All three were unequal-span pusherbiplane flying boats with a single step hull with ashlongerons covered in laminated plywood, divided by bulkheads into eight compartments. The empennage was carried on an upswept curved extension of the hull made from steel tubing. The pilot and observer sat side by side in the open cockpit.[1]
The design originated with patents by Donnet-Lévêque and initially reflected the general configuration of that company's aircraft. The Type A had a single-bay wing, while the larger Type B and C had two bay wings which otherwise only differed in the engine installed, with the type B using a 75 kW (100 hp) Gnome Monosoupape and the type C using a 97 kW (130 hp) Clerget 9B. The RNAS contracted for 20 type B's from Norman Thompson, who was responsible for building flying surfaces for hulls provided from France, which differed most noticeably by having a rectangular all-flying rudder in place of the D shaped rudder used on French examples. The Type A was the only version with a fin attached to the rudder although some aircraft had a field modification with a fin being added between the hull and the tailplane. The Type H was developed from the Type C but was larger, had a new hull that wasn't attached directly to the tailplane, had an oval rudder and used a Hispano-Suiza 8 stationary engine.
Operational history
RNAS FBA Type B, which used British-built flying surfaces with a French-built hull
The earliest examples sold entered service with the Austro-Hungarian Navy and Danish Navy prior to World War I, but large-scale use began with sales to the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) who initially ordered 20 Type B's from Norman-Thompson before receiving additional Type Cs from France. The French Aéronautique Maritime, and Italian Navy followed with orders for Type Bs and Cs in 1915. The FBA flying boats were used for naval patrols and frequently encountered their opposing German and Austro-Hungarian Navy counterparts which led to some being converted to single seaters armed with a machine gun. Three Type Bs were the first aircraft operated by the Portuguese Navy.
Variants
Type A
(1913) - powered by a 37 kW (50 hp) Gnome Omega, initial aircraft from 1913.
powered by a 75 kW (100 hp) Gnome Monosoupape 9 Type B-2. Over 150 built. The 20 Norman-Thompson built Type B for the RNAS had different flying surfaces.
A single example of a type B survives in the Museu de Marinha in Lisbon. This aircraft was reassembled from parts from the Portuguese Navy's first two aircraft.
Specifications (Type C)
FBA Type C drawing
Data from French aircraft of the First World War,[4] and The Rand McNally encyclopedia of military aircraft, 1914-1980[5]
Davilla, Dr. James J.; Soltan, Arthur M. (2002). French aircraft of the First World War. Flying Machines Press. p. 259. ISBN1891268090.
Durkota, Alan; Darcey, Thomas; Kulikov, Victor (1995). The Imperial Russian Air Service — Famous Pilots and Aircraft of World War I. Mountain View, CA: Flying Machines Press. ISBN0963711024.
Enzo, Angelucci (1983). The Rand McNally encyclopedia of military aircraft, 1914-1980. San Diego: Military Press. p. 88. ISBN0517410214.
Morareau, Lucien (2002). Les Aeronefs de l'Aviation Maritime. Paris, France: ARDHAN (Association pour la Recherche de Documentation sur l'Histoire de l'Aeronautique Navale. pp. 44–47. ISBN2-913344-04-6.
Taylor, Michael J.H. (1989). Jane's encyclopedia of aviation. London: Portland House. p. 381. ISBN0517691868.
Mulder, Rob J M (2015). "THE BRITISH AIRCRAFT ON THE ELTA OF 1919". European Airlines. EUROPEAN AIRLINES / ROB MULDER. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
Thetford, Owen (1982). British naval aircraft since 1912 (5th ed.). Putnam. p. 461. ISBN0370300211.
