R.A.F. F.E.8

From Wings of Linen
R.A.F. F.E.8
Role Fighter/General Purpose
Manufacturer R.A.F.
Designer J. Kenworthy
First flight Oct 1915 [1][2]
Introduction 1 July 1916 [1] [note 1]
Primary user U.K. (RFC/RAF)
Number built 182-297 [note 2]
Wingspan 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in) [4][5]
Engine 100hp Gnome rotary or
110hp Le Rhône rotary
Armament fixed forward Lewis
Ammo 5 drums of 47 or 97 rounds[6]
Crew 1
Max Speed 151 km/h (94 mph) [7][8][4][5]
Climb 910 m (3,000 ft) in 4:15[7]
2,000 m (6,500 ft) in 11:00[7][4]
3,000 m (10,000 ft) in 17:15[7]-17:30[4]
Service Ceiling 4,400 m (14,500 ft) [7][8][4][5]
Endurance 2:30 [7][5] to 4:00[8]

Before the invention and use of synchronizers, one of the best way of providing a stable, forward-firing machine gun was to mount it on a pusher. The R.A.F. F.E.8 was a single-seat pusher fighter in the same school as the Airco D.H.2. Though the prototype was complete in October 1915, it was not until August 1916 that the first F.E.8-equipped squadron arrived in France. The F.E.8 might have been a good match for the Fokker Eindeckers and early German biplane fighters, but by the autumn of 1916 it was to face the Albatros D.I and D.II, for which it was no match. Of the four squadrons using the F.E.8, most switched to other planes fairly quickly, but №41 Squadron kept its F.E.8s until July 1917. [1]

For more information, see Wikipedia:Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.8.

Timeline [note 3]

Game Data

Wings of Glory

Official Stats
Availability Maneuver Damage Dmg Points Max Alt. Climb
16Q2-17Q3 R B 13 10 5
Card Links

Blue Max/Canvas Eagles

Aircraft Chart

Miniatures and Models

1:144 Scale

1:285/6mm/1:288 Scale

1:350 Scale

References

Notes
  1. ↑ The first unit fully equipped with FE8s was No. 40 in August 1916.[3]
  2. ↑ 297 were ordered, but only 182 were delivered to the RFC, of which 147 went to France, two to Home Defense, and the rest to training.[1]
  3. ↑ British usage numbers are approximate, derived from the squadron histories.[9]
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Updated card
Citations
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Bruce'69, p.405.
  2. ↑ Angelucci, p.54.
  3. ↑ Lamberton, p.46.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Lamberton, pp.214-215.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Angelucci, p.43.
  6. ↑ Kelly, p.230.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Bruce'69, p.407.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Munson, p.21.
  9. ↑ Philpott'13, pp.379-444.
Bibliography
  • Enzo Angelucci, ed. The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft, 1914-1980. New York: The Military Press, 1983 edition. ISBN 0-517-41021-4.
  • J.M. Bruce. British Aeroplanes 1914-18. Great Britain: Funk & Wagnalls, 1957, 1969. ISBN 0370000382
  • Kevin Kelly, "Belts and Drums: A Survey of First World War Aircraft Ammunition Totals". Over the Front, Vol. 5, No. 3, Autumn 1990. Walsworth Publishing Co, Inc. and The League of World War I Aviation Historians.
  • W.M. Lamberton and E.F. Cheesman, Fighter Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War. Great Britain: Harleyford Publications Limited, 1960.
  • Kenneth Munson, Fighters 1914-19, Attack and Training Aircraft. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1976. ISBN 0713707607
  • Ian Philpott, The Birth of the Royal Air Force. Great Britain: Pen & Sword Books Limited, 2013. ISBN 978-1-78159-333-2
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