Operational history Sopwith Triplane

triplanes of no. 1 naval squadron @ bailleul, france



raymond collishaw s triplane, serial n533. collishaw flew several triplanes, named black maria



french naval triplane

no. 1 naval squadron became operational triplane december 1916, squadron did not see significant action until february 1917, when relocated furnes chipilly. no. 8 naval squadron received triplanes in february 1917. nos. 9 , 10 naval squadrons equipped type between april , may 1917. other major operator of triplane french naval squadron based @ dunkirk, received 17 aircraft.

the triplane s combat debut highly successful. new fighter s exceptional rate of climb , high service ceiling gave marked advantage on albatros d.iii, though triplane slower in dive. germans impressed performance of triplane spawned brief triplane craze among german aircraft manufacturers. efforts resulted in no fewer 34 different prototypes, including fokker v.4, prototype of successful fokker dr.i.

pilots nicknamed aircraft tripehound or tripe. triplane famously flown b flight 10 naval squadron, better known black flight . all-canadian flight commanded ace raymond collishaw. aircraft, named black maria, black prince, black george, black death , black sheep, distinguishable black-painted fins , cowlings. black flight claimed 87 german aircraft in 3 months while equipped triplane. collishaw scored 34 of eventual 60 victories in aircraft, making him top triplane ace.

withdrawal service

the triplane s combat career comparatively brief, in part because triplane proved difficult repair. fuel , oil tanks inaccessible without dismantling wings , fuselage. relatively minor repairs had made @ rear echelon repair depots. spare parts became difficult obtain during summer of 1917, resulting in reduction of no. 1 naval squadron s complement 18 15 aircraft.

the triplane gained reputation structural weakness because wings of aircraft collapsed in steep dives. defect attributed use of light gauge bracing wires in 46 aircraft built subcontractor clayton & shuttleworth. several pilots of no. 10 naval squadron used cables or additional wires strengthen triplanes. in 1918, raf issued technical order installation of spanwise compression strut between inboard cabane struts of surviving triplanes. 1 aircraft, serial n5912, fitted additional mid-bay flying wires on upper wing while used trainer.

another drawback of triplane light armament. contemporary albatros fighters armed 2 guns triplanes carried 1 synchronised vickers machine gun. efforts fit twin guns triplane met mixed results. clayton & shuttleworth built 6 experimental triplanes twin guns. of these aircraft saw combat service nos. 1 , 10 naval squadrons in july 1917 performance reduced , single gun remained standard. triplanes built oakley have featured twin guns, engineering change severely delayed production.

in june 1917, no. 4 naval squadron received first sopwith camels , advantages of sturdier, better-armed fighter became evident. nos. 8 , 9 naval squadrons re-equipped camels between july , august 1917. no. 10 naval squadron converted in late august, turning on remaining triplanes no. 1 naval squadron. no. 1 operated triplanes until december, suffering heavy casualties consequence. end of 1917, surviving triplanes used advanced trainers no. 12 naval squadron.