"The Franco-British Aviation Co Ltd". Flight. Vol. V (No. 52), no. 261. 27 December 1913. p. 1405. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
January 28, 2023
type, similar, type, were, family, reconnaissance, flying, boats, produced, france, prior, during, world, crole, reconnaissance, flying, boatmanufacturer, fbafirst, flight, 1912introduction, 1912status, retiredprimary, users, france, aéronautique, maritimeroya. The FBA Type A and the similar Type B and C were a family of reconnaissance flying boats produced in France prior to and during World War I FBA Type A B and CRole Reconnaissance flying boatManufacturer FBAFirst flight 1912Introduction 1912Status RetiredPrimary users France Aeronautique MaritimeRoyal Naval Air ServiceNumber built ca 250Developed into FBA Type H Contents 1 Development 2 Operational history 3 Variants 4 Operators 5 Survivor 6 Specifications Type C 7 References 7 1 Citations 7 2 BibliographyDevelopment EditAll three were unequal span pusher biplane flying boats with a single step hull with ash longerons covered in laminated plywood divided by bulkheads into eight compartments The empennage was carried on an upswept curved extension of the hull made from steel tubing The pilot and observer sat side by side in the open cockpit 1 The design originated with patents by Donnet Leveque and initially reflected the general configuration of that company s aircraft The Type A had a single bay wing while the larger Type B and C had two bay wings which otherwise only differed in the engine installed with the type B using a 75 kW 100 hp Gnome Monosoupape and the type C using a 97 kW 130 hp Clerget 9B The RNAS contracted for 20 type B s from Norman Thompson who was responsible for building flying surfaces for hulls provided from France which differed most noticeably by having a rectangular all flying rudder in place of the D shaped rudder used on French examples The Type A was the only version with a fin attached to the rudder although some aircraft had a field modification with a fin being added between the hull and the tailplane The Type H was developed from the Type C but was larger had a new hull that wasn t attached directly to the tailplane had an oval rudder and used a Hispano Suiza 8 stationary engine Operational history Edit RNAS FBA Type B which used British built flying surfaces with a French built hull The earliest examples sold entered service with the Austro Hungarian Navy and Danish Navy prior to World War I but large scale use began with sales to the Royal Naval Air Service RNAS who initially ordered 20 Type B s from Norman Thompson before receiving additional Type Cs from France The French Aeronautique Maritime and Italian Navy followed with orders for Type Bs and Cs in 1915 The FBA flying boats were used for naval patrols and frequently encountered their opposing German and Austro Hungarian Navy counterparts which led to some being converted to single seaters armed with a machine gun Three Type Bs were the first aircraft operated by the Portuguese Navy Variants EditType A 1913 powered by a 37 kW 50 hp Gnome Omega initial aircraft from 1913 Type A production powered by a 60 kW 80 hp Gnome Monosoupape 7 Type A enlarged production aircraft Type B powered by a 75 kW 100 hp Gnome Monosoupape 9 Type B 2 Over 150 built The 20 Norman Thompson built Type B for the RNAS had different flying surfaces Type C powered by a 97 kW 130 hp Clerget 9B 78 built Type 11 HE 2 two seat elementary flying boat Type 14 HE 2 Two seat training flying boat for the French Navy 20 built FBA 100ch French Navy nomenclature for the Type B FBA 130ch French Navy nomenclature for the Type COperators Edit Beached Imperial Russian Navy FBA Type C Former Portuguese Navy FBA Type B at the Maritime Museum Lisbon Austria HungaryKaiserliche und Konigliche Kriegsmarine BrazilBrazilian Naval Aviation Two Type B aircraft DenmarkDanish Navy FranceAeronautique Maritime ItalyItalian Navy PortugalPortuguese Naval Aviation Three Type B aircraft RussiaImperial Russian Air Service Imperial Russian Navy United KingdomRoyal Naval Air Service 116 aircraft 2 including 20 Type B aircraft Gosport Aircraft and Engineering Company 3 Survivor EditA single example of a type B survives in the Museu de Marinha in Lisbon This aircraft was reassembled from parts from the Portuguese Navy s first two aircraft Specifications Type C Edit FBA Type C drawing Data from French aircraft of the First World War 4 and The Rand McNally encyclopedia of military aircraft 1914 1980 5 General characteristicsCrew Two pilot and observer Length 9 14 m 30 ft 0 in Wingspan 13 71 m 45 ft 0 in Height 3 05 m 10 ft 0 in Wing area 32 m2 340 sq ft Empty weight 640 kg 1 411 lb Gross weight 907 kg 2 000 lb Powerplant 1 Clerget 9B 9 cylinder air cooled rotary piston engine 97 kW 130 hp Propellers 2 bladed fixed pitch pusher propellerPerformance Maximum speed 110 km h 68 mph 59 kn Range 320 km 200 mi 170 nmi Endurance 2 75 hours Time to altitude 2 000 m 6 600 ft in 25 minutesArmament Guns 1 x 7 7 mm 0 30 in machine gun Bombs 2 x 11 kg 24 lb bombsReferences Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to wbr FBA Type B and wbr FBA Type C Citations Edit Taylor 1989 p 381 Thetford 1982 p 461 Mulder 2015 Davilla 2002 259 Enzo 1983 p 88 Bibliography Edit Davilla Dr James J Soltan Arthur M 2002 French aircraft of the First World War Flying Machines Press p 259 ISBN 1891268090 Durkota Alan Darcey Thomas Kulikov Victor 1995 The Imperial Russian Air Service Famous Pilots and Aircraft of World War I Mountain View CA Flying Machines Press ISBN 0963711024 Enzo Angelucci 1983 The Rand McNally encyclopedia of military aircraft 1914 1980 San Diego Military Press p 88 ISBN 0517410214 Morareau Lucien 2002 Les Aeronefs de l Aviation Maritime Paris France ARDHAN Association pour la Recherche de Documentation sur l Histoire de l Aeronautique Navale pp 44 47 ISBN 2 913344 04 6 Taylor Michael J H 1989 Jane s encyclopedia of aviation London Portland House p 381 ISBN 0517691868 Mulder Rob J M 2015 THE BRITISH AIRCRAFT ON THE ELTA OF 1919 European Airlines EUROPEAN AIRLINES ROB MULDER Retrieved 10 February 2017 Thetford Owen 1982 British naval aircraft since 1912 5th ed Putnam p 461 ISBN 0370300211 The Franco British Aviation Co Ltd Flight Vol V No 52 no 261 27 December 1913 p 1405 Retrieved 10 December 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title FBA Type A amp oldid 1119899273, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
