Canadian Vickers Vedette

Last updated

Canadian Vickers Vedette
Canadian Vickers Vedette 3 ExCC.jpg
Roleamphibious general aviation survey
Manufacturer Canadian Vickers
Designer Wilfrid Thomas Reid (preliminary study by R.K.Pierson)
First flight4 November 1924
Introduction1925
Retired1941
Primary users Royal Canadian Air Force
Ontario Provincial Air Service
Manitoba Government Air Services
Servició de Aviación Militar de Chile
Produced1924–1930
Number built60 [1] (plus two replicas)

The Canadian Vickers Vedette was the first aircraft designed and built in Canada to meet a specification for Canadian conditions. It was a single-engine biplane flying boat purchased to meet a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) demand for a smaller aircraft than the Vickers Viking with a much greater rate of climb, to be suitable for forestry survey and fire protection work. The type went on to have a long and distinguished career in civil operations in Canada. Most of the topographical maps in use in Canada today are based on photos taken from these aircraft.

Contents

Design and development

A historical plaque and a sculpture of a Vickers Vedette are installed at the waterfront in Lac du Bonnet, Manitoba. Vickers Vedette Plaque, Lac du Bonnet, Manitoba.jpg
A historical plaque and a sculpture of a Vickers Vedette are installed at the waterfront in Lac du Bonnet, Manitoba.

Based on a preliminary design in early 1924 for a "flying boat" by R.K.Pierson of the British Vickers company, the Canadian Vickers Vedette was a three-seat single-engine pusher biplane. The design was passed to the subsidiary Canadian Vickers Limited of Longueuil, Quebec (formed in 1911) where Wilfrid Thomas Reid served as Chief Engineer, whose duties included overseeing the creation of all the needed detail drawings. [2]

The prototype Vedette I was first flown on 4 November 1924, powered by a 200 hp (150 kW) Rolls-Royce Falcon III. It was subsequently fitted with 210 hp (160 kW) Wolseley Viper, 200 hp (150 kW) Wright J-4 and 215 hp (160 kW) Armstrong Siddeley Lynx engines for testing. Several versions of the Vedette were produced, including two amphibious versions and one with an enclosed cabin on an all-metal hull. With the exception of the engine changes, most of the remaining differences between versions were relatively minor. Visible differences included the wingtip floats, fuel tanks, and external strakes add to the rear fuselage. Each version was produced with a variety of engine types, so that Mk.IIs used the 215 hp (160 kW) Lynx IV, the 200 hp (150 kW) Wright J-4 or the 220 hp (160 kW) Wright J-5, while the Mk.V used the Lynx IV, the Wright J-5 or the 300 hp (220 kW) Wright J-6. [2]

Canadian Vickers Limited developed and produced a series of follow-up designs intended for use in the Canadian north (none were related design-wise to the Vedette):

Operational history

The first production example was provided to Fairchild Aerial Surveys (c/n 31 G-CAFF) before they started designing their own survey aircraft. The majority of the production run was purchased by the RCAF where the aircraft proved popular and versatile, if somewhat temperamental due to leaky hulls that required constant maintenance (a problem afflicting all wooden hulled flying boats). The Vedette undertook photographic and forestry patrols satisfactorily and provided a backbone for RCAF flying operations through the lean peacetime years. Vedettes started a coast-to-coast photographic survey that was needed to map out the large areas of the country still unmapped. These missions lasted until the outbreak of the Second World War, and would be completed after the war with newer types. Vedettes stationed on both coasts were also used for fishing and smuggling patrols, both with the RCAF and with Western Canada Airways.

The Vedette featured prominently in a number of mercy missions, while some airmen discovered it was nearly ideal for aerial goose hunting, at least until a pilot was hit by a goose. The first Canadian to join the Caterpillar Club by using a parachute to escape from an aircraft did so from RCAF Vedette "ZF" on 17 May 1929. The pilot, C.S. (Jack) Caldwell, while testing the aircraft at the Canadian Vickers factory, entered an uncontrollable spin after the engine failed and bailed out successfully over the St. Lawrence River.

The RCAF acquired the Wright J-4 powered Vedette I (G-CYFS) in 1925 and 18 Vedette IIs from 1926 onward. All of these were out of service before the Second World War began. From 1929 to 1930, the RCAF received 13 Vedette Vs with a higher gross weight, and 11 fitted with Handley Page wing slots as the Vedette Va. The single Vedette VI featured a metal hull, and a soon to be removed enclosed cockpit. A single mark V was refurbished and converted by the factory into the sole Vam and given a new metal hull, as well as a new serial number, the last for a Vedette, but it retained its original RCAF call sign as "ZD." Additional conversions of Mk Vs with the new metal hulls were cancelled. Seven Vedette Va flying boats and the Mk VI survived long enough to see wartime service, flying with No 4(BR) Squadron and the Seaplane and Bomber Reconnaissance Training School (later No 13 OT Sqn) at RCAF Station Jericho Beach, near Vancouver, BC until May 1941.

