Farman HF.20

Last updated
HF.20
Henry Farman Biplane - Jul 1912.jpg
RoleReconnaissance aircraft
Manufacturer Farman
Designer Henri Farman
First flight1913
A HF.20 biplane at Nicopolis airfield, near Preveza, in December 1912 IAN F2332.jpg
A HF.20 biplane at Nicopolis airfield, near Preveza, in December 1912

The Farman HF.20 and its derivatives were a family of reconnaissance aircraft produced in France shortly before and during the First World War. It was a refined version of the Farman MF.11 "Shorthorn" that did away with the type's distinctive landing skids, and incorporated design features from Henri Farman's designs. It entered service with the French, Belgian and Serbian armies in 1913 (two aircraft conducted reconnaissance during the Siege of Scutari in the First Balkan War and one crashed), and with the British RFC and RNAS shortly after the outbreak of war. The type was also licence-built in the UK by Airco and Grahame-White.

Contents

The HF.20 was seriously underpowered, and a variety of engines were trialled in the hope of correcting this, none with much success. The problem was eventually solved only when an engine of twice the power of the original powerplant was fitted to the HF.27 variant, by which time the aircraft was already obsolete. Nevertheless, the performance of the HF.20 made it adequate for use on secondary fronts.

Variants

HF.20
original version with Gnome Lambda engine
HF.21
15.5 m (51 ft) span and increased wing area version with Gnome Lambda engine. At least one of the few built, entered service with the Fliegertruppe of Switzerland.
HF.22
15.58 m (51.1 ft) span and increased wing area version with Gnome Lambda engine.
HF.22 floatplane
(aka HF.22bis or Savoia-built HF.22-H)
HF.23
18.08 m (59.3 ft) span version with Gnome Lambda engine
HF.24
11.5 m (38 ft) span aerobatic version with Gnome Lambda engine
HF.27
155 hp (116 kW) Canton-Unné R9 engine or 240 hp (180 kW) Renault engine with a revised undercarriage that included nose wheels similar to the Voisin III.

Operators

HF-20 of the Swiss Air Force during the First World War Ein einsitziger Doppeldecker vor dem Start - CH-BAR - 3240087.tif
HF-20 of the Swiss Air Force during the First World War
Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium
Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark
Flag of France.svg  France
Escadrille HF 1
Escadrille HF 7
Escadrille HF 13
Escadrille HF 19
Escadrille HF 28
Escadrille HF 32
Flag of Greece (1822-1978).svg  Greece
Flag of Italy (1861-1946) crowned.svg  Kingdom of Italy
Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania
Flag of Russia.svg  Russia
Flag of Serbia.svg  Serbia
Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union
Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden
Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg  Switzerland
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
South Africa Flag 1910-1912.svg Union of South Africa

Specifications (HF.20)

Data from French aircraft of the First World War [1]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sopwith Pup</span> British WW1 biplane fighter aircraft

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 characteristics and good manoeuvrability, the aircraft proved very successful. The Pup was eventually outclassed by newer German fighters, but it was not completely replaced on the Western Front until the end of 1917. Remaining Pups were relegated to Home Defence and training units. The Pup's docile flying characteristics also made it ideal for use in aircraft carrier deck landing and takeoff experiments and training.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nieuport 17</span> French WW1 fighter aircraft

The Nieuport 17 C.1 was a French sesquiplane fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little larger than earlier Nieuports and better adapted to the more powerful engine than the interim Nieuport 16. Aside from early examples, it had the new Alkan-Hamy synchronization gear, permitting the use of a fuselage-mounted synchronised Vickers gun firing through the propeller disc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avro 504</span> 1913 multi-role military aircraft family

The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind that served in any military capacity during the First World War. More than 10,000 were built from 1913 until production ended in 1932.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SPAD S.XIII</span> French WW1 fighter aircraft

The SPAD S.XIII is a French biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War, developed by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD) from the earlier and highly successful SPAD S.VII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SPAD S.VII</span> French WW1 fighter aircraft

The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rugged aircraft with good climbing and diving characteristics. It was also a stable gun platform, although pilots used to the more manoeuvrable Nieuport fighters found it heavy on the controls. It was flown by a number of the famous aces, such as France's Georges Guynemer, Italy's Francesco Baracca and Australia's Alexander Pentland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sopwith 1½ Strutter</span> British WW1 biplane fighter, bomber and reconnaissance aircraft

