History Seaplane

1 history

1.1 pioneers
1.2 birth of industry
1.3 world war i
1.4 between wars
1.5 world war ii
1.6 post-war

history
early pioneers

gabriel voisin, air pioneer, made 1 of earliest flights in seaplane, henry farman (left), in 1908

the frenchman alphonse pénaud filed first patent flying machine boat hull , retractable landing gear in 1876, austrian wilhelm kress credited building first seaplane, drachenflieger, in 1898, although 2 30 hp daimler engines inadequate take-off, , later sank when 1 of 2 floats collapsed.

on 6 june 1905, gabriel voisin took off , landed on river seine towed kite glider on floats. first of unpowered flights 150 yards (140 m). later built powered floatplane in partnership louis blériot, machine unsuccessful.

other pioneers attempted attach floats aircraft in britain, australia, france , united states.

on 28 march 1910, frenchman henri fabre flew first successful powered seaplane, gnome omega-powered hydravion, trimaran floatplane. fabre s first successful take off , landing powered seaplane inspired other aviators, , designed floats several other flyers. first hydro-aeroplane competition held in monaco in march 1912, featuring aircraft using floats fabre, curtiss, tellier , farman. led first scheduled seaplane passenger services, @ aix-les-bains, using five-seat sanchez-besa 1 august 1912. french navy ordered first floatplane in 1912.

in 1911−12, françois denhaut constructed first seaplane fuselage forming hull, using various designs give hydrodynamic lift @ take-off. first successful flight on 13 april 1912. throughout 1910 , 1911, american pioneering aviator glenn curtiss developed floatplane successful curtiss model d land-plane, used larger central float , sponsons. combining floats wheels, made first amphibian flights in february 1911 , awarded first collier trophy flight achievement. 1912, experiments hulled seaplane resulted in 1913 model e , model f, called flying-boats . in february 1911, united states navy took delivery of curtiss model e , tested landings on , take-offs ships, using curtiss model d.

in britain, captain edward wakefield , oscar gnosspelius began explore feasibility of flight water in 1908. decided make use of windermere in lake district, england’s largest lake. latter s first attempts fly attracted large crowds, though aircraft failed take off , required re-design of floats incorporating features of borwick’s successful speed-boat hulls. meanwhile, wakefield ordered floatplane similar design of 1910 fabre hydravion. november 1911, both gnosspelius , wakefield had aircraft capable of flight water , awaited suitable weather conditions. gnosspelius s flight short-lived, aircraft crashed lake. wakefield’s pilot, however, taking advantage of light northerly wind, took off , flew @ height of 50 feet (15 m) ferry nab, made wide turn , returned perfect landing on lake’s surface.

in switzerland, emile taddéoli equipped dufaux 4 biplane swimmers , took off in 1912. seaplane used during balkan wars in 1913, when greek astra hydravion did reconnaissance of turkish fleet , dropped 4 bombs.

birth of industry

in 1913, daily mail newspaper put £10,000 prize first non-stop aerial crossing of atlantic, enhanced further sum women s aerial league of great britain.

curtiss nc flying boat nc-3 skims across water before takeoff, 1919.

american businessman rodman wanamaker became determined prize should go american aircraft , commissioned curtiss aeroplane , motor company design , build aircraft capable of making flight. curtiss s development of flying fish flying boat in 1913 brought him contact john cyril porte, retired royal navy lieutenant, aircraft designer , test pilot become influential british aviation pioneer. recognising many of accidents attributable poor understanding of handling while in contact water, pair s efforts went developing practical hull designs make transatlantic crossing possible.

the 2 years before world war s breakout saw privately produced pair of benoist xiv biplane flying boats, designed thomas w. benoist, initiate start of first heavier-than-air airline service anywhere in world, , first airline service of kind @ in united states.

at same time, british boat-building firm j. samuel white of cowes on isle of wight set new aircraft division , produced flying boat in united kingdom. displayed @ london air show @ olympia in 1913. in same year, collaboration between s. e. saunders boatyard of east cowes , sopwith aviation company produced bat boat , aircraft consuta laminated hull operate land or on water, today called amphibious aircraft. bat boat completed several landings on sea , on land , duly awarded mortimer singer prize. first all-british aeroplane capable of making 6 return flights on 5 miles within 5 hours.