The company exported six Wright J-5 powered Vedette V amphibians to Chile, where they were based at Puerto Montt, on an inlet off the Pacific coast, with the Escuadrilla de Anfibios N° 1 (since redesignated Grupo de Aviación N° 5). They were used to pioneer an air link between there and the capital Santiago, 569 mi (916 km) up the coast. At least one of the Vedettes (and possibly all six) was lost due to hurricane-force winds, which also caused the loss of two lives when one of the aircraft overturned while on the water.

The Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan provincial governments used ex-RCAF Vedettes extensively for spotting forest fires in the heavily wooded areas of those provinces.

Operators

Canada
Chile

Variants

Vedette I
Prototype (c/n 9) tested variously with Rolls-Royce Falcon III, Wolseley Viper, Wright J-4 and Armstrong Siddeley Lynx IV engines.
Vedette II
Production version with Armstrong Siddeley Lynx IV, Wright J-4 or Wright J-5, [3] modified rudder and other minor changes from prototype.
Vedette III & IV
Not built, but may have included an enclosed cabin transport, with the pilot seated in front of two passengers.
Vedette V
Improved amphibious version with Armstrong Siddeley Lynx IV, Wright J-5 or Wright J-6, [3] most Canadian examples not equipped with wheels.
Vedette Va
Mk.V modified with Handley-Page leading edge slats.
Vedette Vam
One off Mk.V (c/n 123/170) refurbished with metal hull.
Vedette VI
One off (c/n 163) with metal hull, Armstrong Siddeley Lynx IV or Wright J-6 [3] and Handley-Page leading edge slats. [4]
Vassal I
Proposed variant using Clark Y airfoil section wings, not built.

Survivors

A Vickers Vedette replica at the Western Canada Aviation Museum, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (now the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada) Vickers Vedette.jpg
A Vickers Vedette replica at the Western Canada Aviation Museum, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (now the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada)

There are no original intact surviving examples of the Vickers Vedette. There are two replicas in Canadian museums.

The first replica Vedette V (CF-MAG) is at the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba. Unveiled on 24 May 2002, this was built with templates made from the remains of three different Vedette wrecks. These fragments helped with the creation of blueprints created by a WCAM volunteer who had worked for Canadian Vickers as a junior draughtsman. This project took over 100 volunteers 22 years and was built to 1920s airworthiness standards, but there are no plans to fly it, and it has not been certified. While three wrecks were used, the bulk of the information was contributed by CF-MAG. For this reason, it was decided to use this former registration number.

The original CF-MAG was built in 1929 and stored until purchased by the Manitoba Government in 1934, along with five ex-RCAF Vedettes (for $1 each) for forest fire patrols. In 1937, CF-AMG's engine failed while flying to Cormorant Lake, Manitoba. After landing in a swamp, the pilot walked to somewhere he could be rescued. A week later, an attempt was made to retrieve the aircraft, but the swamp was too small for takeoff. After usable parts were salvaged, it was set on fire. [5]

A second wreck was recovered (G-CASW), which had crashed into a mountain on Porcher Island British Columbia while conducting a forest fire survey and was also recovered to aid in the design and blueprinting by WCAM. Finally, preserved pieces of a third Vedette were loaned to the museum by the National Aeronautical Museum in Ottawa. [6]

The second replica is on display at the Saskatchewan Western Development Museum In 2003, the WDM acquired part of an original hull, which is displayed as an artifact in condition as found. With plans loaned from the Western Canada Aviation Museum, a group of volunteers from the Vintage Aircraft Restorers undertook the construction. It was completed in 2017. [7] In 2014, the VAR Vendette Project won a Ninety-Nines Canadian Award in Aviation.

Specifications (Mk II, Lynx IV engine)

Canadian Vickers Vedette 3-view drawing Canadian Vickers Vedette Mk.II flying boat colour 3-view drawing.jpg
Canadian Vickers Vedette 3-view drawing
R.A.F. 15 Airfoil section used on Vedette RAF 15 airfoil drawing.jpg
R.A.F. 15 Airfoil section used on Vedette

Data from The Canadian Vickers Vedette, Canadian Aeronautics and Space Journal, October 1964. [8] Canadian Aircraft Since 1909 [9]

General characteristics

Performance

See also

Related lists

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armstrong Whitworth Siskin</span> Type of aircraft

The Armstrong Whitworth Siskin was a sesquiplane single-seat fighter aircraft developed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. It was also the first all-metal fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF), as well as being one of the first new fighters to enter service following the end of the First World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blackburn Shark</span> Type of aircraft

The Blackburn Shark was a carrier-borne torpedo bomber designed and built by the British aviation manufacturer Blackburn Aircraft. It was originally known as the Blackburn T.S.R., standing for "torpedo-spotter-reconnaissance", in reference to its intended roles. The Shark was the last of Blackburn's biplane torpedo bombers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cessna AT-17 Bobcat</span> American WWII twin-engine advanced trainer aircraft

The Cessna AT-17 Bobcat or Cessna Crane is a twin-engine advanced trainer aircraft designed and made in the United States, and used during World War II to bridge the gap between single-engine trainers and larger multi-engine combat aircraft. The commercial version was the Model T-50, from which the military versions were developed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol Bolingbroke</span> Maritime patrol aircraft and trainer used by the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II

