During 1918 Vickers designed a light amphibian with biplane wings and tail unit, its Consuta plywood hull being built by the company’s S. E. Saunders subsidiary and incorporating an enclosed cabin seating four passengers. Its powerplant, a 205kW Rolls-Royce Falcon, was strut-mounted below the upper wing to drive a pusher propeller. Designated Vickers Viking, it was flown for the first time in late 1919. It was in a forced landing with this aircraft, on 18 December 1919, that the company’s famous chief pilot, Sir John Alcock, was killed.
From this Viking I was developed a series of aircraft with progressive improvements, especially to the hull (some of which had open cockpits), and differing powerplant. They comprised the one-off Viking II (268kW Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII) and Viking III (336kW Napier Lion), followed by the production Type 54 Viking IV. Of the 26 that were sold, examples in several type numbers went to the armed services of Argentina, Canada, France, Japan and the Netherlands, and for civil use in Argentina, Canada, the Soviet Union and the USA. Ironically, Sir Ross Smith, knighted like Sir John Alcock for a Vickers Vimy pioneering flight, was killed in an accident with a Viking IV on 13 April 1922. The final version was the Viking V with Napier Lion engine, two built for service with the RAF in Iraq.
The aircraft that was to have been the Viking VI, with redesigned wing structure and single 450 HP Napier Lion engine with a four blade pusher propellor, was designated Type 78 Vulture I; a second example with a 268kW Rolls-Royce Eagle IX had the designation Type 95 Vulture II but was later re-engined with a Napier Lion. These two aircraft were used during 1924 in an unsuccessful round-the-world flight attempt.
The Vickers Type 95 Vulture, G EBHO, was registered to Vickers Ltd on August 9, 1923. It was a three seat amphibian powered by a single 450 hp Napier Lion and was one of two designed by R. K. Pierson for Sqn Ldr A. C. S. MacLaren’s round the world flight. This attempt began at Calshot on March 25, 1924, and ended with a take off crash at Akyab, Burma.
On May 24 the other aircraft, G EBGO, was shipped to Akyab from Tokyo, where it had been positioned earlier, to continue the flight. This also ended prematurely with a forced landing in heavy seas near the Aleutian Islands on August 2, 1924.
Last of the Viking series, at first designated Viking VII but later named Type 83 Vanellus, was a single aircraft for evaluation by the RAF as a three-seat (pilot, observer/gunner and gunner) open-cockpit fleet-spotter; it differed primarily from its predecessors by having a monoplane tail unit. The 15.24m span Viking IV with Napier Lion powerplant had a maximum speed of 182km/h at sea level.
A one-off civil variant designated Type 72 Vanguard, accommodating 23 passengers and powered by two Napier Lion engines (later 485kW Rolls-Royce Condor III engines as the Type 103 Vanguard) entered service with Imperial Airways in May 1928. It was destroyed in an accident in late 1928 when being tested after modification of the tail unit as the Type 170 Vanguard.
Type 103 Vanguard Engines: 2 x Rolls-Royce Condor III, 485 kW Passengers: 23
In early 1921 design was initiated of the Vickers Vulcan transport, a biplane of 14.94m span with a deep oval-section fuselage completely filling the space between the equal-span wings. It accommodated the pilot in an open cockpit forward of the upper wing, with below and behind him a roomy enclosed cabin for six to eight passengers. To limit selling price to the minimum, the low-cost war-surplus 268kW Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII engine was installed in the first six aircraft (Type 61) to be completed, but as a number of performance problems were encountered the last two examples (Type 74) had the 336kW Napier Lion. One of the early production aircraft was completed as a cargo carrier (Type 63) for Air Ministry evaluation, but was subsequently reconverted as a passenger carrier and used with one other Eagle-powered and the two Napier Lion-powered aircraft by Imperial Airways on European service. Their very limited reliability meant the Vulcan had a short useful life, only one or two surviving in service beyond the mid-1920s.
Type 74 Engine: 1 x Napier Lion, 336kW Max take-off weight: 3062 kg / 6751 lb Wingspan: 14.94 m / 49 ft 0 in Max. speed: 180 km/h / 112 mph Passengers: 6-8
Designed to meet the requirements of Air Ministry Specification 1/21, two aircraft were ordered initially, designated Virginia I and Virginia II. The former was the first to fly (on 24 November 1922), powered by two 335kW Napier Lion engines. It was basically an enlarged version of the Vickers Vimy, but had its Napier Lion engines mounted on the lower wings and enclosed in rectangular nacelles. Construction was mainly of wood and fabric with a fairly extensive amount of wire bracing. The second Virginia differed by having close-fitting engine cowlings; a Lamblin cooling radiator mounted between the landing-gear legs; a lengthened nose to provide more room for the bomb-aimer and, for the same reason, a slight decrease in intended bomb load; and a variable-incidence tailplane which could be adjusted in flight.