in usa, wanamaker s commission built on glen curtiss s previous development , experience curtiss model f u.s. navy, rapidly resulted in america, designed under porte s supervision following study , rearrangement of flight plan; aircraft conventional biplane design two-bay, unstaggered wings of unequal span 2 pusher inline engines mounted side-by-side above fuselage in interplane gap. wingtip pontoons attached directly below lower wings near tips. design (later developed model h) resembled curtiss s earlier flying boats built considerably larger carry enough fuel cover 1,100 mi (1,800 km). 3 crew members accommodated in enclosed cabin.

trials of america began 23 june 1914 porte chief test pilot; testing revealed serious shortcomings in design; under-powered, engines replaced more powerful tractor engines. there tendency nose of aircraft try submerge engine power increased while taxiing on water. phenomenon had not been encountered before, since curtiss s earlier designs had not used such powerful engines nor large fuel/cargo loads , relatively more buoyant. in order counteract effect, curtiss fitted fins sides of bow add hydrodynamic lift, replaced these sponsons, type of underwater pontoon mounted in pairs on either side of hull. these sponsons (or engineering equivalents) , flared, notched hull remain prominent feature of flying-boat hull design in decades follow. problem resolved, preparations crossing resumed. while craft found handle heavily on takeoff, , required rather longer take-off distances expected, full moon on 5 august 1914 selected trans-atlantic flight; porte pilot america george hallett co-pilot , mechanic.

world war i

curtiss , porte s plans interrupted outbreak of world war i. porte sailed england on 4 august 1914 , rejoined navy member of royal naval air service. appointed squadron commander of royal navy air station hendon, convinced admiralty of potential of flying boats , put in charge of naval air station @ felixstowe in 1915. porte persuaded admiralty commandeer (and later, purchase) america , sister craft curtiss. followed order 12 more similar aircraft, 1 model h-2 , remaining model h-4 s. 4 examples of latter assembled in uk saunders. of these similar design of america and, indeed, referred americas in royal navy service. engines, however, changed under-powered 160 hp curtiss engines 250 hp rolls-royce falcon engines. initial batch followed order 50 more (totalling 64 americas overall during war). porte acquired permission modify , experiment curtiss aircraft.

the curtiss h-4s found have number of problems; underpowered, hulls weak sustained operations, , had poor handling characteristics when afloat or taking off. 1 flying boat pilot, major theodore douglas hallam, wrote comic machines, weighing under 2 tons; 2 comic engines giving, when functioned, 180 horsepower; , comic control, being nose heavy engines on , tail heavy in glide.

the felixstowe f.2a, first production seaplane, , basis future development

at felixstowe, porte made advances in flying-boat design , developed practical hull design distinctive felixstowe notch . porte s first design implemented in felixstowe felixstowe porte baby, large, three-engined biplane flying boat, powered 1 central pusher , 2 outboard tractor rolls-royce eagle engines.

porte modified h-4 new hull improved hydrodynamic qualities made taxiing, take-off , landing more practical , called felixstowe f.1.

porte s innovation of felixstowe notch enabled craft overcome suction water more , break free flight more easily. made operating craft far safer , more reliable. notch breakthrough after evolve step , rear section of lower hull sharply recessed above forward lower hull section, , characteristic became feature of both flying-boat hulls , seaplane floats. resulting aircraft large enough carry sufficient fuel fly long distances , berth alongside ships take on more fuel.

porte designed similar hull larger curtiss h-12 flying boat which, while larger , more capable h-4s, shared failings of weak hull , poor water handling. combination of new porte-designed hull, time fitted 2 steps, wings of h-12 , new tail, , powered 2 rolls-royce eagle engines, named felixstowe f.2 , first flew in july 1916, proving superior curtiss on based. used basis future designs. entered production felixstowe f.2a, being used patrol aircraft, 100 being completed end of world war i. seventy built, , these followed 2 f.2c, built @ felixstowe.

in february 1917, first prototype of felixstowe f.3 flown. larger , heavier f.2, giving greater range , heavier bomb load, poorer agility. approximately 100 felixstowe f.3s produced before end of war.

the felixstowe f.5, designed lieutenant commander john cyril porte @ seaplane experimental station, felixstowe

the felixstowe f.5 intended combine qualities of f.2 , f.3, prototype first flying in may 1918. prototype showed superior qualities predecessors but, ease production, production version modified make extensive use of components f.3, resulted in lower performance f.2a or f.5.

porte s final design @ seaplane experimental station 123-foot-span five-engined felixstowe fury triplane (also known porte super-baby or psb ).