The Bristol Fairchild Bolingbroke is a maritime patrol aircraft and trainer used by the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. Produced by Fairchild-Canada, it was a license-built version of the Bristol Blenheim Mk IV bomber.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avro Tutor</span> Type of aircraft

The Avro Type 621 Tutor is a two-seat British radial-engined biplane from the interwar period. It was a simple but rugged basic trainer that was used by the Royal Air Force as well as many other air arms worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westland Wapiti</span> British general-purpose military aircraft of the interwar era

The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general-purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleet Fawn</span> Type of aircraft

In the 1930s, Fleet Aircraft manufactured a series of single-engined, two-seat training aircraft, based on US designs. The Fleet Model 7B and Model 7C, known respectively as Fawn I and Fawn II were purchased by the RCAF as primary trainers. After years of reliable service, many were available for use in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan during the Second World War while others remained as station "hacks."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Vickers Vancouver</span> Type of aircraft

The Canadian Vickers Vancouver was a Canadian transport/patrol flying boat of the 1930s built by Canadian Vickers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Vickers Varuna</span> Type of aircraft

The Canadian Vickers Varuna was a Canadian flying boat of the 1920s built by Canadian Vickers as a twin-engined, unequal-span biplane, with a wooden hull and steel tube structure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Vickers Vanessa</span> Type of aircraft

The Canadian Vickers Vanessa was a Canadian biplane transport floatplane of the 1920s evaluated by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and used briefly for delivering air-mail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armstrong Whitworth Atlas</span> Type of aircraft

The Armstrong Whitworth Atlas was a British single-engine biplane designed and built by Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. It served as an army co-operation aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the 1920s and 1930s. It was the first purpose-designed aircraft of the army co-operation type to serve with the RAF.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avro Avocet</span> Type of aircraft

The Avro Type 584 Avocet was a British single-engined naval fighter prototype, designed and built by Avro. While the Avocet was not built in numbers, one of the prototypes was used as a seaplane trainer for the Royal Air Force's (RAF) High Speed Flight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cierva C.8</span> Type of aircraft

The Cierva C.8 was an experimental autogyro built by Juan de la Cierva in England in 1926 in association with Avro. Like Cierva's earlier autogyros, the C.8s were based on existing fixed-wing aircraft fuselages – in this case, the Avro 552.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairchild FC-2</span> Type of aircraft

The Fairchild FC-1 and its derivatives were a family of light, single-engine, high-wing utility monoplanes produced in the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. The aircraft was originally designed to provide a camera platform for Sherman Fairchild's aerial photography and survey business, Fairchild Aerial Surveys.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairchild Super 71</span> Type of aircraft

The Fairchild Super 71 was a Canadian parasol-mounted high-wing monoplane cargo aircraft built by Fairchild Aircraft Ltd. (Canada). The Super 71 was an entirely new design that was one of the first purpose-built civilian bush planes for use in remote and northern locales in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saro Cloud</span> Type of aircraft

The Saro Cloud was a British passenger amphibian flying boat designed and built by Saunders-Roe as the A.19. It was later produced as the A.29 for the Royal Air Force for pilot and navigator training.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northrop Delta</span> Type of aircraft

The Northrop Delta was an American single-engined passenger transport aircraft of the 1930s. Closely related to Northrop's Gamma mail plane, 13 were produced by the Northrop Corporation, followed by 19 aircraft built under license by Canadian Vickers Limited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Vickers Vista</span> Type of aircraft

The Canadian Vickers Vista was a Canadian-designed single-seat flying boat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vickers Vireo</span> Type of aircraft

The Vickers Vireo was an experimental low wing all-metal monoplane built to explore both all-metal service aircraft and the use of catapult launched ship board fighters. Only one was built.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Vickers Vigil</span> Type of aircraft

The Canadian Vickers Vigil was a single-seat patrol aircraft designed to meet a Royal Canadian Air Force requirement for a forest fire patrol aircraft.

References

  1. "History of Flight#CanadianVickersVedette". Canadian Historical Aircraft Association (old website). Archived from the original on 15 August 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2018.
  2. 1 2 Molson, K.M.; Taylor, H.A. (1982). Canadian aircraft since 1909 (1. publ. ed.). Stittsville, Ont.: Canada's Wings. p. 174. ISBN   0-920002-11-0.
  3. 1 2 3 Molsen, 1982, p.182
  4. Grey, C.G., ed. (1931). Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1931. London: Sampson Low, Marston & company, ltd. pp. 82c–83c.
  5. "Vickers Vedette, CF-MAG | Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada". www.royalaviationmuseum.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  6. "Vedette–Return of a Classic". Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada. Archived from the original on 6 July 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
  7. Lowe, Angie (19 February 2017). "1924 Vickers Vedette Flying Boat Full Restoration Complete". Discover Moose Jaw / Golden West Broadcasting. Archived from the original on 21 February 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
  8. Molson, Kenneth M. (October 1964). "The Canadian Vickers Vedette". Canadian Aeronautics and Space Journal.
  9. Molsen, 1982, pp.174-182

Further reading