The Virginia prototype first flew on 24 November 1922 but initially both the Virginias were unstable in flight, leading to modifications which included dihedral on both wings instead of on the lower wing only, introduction of larger rudders, an additional fin, and re-siting of the engines further forward.
The first production contract was for two Virginia Mk.III aircraft, generally similar to the Virginia II but provided with dual controls and changes in armament. Like the earlier prototypes, these were subsequently modified to later standards. Four additional aircraft were ordered in 1923. Power plant comprised two 349kW Napier Lion Series II engines. Again, these aircraft were later updated, being fitted with metal wings, and ended their lives as Mk.Xs.
The type began to enter service as the Virginia Mk III, replacing the Vimy bombers of Nos 7 and 58 Squadrons, the first of eight regular and two auxiliary squadrons to operate the type.
The two Virginia Mk.IVs differed in electrical equipment and bomb load. First major production version (22 built) was the Mk.V, which had a third rudder, first test-flown on a Mk.IV aircraft; otherwise these aircraft were generally similar to the Mk.III. They were modified subsequently to later marks. The Mks III to VI had dihedral on the lower wings and unswept outer wings. Interestingly, Vimys were still being delivered at this time.
The Virginia Mk.VI (25 built) was the first production version to include dihedral on both upper and lower wings as standard; design of the wing-folding mechanism was improved. It was followed by 11 Mk.VIIs, which introduced still further changes to improve stability – including introduction of Frise ailerons and sweepback on both wings. These represented such an improvement in flight characteristics that many earlier aircraft were modified subsequently to this Mk.VII standard.
To provide adequate defence for these large and comparatively slow bombers there had been a number of experiments to locate gunners in ‘fighting tops’ – nacelles attached to the trailing edge of the upper wing. Apart from the aerodynamic problems, the gunners suffered from the cold and it was decided to introduce instead a gunner’s position at the tail-end of the fuselage. This involved not only modification of the rear fuselage but increased tailplane span and a leng-thened nose to maintain good stability. These aircraft (eight built) became designated Mk.IX and some earlier aircraft were converted subsequently to this standard. Final version was the Mk.X, which introduced a metal structure with fabric covering and introduced leading-edge slats and a tailwheel in place of the, original skid (50 built). A large number of earlier aircraft were converted to include the more powerful engines, hydraulic wheel brakes, landing lights, and auto pilot which distinguished this, the last of the series.
Total production of the Virginia series was 124, the type finally replaced as a bomber by the Heyford and Whitley in 1937, surviving aircraft being relegated to parachute training for four more years.
Virginia Mk X Type: four-seat heavy night bomber Powerplant: 2 x Napier Lion V, 425kW (570 hp) Span: 26.72m (87ft 8in) Length: 18.97m (62ft 2.75 in) Height: 5.54 m / 18 ft 2 in Wing area: 202.34 sq.m / 2177.97 sq ft Armament: 3 x 7.7-mm (0.303-in) machine-guns Bombload: 1452 kg (3,200 lb) internal Empty weight: 4377 kg / 9650 lb Max T/O weight: 7983 kg (17,600 lb) Max speed: 174 km/h / 108 mph at 4,920ft Operational range: 985 miles / 1585 km Ceiling: 4725 m / 15500 ft
The Victoria 22-troop transport was built between the Vernon and Valentia. Production for the RAF totalled 94 aircraft. Entering service in 1926, it was powered by two 425kW Napier Lion engines. A commercial counterpart, the Vanguard, was less successful.
The Victoria is best remembered for its role during the Kabul airlift, when people and baggage were transported out of Kabul during tribal disturbances.