f.2, f.3, , f.5 flying boats extensively employed royal navy coastal patrols , search german u-boats. in 1918, towed on lighters towards northern german ports extend range; on 4 june 1918, resulted in 3 f.2as engaging in dogfight ten german seaplanes, shooting down 2 confirmed , 4 probables @ no loss. result of action, british flying boats dazzle-painted aid identification in combat.

felixstowe f5l under construction @ naval aircraft factory, philadelphia, circa 1920

the curtiss aeroplane , motor company independently developed designs small model f, larger model k (several of sold russian naval air service), , model c u.s. navy. curtiss, among others, built felixstowe f.5 curtiss f5l, based on final porte hull designs , powered american liberty engines.

meanwhile, pioneering flying-boat designs of françois denhaut had been steadily developed franco-british aviation company range of practical craft. smaller felixstowes, several thousand fbas served of allied forces reconnaissance craft, patrolling north sea, atlantic , mediterranean oceans.

in italy, several seaplanes developed, starting l series , progressing m series. macchi m.5, in particular, extremely manoeuvrable , agile , matched land-based aircraft had fight. 2 hundred forty-four built in total. towards end of world war i, aircraft flown italian navy aviation, united states navy , united states marine corps airmen. ensign charles hammann won first medal of honor awarded united states naval aviator in m.5

the german aircraft manufacturing company hansa-brandenburg built flying boats starting model hansa-brandenburg gw in 1916, , had degree of military success hansa-brandenburg w.12 two-seat floatplane fighter following year, being primary aircraft flown imperial germany s notable, 13-victory maritime fighter ace, friedrich christiansen. austro-hungarian firm lohner-werke began building flying boats, starting lohner e in 1914 , later (1915) influential lohner l version.

between wars

a supermarine southampton

in september 1919, british company supermarine started operating first flying-boat service in world, woolston le havre in france, short-lived.

a curtiss nc-4 became first aircraft fly across atlantic ocean in 1919, crossing via azores. of 4 made attempt, 1 completed flight.

in 1923, first successful commercial flying-boat service introduced, flights , channel islands. british aviation industry experiencing rapid growth. government decided nationalization necessary , ordered 5 aviation companies merge form state-owned imperial airways of london (ial). ial became international flag-carrying british airline, providing flying-boat passenger , mail-transport links between britain , south africa using aircraft such short s.8 calcutta.

in 1928, 4 supermarine southampton flying boats of raf far east flight arrived in melbourne, australia. flight considered proof flying boats had evolved become reliable means of long-distance transport.

flying boats of ad astra aero s.a. @ zürichhorn water airport, uetliberg in background (~1920)

in 1930s, flying boats made possible have regular air transport between u.s. , europe, opening new air travel routes south america, africa, , asia. foynes, ireland , botwood, newfoundland , labrador termini many transatlantic flights. in areas there no airfields land-based aircraft, flying boats stop @ small island, river, lake or coastal stations refuel , resupply. pan boeing 314 clipper planes brought exotic destinations far east within reach of air travelers , came represent romance of flight.

by 1931, mail australia reaching britain in 16 days − less half time taken sea. in year, government tenders on both sides of world invited applications run new passenger , mail services between ends of empire, , qantas , ial successful joint bid. company under combined ownership formed, qantas empire airways. new ten-day service between rose bay, new south wales, (near sydney) , southampton such success letter writers before long, volume of mail exceeding aircraft storage space.

a solution problem found british government, in 1933, had requested aviation manufacturer short brothers design big new long-range monoplane use ial. partner qantas agreed initiative , undertook purchase 6 of new short s23 c class, or empire, flying boats.

dornier do-x on seaport town in baltic, 1930

delivering mail possible generated lot of competition , innovative designs. 1 variant of short empire flying boats strange-looking maia , mercury. four-engined floatplane mercury (the winged messenger) fixed on top of maia , heavily modified short empire flying boat. larger maia took off, carrying smaller mercury loaded weight greater take off with. allowed mercury carry sufficient fuel direct trans-atlantic flight mail. unfortunately, of limited usefulness, , mercury had returned america ship. mercury did set number of distance records before in-flight refuelling adopted.

sir alan cobham devised method of in-flight refuelling in 1930s. in air, short empire loaded more fuel take off with. short empire flying boats serving trans-atlantic crossing refueled on foynes; fuel load, make direct trans-atlantic flight. handley page h.p.54 harrow used fuel tanker.

