Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.3

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Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.3
Role Maritime reconnaissance
Manufacturer Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk
Designer Halfdan Gyth Dehli
First flight 11 April 1917
Introduction 1917
Retired 2 October 1924
Primary user Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service
Produced 1917
Number built 4

The Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.3 was a reconnaissance floatplane built by the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service aircraft factory Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk in 1917. The aircraft was financed by extraordinary appropriations during the First World War and served until October 1924.

Floatplane aircraft equipped with floats for operation from water surfaces

A floatplane is a type of seaplane, with one or more slender pontoons mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy. By contrast, a flying boat uses its fuselage for buoyancy. Either type of seaplane may also have landing gear suitable for land, making the vehicle an amphibious aircraft. British usage is to call "floatplanes" "seaplanes" rather than use the term "seaplane" to refer to both floatplanes and flying boats.

Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service

The Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service was alongside the Norwegian Army Air Service the forerunner to the modern-day Royal Norwegian Air Force.

Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk - The Navy's Flying Boat Factory - was the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service' aeroplane manufacturer. It was established in Horten in 1915 and produced 120 aircraft from then until it ceased to exist in 1940.

Contents

Background

The M.F.3 was the last reconnaissance aircraft of the Maurice Farman type built by the Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk. [1] In the autumn of 1916 Captain Halfdan Gyth Dehli proposed building a series of four aircraft for reconnaissance purposes. The proposal was approved by the Commanding Admiral of the Royal Norwegian Navy on 30 October 1916 and by the Norwegian Ministry of Defence on 8 November of the same year. [2] The production of the four aircraft was financed through the extraordinary appropriations to the Norwegian Armed Forces after the outbreak of the First World War. [1]

Maurice Farman French Grand Prix motor racing champion, aviator, and aircraft manufacturer and designer

Maurice Alain Farman was an Anglo-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer.

Halfdan Gyth Dehli Norwegian businessperson and aviator

Halfdan Gyth Dehli was a Norwegian businessperson and aviator.

Norwegian Armed Forces military organization responsible for the defence of Norway

The Norwegian Armed Forces is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of four branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Coast Guard, the Royal Norwegian Air Force, and the Home Guard, as well as several joint departments.

Production

The production of the four M.F.3 aircraft was the first to be completed solely at the Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk and took place during 1917. The M.F.3 production marked the completion of full-scale production facilities at the factory in Horten. The factory at first had a production capacity of four aircraft per year. [2] The four M.F.3s were given numerals between F.14 and F.20. [1]

Horten Municipality in Vestfold, Norway

Horten (help·info) is a town and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the town of Åsgårdstrand and the villages of Borre, Skoppum, and Nykirke.

The M.F.3 type had a larger gondola and a more powerful engine than the earlier types used by the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service and was considered well suited to Norwegian conditions. The powerful engine made the aircraft able to take off from ice and snow, and tests at this were carried out at the Royal Norwegian Navy's main base of Karljohansvern in Horten during the winter of 1917–1918. The M.F.3's load carrying ability also enabled the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service to carry out its first experiments at dropping torpedoes from an aircraft. [1] M.F.3 F.14 carried out test drops of the Royal Norwegian Navy's Type 2 and Type 3 35 cm torpedoes during the autumn of 1918. [3] The torpedo tests carried out in 1918, and further tests in 1923, led to the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service deciding to acquire dedicated torpedo bombers. In 1924 the Douglas DT-2B was ordered from the Douglas Aircraft Company in California. [4]

Karljohansvern

Karjohansvern at Horten was the main base for the Royal Norwegian Navy from 1819 to 1963.

Aerial torpedo naval torpedo designed to be launched by aircraft or helicopters

An aerial torpedo, airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo is a naval weapon, a torpedo, that an aircraft—fixed-wing aircraft or helicopter—drops in the water, after which the weapon propels itself to the target. First used in World War I, air-dropped torpedoes were used extensively in World War II, and remain in limited use. Aerial torpedoes are generally smaller and lighter than submarine- and surface-launched torpedoes.

Douglas DT torpedo attack biplane, first military aircraft by Douglas

The Douglas DT bomber was the Douglas Aircraft Company's first military contract, forging a link between the company and the United States Navy. Navy Contract No. 53305 of April 1, 1921, required only 18 pages to set out the specifications that resulted in the purchase of three DT folding-wing aircraft.

Service

The type's first flight occurred when F.14 took off on 11 April 1917. F.16 first flew on 10 May 1917, F.18 on 3 July 1917 and F.20 on 4 November 1917. [3] All four M.F.3s flew with the First Aerial Group, operating out of Horten. F.14 left the First Aerial Group in August 1918, the other three M.F.3s continuing to serve in the unit until 14 December 1918. [5] None of the four aircraft were lost to accidents, F.14, F.16 and F.18 being written off on 10 February 1921 and F.20 on 2 October 1924. F.20 had suffered damages in a crash in the inner harbour of Horten on 22 September 1924. [3]

Specifications

Data fromMarinens Flygevåpen 1912–1944. [3]

General characteristics

Wingspan distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip of an airplane or an animal (insect, bird, bat)

The wingspan of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777-200 has a wingspan of 60.93 metres, and a wandering albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of 3.63 metres, the official record for a living bird. The term wingspan, more technically extent, is also used for other winged animals such as pterosaurs, bats, insects, etc., and other fixed-wing aircraft such as ornithopters. In humans, the term wingspan also refers to the arm span, which is distance between the length from one end of an individual's arms to the other when raised parallel to the ground at shoulder height at a 90º angle. Former professional basketball player Manute Bol stands at 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m) and owns one of the largest wingspans at 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m).

In aviation, manufacturer's empty weight (MEW) is the weight of the aircraft "as built" and includes the weight of the structure, power plant, furnishings, installations, systems and other equipment that are considered an integral part of an aircraft before additional operator items are added for operation.

Aircraft engine Engine designed for use in powered aircraft

An aircraft engine is a component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines, except for small multicopter UAVs which are almost always electric aircraft.

Performance

Armament

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hafsten 2003: 20
  2. 1 2 Hafsten 2003: 30
  3. 1 2 3 4 Hafsten 2003: 210
  4. ↑ Hafsten 2003: 83
  5. ↑ Hafsten 2003: 21

Bibliography

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