Handley Page HP15
| Handley Page V / 1500 | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | bomber |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
May 1918 |
| Commissioning: |
1918 |
| Number of pieces: |
60 |
The Handley Page V / 1500 (HP15) was a heavy British bomber aircraft that entered service at the end of the First World War in 1918.
development
It was the successor to the Handley Page O / 400 from 1916 and was to fly from airfields in eastern England to Berlin . The Royal Air Force referred to them as Super Handley . The basic design was very reminiscent of the Zeppelin (Staaken) R.VI , although no model of this type had ever come into British hands. The first flight took place in early May 1918.
In terms of design, the V / 1500 was based heavily on the R.VI, but had far better engines. Like the Zeppelin Staaken R VI, the V / 1500 used two motor gondolas with four Rolls-Royce-Eagle -VIII engines of 280 kW (380 hp) each. She had two pull and two pusher propellers . The aircraft was heavily armed, gunmen sat in the nose of the aircraft, on the back of the fuselage, prone down in the fuselage and in the stern.
Three machines were sent to No. 166 Squadron of the RAF in Bircham Newton , Norfolk . On November 8th the planes were to bomb Berlin at night and then Prague . However, Austria-Hungary had already capitulated, so the flight should now go via Berlin to Düsseldorf . However, the flight was canceled for technical reasons as the engines had to be replaced. The next day's flights were also canceled for the same reasons. Germany's surrender ultimately prevented the attack.
One aircraft, the J1936 Old Carthusian , was transferred from England to India on December 13th by Major ACS Maclaren and Captain Robert Halley . The flight led via Rome , Malta , Cairo and Baghdad . Karachi was reached on December 30th .
The plane played a role in the Third Anglo-Afghan War . On May 24, 1919, Captain Robert Halley flew from Risalpur as a pilot and Lieutenant E. Villiers as an observer to Kabul in three hours . They had eight 50 kg and 26 9 kg bombs on board, which they dropped on the royal palace in Kabul. The material damage was minor, but the attack had a strong psychological effect. A few days later, the Afghan King Amanullah Khan asked for peace. The war ended on August 8, 1919 with the Treaty of Rawalpindi .
A total of sixty V / 1500s were built and later replaced by Vickers Vimy . The J1936 fell victim to the termites that ultimately devoured the machine in India.
Military use
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 5-7 |
| length | 19.51 m |
| Wingspan | 38.40 m |
| Wing area | 278 m² |
| height | 7.01 m |
| drive | 4 × 12-cylinder V-engine Rolls-Royce-Eagle , each 380 PS (280 kW) |
| Top speed | 159 km / h at an altitude of 2,000 m (6,500 feet ) |
| Range | 2,092 km |
| Service ceiling | 3,355 m |
| Empty mass | 7,983 kg |
| Takeoff mass | 13,608 kg |
| Armament | 4-8 x 7.7 mm Lewis MG max. 3,402 kg bombs in the internal weapons bay |
literature
- Encyclopedia of Airplanes. Weltbild Verlag GmbH, Augsburg 1994, ISBN 3-89350-055-3 .