The Vernon was a development of the Vimy/ Vimy Commercial, having much the same wing plan, and being powered by the same type of engine the 375 h.p. Rolls Royee Eagle VIII. First flying in 1921, instead of a bomber style of fuselage, with gun rings fore and aft, the Vernon carried no defensive armament, and had a spacious hull designed to carry troops and stores. It was, however, fitted with bomb racks and could be used as a bomber. The Vernon served from 1922 26 with Nos 45 and 70 Squadrons of the RAF in India, Cyprus and Iraq. Apart from its role in the evacuation of sick British troops from Iraq in 1922, the Vernon was the chief transport aircraft used on the celebrated Cairo Baghdad air mail service in the mid 1920s. In 1923, when Squadron Leader A. T. Harris commanded the Squadron, he cut away a hole in the nose and fitted a high altitude drift bomb sight. This, with a bomb aimer using the prone position, made the Vernon a very fine bomber indeed, capable of far greater accuracy than any other contemporary aircraft. The maker’s figure for the maximum all up weight of the Vernon was 12,000 lb, but this had been increased by Middle East Headquarters to 12,500 lb. In order to give them sufficient range to make the desert crossing safely from Ziza to Ramadi, a cylindrical tank holding 150 gallons temporarily fitted inside the hull.
Vernon Mk I aircraft (20 built) differed little from the Vimy Commercial, but the Vernon Mk II (25) introduced 336kW Napier Lion II engines and the Vernon Mk III (10) had Lion III engines, increased fuel tankage and oleo-pneumatic landing gear. The Vernon was superseded by the Victoria from 1927.
Engines: 2 x 375 hp Rolls Royce Eagle VIII (later 450 hp Napier Lion II) Wing span: 68 ft 1 in (20.75 m) Length: 42 ft 8 in (13.00 m) Gross weight: 12544 lb (5,690 kg) Max speed: 118 mph (190 km/h) at S/ L with Lion engines Accommodation: Crew of 3 plus 11 passengers Typical range: 320 miles (515 km) at 80 mph (128 km/h)
Design of the Vickers F.B.27 was initiated in 1917 to meet the requirement to provide bomber aircraft able to attack strategic targets in Germany from bases in Britain. The Vimy was one of three new-generation bombers with which the RAF planned to take the air war to Germany in 1919. Such aircraft as the de Havilland D.H.10 Amiens and Handley Page V/1500 were also built.
The F.B.27 was a three-bay biplane of conventional construction, with a biplane tail unit which had twin fins and rudders. The wing centre-section – almost one-third span – had the fuselage at its centre with large struts supporting the upper wing. At the outer ends of this centre-section the engines were mounted midway between the upper and lower wings. Two twin-wheel main landing-gear units were mounted beneath the lower wing, one directly below each engine. Outboard of this centre-section the wings had dihedral.
The largest aircraft then built by Vickers, it posed many construction problems; but despite this the first prototype, B9952, flew on 30 November 1917 – little more than four months after the design had been started. This aircraft was powered by two 149kW Hispano-Suiza engines (subsequently re-engined with 194kW Salmsons). Three further prototypes followed, powered respectively with 194kW Sunbeam Maoris, 223kW Fiat A-12s and 268kW Rolls-Royce Eagle VIIIs. It was the latter installation which was selected for production aircraft.
With the introduction of official aircraft names in 1918, the F.B.27 became the Vimy. But only a single example had been placed on an operational footing before the Armistice, which meant that none were used operationally in World War I.
The main production version was the Vimy Mk IV with Eagle VIII engines. Large contracts were cancelled at the end of the war but total Vimy Mk IV production amounted to 240, the last batch of 30 being ordered in 1925. The type entered service in July 1919 with No.58 Squadron in Egypt, home to another three squadrons; the type was retired from Middle Eastern service in August 1926 after operating the Cairo-Baghdad air mail service.
About 300 Vimy IVs of the standard production version were built, each with two 360 hp Rolls-¬Royce Eagle VIII engines. They carried a crew of three and 2476 lb of bombs, and were armed with twin Lewis machine guns in nose and midships positions.
Five home-based squadrons operated the Vimy, which was replaced as a first-line bomber by the Virginia during 1924 and 1925 but remained operational with No. 502 Squadron until January 1929.
Conversions carried 10 passengers. A small number of commercial and ambulance aircraft were built, known simply as Commercial Vimys. The Commercial was fundamentally the same as the Vimy bomber, with the same wings, engine and tail, but had a rounded fuselage, capable of taking up to ten passengers the two flying crew braving the elements in a high set open cockpit in the nose. G EAAV was the prototype Vimy Commercial, having first flown (as K107) on April 13, 1919.
A number of Vimys were used for flying and parachute training duties. Revived as an advanced instructional aircraft for training pilots in multi-engined flying. For this purpose Jupiter VI or Jaguar engines were fitted in about 80 aircraft.
