti-submarine patrol. The dazzle camouflage adopted aided identification during air combat and on the water in the event of being forced down.

Felixstowe F.2A (N4283), finished in a black and white scheme, piloted by CaptainsR. LeckieandG. E. Livock,March 1918.

Operational history

The Felixstowe F.2A was used as a patrol aircraft over theNorth Seauntil the end of the war. Its excellent performance and maneuverability made it an effective and popular type, often fighting enemy patrol and fighter aircraft, as well as huntingU-boatsandZeppelins.The larger F.3, which was less popular with its crews than the more maneuverable F.2A, served in the Mediterranean and the North Sea.

The F.5 did not enter service until after the end of World War I, but replaced the earlier Felixstowe boats (together with Curtiss flying boats) to serve as theRAF's standard flying boat until being replaced by theSupermarine Southamptonin 1925.

Variants

F.2A

Based on the Curtiss H12 with a new hull. Powered by two 345 hp Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII engines, with 4 to 7 machine guns and 460 lb of bombs.

F.2B

F.2A with an open cockpit.

F.2C

Modified F.2A with a lighter hull. Two built.

Operators

Chile

• Chilean Air Force- received one F.2A in 1920. Still operational in 1924.

Netherlands

• Royal Netherlands Naval Air Service- one in service (N4551), receiving serial L-2

United Kingdom

• Royal Naval Air Service
• Royal Air Force
  • No. 228 Squadron RAF
  • No. 230 Squadron RAF
  • No. 231 Squadron RAF
  • No. 232 Squadron RAF
  • No. 234 Squadron RAF
  • No. 240 Squadron RAF
  • No. 247 Squadron RAF
  • No. 249 Squadron RAF
  • No. 257 Squadron RAF
  • No. 259 Squadron RAF
  • No. 261 Squadron RAF
  • No. 267 Squadron RAF

United States

• United States Navy

Specifications (F.2A)

Felixstowe F.2a general arrangement drawing showing details of hull.

Data fromBritish Naval Aircraft since 1912

General characteristics

• Crew:4
• Length:46 ft 3 in (14.1 m)
• Wingspan:95 ft 7.5 in (29.15 m)
• Height:17 ft 6 in (5.34 m)
• Wing area:1,133 sq ft (105.3 m²)
• Empty weight:7,549 lb (3,424 kg)
• Gross weight:10,978 lb (4,980 kg)
• Powerplant:2 ×Rolls-Royce EagleVIII V12 piston, 345 hp (257 kW) each

Performance

• Maximum speed:95.5 mph (154 km/h, 83 kn) at 2,000 ft
• Endurance:6 hours
• Service ceiling:9,600 ft (2,926 m)
• Time to altitude:3 min 50 s to 2,000 ft (610 m), 39 min 30 s to 10,000 ft (3,050 m)
• Wing loading:9.69 lb/sq ft (47.4 kg/m²)
• Power/mass:0.063 hp/lb (0.10 kW/kg)

Armament

• Guns:4 ×.303 in(7.7 mm)Lewis Guns,1 in nose, 3 amidships
• Bombs:Up to 460 lb (210 kg) of bombs beneath wings

See also

Related development

• Felixstowe F.1
• Curtiss H-12
• Curtiss H-16
• Felixstowe F.3
• Felixstowe F.5
• Felixstowe F5L

Bibliography

• Bruce, J.M."The Felixstowe Flying-Boats: Historic Military Aircraft No. 11, Part 1."Flight,2 December 1955, pp. 842–846.
• Bruce, J.M."The Felixstowe Flying-Boats: Historic Military Aircraft No. 11, Part 2."Flight,16 December 1955, pp. 895–898.
• Bruce, J.M."The Felixstowe Flying-Boats: Historic Military Aircraft No. 11, Part 3."Flight,23 December 1955, pp. 929–932.
• Bruce, J.M.British Aeroplanes 1914-18.London: Putnam, 1957.
• Hallam, T.D.The Spider Web: The Romance of a Flying Boat War Flight.London: William Blackwood, 1919.
• London, Peter.British Flying Boats.Stroud, UK: Sutton Publishing, 2003.ISBN0-7509-2695-3.
• Rivas, Santiago.British Combat Aircraft in Latin America.Manchester, UK: Crécy Publishing, 2019.ISBN978-1-90210-957-2.
• Thetford, Owen.British Naval Aircraft since 1912.London: Putnam, Fourth edition 1978.ISBN0-370-30021-1.

External links

• Pigeons and Seaplanes:Film ofcarrier pigeonsused to send messages from British seaplanes in theNorth Seaduring the First World War, including the Felixstowe F.2, c.1917.
• Felixstowe Flying-Boats