The Sopwith 1+12 Strutter was a British single- or two-seat multi-role biplane aircraft of the First World War. It was the first British two-seat tractor fighter and the first British aircraft to enter service with a synchronised machine gun. It was given the name 1+12 Strutter because of the long and short cabane struts that supported the top wing. The type was operated by both British air services and was in widespread but lacklustre service with the French Aéronautique Militaire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vickers F.B.5</span> Fighter aircraft; first operational purpose-built fighter

The Vickers F.B.5 was a British two-seat pusher military biplane of the First World War. Armed with a single .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun operated by the observer in the front of the nacelle, it was the first aircraft purpose-built for air-to-air combat to see service, making it the world's first operational fighter aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman F.220</span> Type of aircraft

The Farman F.220 and its derivatives were thick-sectioned, high-winged, four engined monoplanes from Farman Aviation Works. Based on the push-pull configuration proven by the F.211, design started in August 1925 and the first flight of the prototype was on 26 May 1932. The definitive F.222 variant was the biggest bomber to serve in France between the world wars. One variant was designed as an airliner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Voisin III</span> French WW1 bomber aircraft

The Voisin III was a French World War I two-seat pusher biplane multi-purpose aircraft developed by Voisin in 1914 as a more powerful version of the 1912 Voisin I. It is notable for being the aircraft used for the first successful shooting down of an enemy aircraft on October 5, 1914, and to have been used to equip the first dedicated bomber units, in September 1914.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylorcraft Auster</span> Type of aircraft

The Taylorcraft Auster was a British military liaison and observation aircraft produced by the Taylorcraft Aeroplanes (England) Limited company during the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potez 25</span> Type of aircraft

Potez 25 was a French twin-seat, single-engine biplane designed during the 1920s. A multi-purpose fighter-bomber, it was designed as a line aircraft and used in a variety of roles, including fighter and escort missions, tactical bombing and reconnaissance missions. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Potez 25 was the standard multi-purpose aircraft of over 20 air forces, including French and Polish. It was also popular among private operators, notably mail transport companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman MF.7</span> French pre-WW1 reconnaissance aircraft

The Maurice Farman MF.7 Longhorn is a French biplane developed before World War I which was used for reconnaissance by both the French and British air services in the early stages of the war before being relegated to service as a trainer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman MF.11</span> French WW1 reconnaissance aircraft

The Maurice Farman MF.11 Shorthorn is a French aircraft developed before World War I by the Farman Aviation Works. It was used as a reconnaissance and light bomber during the early part of World War I, later being relegated to training duties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nieuport 24</span> French WW1 fighter aircraft

The Nieuport 24 was a World War I French sesquiplane fighter aircraft designed by Gustave Delage as a development of the successful Nieuport 17.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman F.40</span> French WW1 reconnaissance aircraft

The Farman F.40 was a French pusher biplane reconnaissance aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Latham 43</span> Type of aircraft

The Latham 43 was a flying boat bomber built in France in the 1920s for service with the French Navy. It was a conventional design for its day - a two-bay biplane with unstaggered wings, and engines mounted tractor-fashion on struts in the interplane gap. The pilot sat in an open cockpit, with a gunner in an open bow position, and another in an open position amidships.

The Sopwith Three-seater was a British aircraft designed and built prior to the start of the First World War. One of the first aircraft built by the Sopwith Aviation Company, it was operated by both the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), being used briefly over Belgium by the RNAS following the start of the War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman HF.30</span> Biplane model

The Henry Farman HF.30 was a two-seat military biplane designed in France around 1915, which became a principal aircraft of the Imperial Russian Air Service during the First World War. Although it was widely used on the Eastern Front, and by the factions and governments that emerged in the subsequent Russian Civil War, it is not well known outside that context: the HF.30 was not adopted by other Allied air forces, and the manufacturers reused the "Farman F.30" designation for the Farman F.30 in 1917.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farman HF.14</span> Type of aircraft

The Farman HF.14 was a French two seat reconnaissance type produced by Farman Aviation Works before World War I.

The Henry Farman HF.19 was a French reconnaissance seaplane developed by Henry Farman before World War I. As a floatplane, it used floats for take-off and landing on water.

References

  1. Davilla, Dr. James J.; Soltan, Arthur M. (January 2002). French aircraft of the First World War. Flying Machines Press. pp. 207–212. ISBN   1891268090.

Bibliography

Further reading