No. 4 FTS Armstrong-Siddeley Jaguar powered Vimy at Abu Sueir, Egypt, in 1930
The Vimy is remembered especially in aviation history for the post-war long-distance flights which pointed the way to the air lanes that would link the world. First was the flight by Capt John Alcock and Lt Arthur Whitten-Brown across the North Atlantic, from St John’s, Newfoundland, to Clifden, Eire, during 14-15 June 1919 in a time of 16 hours 27 minutes.
Take-off from St.Johns, Newfoundland
Landing in a bog at Clifden, Ireland, and almost over-turned.
Next was the England-Australia flight of the brothers Capt Ross and Lt Keith Smith, together with Sgts Bennett and Shiers. Taking off from Hounslow (not far from today’s Heathrow Airport) on 12 November 1919, they landed safely at Darwin on 10 December 1919 in an elapsed flying time of 135 hours 55 minutes. Last of the trio of great Vimy flights was an attempt by Lt-Col Pierre van Ryneveld and Sqn Ldr Christopher J. Q. Brand of the South African Air Force to link London and Cape Town. On 4 February 1920 they took off from Brooklands, unfortunately making a crash landing between Cairo and Khartoum. Loaned a second Vimy by an RAF unit in Egypt, they continued to Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia, where they failed to get airborne because of ‘hot and high’ conditions. They finally completed their flight to Cape Town in a third borrowed aircraft (a de Havilland D.H.9), arriving at their destination on 20 March 1920. They, like Alcock and Brown and the Ross brothers, were awarded knighthoods for their achievement.
In 1919, the Chinese government ordered perhaps 100 (or maybe 40) Vickers Vimy transports to be used to establish passenger service in China. Most remained in their shipping crates; only seven were put into use.
Replicas Vintage Aircraft & Flying Association Vimy
Engines: 2 x 360hp Rolls Royce VIII Length 43.5 ft (13.2 m) Wing span 67.1 ft (20.5 m) Height: 15 ft. 7.5 in Wing area 1318 sq. ft Weight loaded: 10885 lb Weight empty 7,100 lb (3,220 kg) Crew: 4 Armament: Two machine guns, one each in nose and aft cockpits Bomb load: 18 x 112 lb (50 kg) bombs 2 x 230 lb (104 kg) bombs Max speed: 89 kts / 103 mph (166 kph) Ceiling: 7,000 ft (2,100 m) Range: 1,000 miles (1,600 km) Range max. weight: 391 nm / 725 km Initial climb rate: 295.28 ft/min / 1.5 m/s
Vimy Mk II Engines: 2 x Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII, 268kW Max take-off weight: 4937 kg / 10884 lb Empty weight: 3222 kg / 7103 lb Wingspan: 20.75 m / 68 ft 1 in Length: 13.27 m / 44 ft 6 in Height: 4.76 m / 16 ft 7 in Wing area: 122.44 sq.m / 1317.93 sq ft Max. speed: 166 km/h / 103 mph Ceiling: 2135 m / 7000 ft Range w/max.fuel: 1448 km / 900 miles Armament: 2 x 7.7mm machine-guns, 1123kg of bombs Crew: 3
Vimy Mk IV Type: three-seat heavy night bomber Span: 20.75m (68 ft 1 in) Length: 13.27m (43ft 6.5 in) Powerplant: 2 x Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII, 268kW (360 hp) Armament: 2 x 7.7-mm (0.303-in) machine-guns Bombload: 1123 kg (2,476 lb) MTOW: 5647 kg (12,500 lb) Max speed: 103 mph at 6,500 ft Operational range: about 900 miles
Derived from the abortive F.B.23 design intended as a successor to the F.B.9, the F.B.25 two-seat night fighter was conceived to fulfil the same requirement as the Royal Aircraft Factory’s N.E.1. Completed in the early spring of 1917, the F.B.25 carried its two crew members in staggered side-by-side seats, the gunner being positioned ahead and to starboard. Like the N.E.1, the F.B.25 was intended to carry the Vickers-built Crayford rocket gun with which it was supposed to attack hostile airships, and a small searchlight was originally to have been mounted in the extreme nose of the nacelle. The intention was to power the F.B.25 with the 200hp Hispano-Suiza eight-cylinder water-cooled engine, and in order to minimise the risk of the aircraft turning over during a nocturnal landing, it was proposed to provide a nosewheel. In the event, non-availability of a 200hp unit dictated installation of a 150hp Hispano-Suiza, and neither searchlight nor nosewheel was fitted. A two-bay unstaggered equi-span biplane with tailbooms converging in elevation to meet at the rear spar of the tailplane, the F.B.25 carried its unusually wide nacelle at mid wing-gap. As well as the Crayford rocket gun, an interesting feature was the oleo-pneumatic undercarriage. Flight testing revealed poor characteristics, and when sent to Martlesham Heath in May 1917 (where it was eventually to crash), the official reports were singularly unflattering, dismissing the F.B.25 as wholly unsuited for night fighting.
