Cody V biplane
| Cody V | |
|---|---|
| |
| Role | Experimental biplane |
| National origin | United Kingdom |
| Designer | Samuel Franklin Cody |
| First flight | July 1912 |
| Introduction | 1912 |
| Retired | 1913 |
| Primary user | Royal Flying Corps |
| Number built | 2 |
The Cody V was a single-engined
Development and design
In December 1911 the British War Office announced a competition for a Military aeroplane capable of carrying a pilot and observer for the recently established Royal Flying Corps. First prize was £4,000, with the War Office having the option to purchase any of the prize winning machines.[1][2]
The American showman and aviation pioneer Samuel Cody, who had developed a system of man-carrying kites from 1901, built his first aircraft, the
However, the aircraft was wrecked hitting a tree when landing on 3 July, and on 8 July Cody crashed the monoplane, badly damaging it and killing a cow. Still keen to enter the competition, Cody used the remains of the two damaged aircraft to build a new biplane, later to be known as the Cody V, using the powerful Austro-Daimler engine.[5][6] This was a pusher canard biplane, with seats for the pilot and three other people in an open cockpit. Lateral control was by wing warping and two vertical tails were carried on bamboo booms behind the engine.[6][7][8]
Operational history
Cody took the new aircraft for its maiden flight on 23 July 1912, flying it to
The War Office purchased the prototype Cody V, together with a second aircraft to be built to the same design. In October, Cody re-engined the biplane with a British-built 100-hp (75 kW) Green engine in order to enter the British Empire Michelin Cup competitions, winning the £600 prize for the fastest time over a 186-mile (299 km) circuit.[10]
After re-fitting with the Austro-Daimler engine it was delivered to the Royal Flying Corps on 30 November 1912, being issued to
Specifications
Data from The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing) [12]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Capacity: 3 passengers
- Length: 37 ft 9 in (11.51 m)
- Wingspan: 43 ft 0 in (13.11 m)
- Wing area: 430 sq ft (40 m2)
- Empty weight: 1,900 lb (862 kg)
- Gross weight: 5,512 lb (2,500 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Austro-Daimler water-cooled six-cylinder inline engine, 120 hp (89 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 72.4 mph (116.5 km/h, 62.9 kn)
- Stall speed: 48.5 mph (78.1 km/h, 42.1 kn)
- Range: 336 mi (541 km, 292 nmi)
- Rate of climb: 288 ft/min (1.46 m/s)
- Time to altitude: 1,200 ft (370 m) in 3 minutes 30 s
Notes
- ^ Bruce 1982, p.1.
- ^ Flight 23 December 1911, p. 1109.
- ^ Jarrett 1999, pp. 8–9.
- ^ Jarrett 1999, pp. 13, 15.
- ^ Bruce 1982, pp. 198–199.
- ^ a b c d Jarrett 1999, p.15.
- ^ a b Bruce 1982, p. 199.
- ^ Flight 7 September 1912, p. 808.
- ^ Bruce 1982, p. 345.
- ^ Jarrett 1999, p.16.
- ^ Bruce 1982, p.200.
- ^ Bruce 1982, pp. 199–200.
References
- Bruce, J.M. The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing). London:Putnam, 1982. ISBN 0-370-30084-X.
- "Cody and His "Cathedral"". Flight, 7 September 1912. pp. 808–809.
- Jarrett, Philip (July–August 1999). "Cody and his Aeroplanes: Samuel Franklin Cody: His Life and Times". Air Enthusiast (82): 6–17. ISSN 0143-5450.
- "The War Office Competition". Flight, 23 December 1911, p. 1109.
External links
