Short Singapore
| Short Singapore | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | Enlightenment - flying boat |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
17th August 1926 |
| Commissioning: |
1935 |
| Production time: |
1933-1937 |
| Number of pieces: |
37 |
The Short Singapore was a two-, later four-engine, flying boat made by the aircraft manufacturer Short Brothers in the 1920s. It was the company's last double-decker flying boat .
history
Short began to develop the Singapore (Short S.5) in 1925 , the first flight took place on August 17, 1926. The two wings had different sizes and were covered with fabric, while the fuselage was made of duralumin. Although the aircraft performed well, no production contract was awarded by the ministry.
Instead, it was awarded to the English aviation pioneer Sir Alan Cobham , who circled Africa (37,000 km) with it in the years 1927–1928. He left Rochester (Kent) on November 17, 1927, followed the Nile upstream from Benghazi , reached the Cape of Good Hope on March 30, 1928 and returned to Rochester on June 4, 1928.
In 1927 Short, who had insisted on it, received a production order after all and built the Singapore II (Short S.12) with a similar fuselage but with four engines. There were two of them in the two motor gondolas. Instead of one rudder, there were now three at the stern, and the cockpit was now closed. The first flight took place on March 27, 1930.
This type did not go into production, however, because in August 1933 the order was placed for four types of a Singapore III (Short S.19) and then expanded by 33 more aircraft. These aircraft were then also delivered from August 1933 to June 1937. The first machines were put into service in April 1935. The areas of operation were the English coastal areas, Singapore , Iraq and Egypt . Some remained in service until 1945.
production
Approval of the Short Singapore by the RAF:
| version | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mk.III | 4th | 9 | 16 | 8th | 37 |
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Dates (Short Singapore III) |
|---|---|
| length | 23.16 m |
| span | 27.43 m |
| Empty mass | 8,355 kg |
| payload | 4,115 kg |
| Takeoff mass | 12,470 kg |
| drive | 4 × Rolls-Royce Kestrel twelve-cylinder - V-engines , each with 560 hp (412 kW), fixed two-blade propeller wood |
| Top speed | 233 km / h |
| Service ceiling | 4,570 m |
| Climb performance | 3.5 m / s |
| Range | 1,600 km |
| Wing loading | 72.6 kg / m² |
| Power load | 5.5 kg / hp |
| Armament | 3 MG Lewis 0.303 |
| Bomb load | 500 kg |
literature
- Heinz AF Schmidt historical aircraft , Transpress Verlag, Berlin VLN 162-925 / 25/68
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_short_singapore.html historyofwar.org Short Singapore
- ↑ Halley, James J .: The K File. The Royal Air Force of the 1930s , Tunbridge Wells, 1995, p. 319 ff.