Max take-off weight: 1113 kg / 2454 lb Empty weight: 729 kg / 1607 lb Wingspan: 12.65 m / 42 ft 6 in Length: 8.56 m / 28 ft 1 in Height: 3.30 m / 11 ft 10 in Wing area: 46.45 sq.m / 499.98 sq ft Max. speed: 138 km/h / 86 mph Ceiling: 3355 m / 11000 ft
A two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft, the F.B.24 was yet another Vickers aircraft originally designed for the ill-fated and Vickers-sponsored Hart radial engine. The prototype was completed in December 1916, but unavailability of the Hart engine resulted in its modification to accept the 150hp Hispano-Suiza water-cooled engine as the F.B.24A, and the second airframe, the F.B.24B, being similarly powered. An unequal-span two-bay biplane, the F.B.24 had an armament of one fixed synchronised Vickers gun and one Lewis on a Scarff ring mounting. Both F.B.24A and 24B were re-engined with the 200hp Hispano-Suiza with which they were redesignated as F.B.24Ds. Similar in general configuration was the F.B.24C, which was powered by a 275hp Lorraine-Dietrich 8Bd water-cooled eight-cylinder Vee-type engine and armed with two synchronised Vickers guns, provision being made for emergency dual control in the gunner’s cockpit. The F.B.24C and D both possessed good performance, but the limited view offered from the pilot’s cockpit was considered unacceptable. Consequently, the Vickers team revised the basic design by lowering the upper wing so that it was attached directly to the upper longerons, the front cockpit being situated between the wing spars. With this change, the aircraft was de signated F.B.24E and power was provided by a 200hp Hispano-Suiza. This same configuration was adopted for yet a further version of the design, the F.B.24G, which was a larger aircraft than its predecessors, with two-bay wings of equal span and chord and a 375hp Lorraine-Dietrich 12-cylinder Vee-type engine. The F.B.24G was built in France by the Darracq concern, but it did not fly until 26 May 1919, and its performance and fate have gone unrecorded.
F.B.24D Empty weight: 739 kg / 1629 lb Wingspan: 10.82 m / 36 ft 6 in Length: 7.92 m / 26 ft 0 in Wing area: 31.59 sq.m / 340.03 sq ft Max. speed: 190 km/h / 118 mph
Designed in 1916 by G H Challenger and flown for the first time in August of that year, the F.B.19 was a single-bay unstaggered equi-span biplane with a single 7.7mm Vickers gun mounted on the port side of the fuselage and a 100hp Gnome Monosoupape engine. Ordered by the War Office for the RFC, the series version was powered by either the Gnome or the 110hp Le Rhone. Some 50 F.B.19s were built, and, late in 1916, a batch of six was sent to France where, after operational evaluation, the fighter was deemed un-suited for the fighting conditions then evolving. At this time, some of the F.B.19s were delivered to the Russian government following demonstrations in Petrograd, Moscow, Kiev and Tiflis, but several were still in their crates on the docks at Archangel at the commencement of the Bolshevik revolution. These aircraft were destroyed by the Royal Navy, but a few others assembled prior to the Navy’s action were flown in Bolshevik service. A modified version, the F.B.19 Mk II, was developed with wing stagger and either the Le Rhone or Clerget 110hp rotary. Only 12 Mk IIs were built and several of these were included in a batch of 12 F.B.19s sent to the Middle Eastern theatres of war. These were flown in Palestine and Macedonia from June 1917, but no squadron used the type exclusively and it was not well liked.
F.B.19 Engine: 1 x Gnome Monosoupape, 75kW Max take-off weight: 670 kg / 1477 lb Empty weight: 405 kg / 893 lb Wingspan: 7.31 m / 24 ft 0 in Length: 5.54 m / 18 ft 2 in Height: 2.51 m / 8 ft 3 in Wing area: 19.97 sq.m / 214.96 sq ft Max. speed: 158 km/h / 98 mph Ceiling: 5180 m / 17000 ft
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