the german dornier do-x flying boat noticeably different uk , u.s.-built counterparts. had wing-like protrusions fuselage, called sponsons, stabilize on water without need wing-mounted outboard floats. feature pioneered claudius dornier during world war on dornier rs. giant flying boat , perfected on dornier wal in 1924. enormous x powered 12 engines , carried 170 persons. flew america in 1929, crossing atlantic via indirect route. largest flying boat of time, severely underpowered , limited low operational ceiling. 3 built, variety of different engines installed, in attempt overcome lack of power. 2 of these sold italy.

world war ii

pby catalina

the military value of flying boats well-recognized, , every country bordering on water operated them in military capacity @ outbreak of war. utilized in various tasks anti-submarine patrol air-sea rescue , gunfire spotting battleships. aircraft such pbm mariner patrol bomber, pby catalina, short sunderland, , grumman goose recovered downed airmen , operated scout aircraft on vast distances of pacific theater , atlantic. sank numerous submarines , found enemy ships. in may 1941, german battleship bismarck discovered pby catalina flying out of castle archdale flying boat base, lower lough erne, northern ireland.

the largest flying boat of war blohm & voss bv 238, heaviest plane fly during world war ii , largest aircraft built , flown of axis powers.

kawanishi h8k, 1941-1945

in november 1939, ial restructured 3 separate companies: british european airways, british overseas airways corporation (boac), , british south american airways (which merged boac in 1949), change being made official on 1 april 1940. boac continued operate flying-boat services (slightly) safer confines of poole harbour during wartime, returning southampton in 1947. when italy entered war in june 1940, mediterranean closed allied planes , boac , qantas operated horseshoe route between durban , sydney using short empire flying boats.

the martin company produced prototype xpb2m mars based on pbm mariner patrol bomber, flight tests between 1941 , 1943. mars converted navy transport aircraft designated xpb2m-1r. satisfied performance, twenty of modified jrm-1 mars ordered. first, named hawaii mars, delivered in june 1945, navy scaled order @ end of world war ii, buying 5 aircraft on production line. 5 mars completed, , last delivered in 1947.

post-war

hughes h-4 hercules

after world war ii, use of flying boats rapidly declined several reasons. ability land on water became less of advantage owing considerable increase in number , length of land-based runways during world war ii. further, speed , range of land-based aircraft increased, commercial competitiveness of flying boats diminished; design compromised aerodynamic efficiency , speed accomplish feat of waterborne takeoff , landing. competing new civilian jet aircraft de havilland comet , boeing 707 proved impossible.

the hughes h-4 hercules, in development in u.s. during war, larger bv 238, did not fly until 1947. spruce goose , 180-ton h-4 nicknamed, largest flying boat ever fly. carried out during senate hearings hughes s use of government funds on construction, short hop of mile (1.6 km) @ 70 feet (21 m) above water flying lumberyard claimed hughes vindication of efforts. cutbacks in expenditure after war , disappearance of intended mission transatlantic transport left no purpose.

in 1944, royal air force began development of small jet-powered flying boat intended use air defence aircraft optimised pacific, relatively calm sea conditions made use of seaplanes easier. making aircraft jet-powered, possible design hull rather making floatplane. saunders-roe sr.a/1 prototype first flew in 1947 , relatively successful in terms of performance , handling. however, end of war, carrier-based aircraft becoming more sophisticated, , need sr.a/1 evaporated.

during berlin airlift (which lasted june 1948 until august 1949), ten sunderlands , 2 hythes used transport goods finkenwerder on elbe near hamburg isolated berlin, landing on havelsee beside raf gatow until iced over. sunderlands particularly used transporting salt, airframes protected against corrosion seawater. transporting salt in standard aircraft risked rapid , severe structural corrosion in event of spillage. in addition, 3 aquila flying boats used during airlift. known operational use of flying boats within central europe.

the u.s. navy continued operate flying boats (notably martin p5m marlin) until 1970s. navy attempted build jet-powered seaplane bomber, martin seamaster.

boac ceased flying boat services out of southampton in november 1950.

bucking trend, in 1948, aquila airways founded serve destinations still inaccessible land-based aircraft. company operated short s.25 , short s.45 flying boats out of southampton on routes madeira, las palmas, lisbon, jersey, majorca, marseille, capri, genoa, montreux , santa margherita. 1950 1957, aquila operated service southampton edinburgh , glasgow. flying boats of aquila airways chartered one-off trips, deploy troops scheduled services did not exist or there political considerations. longest charter, in 1952, southampton falkland islands. in 1953, flying boats chartered troop-deployment trips freetown , lagos, , there special trip hull helsinki relocate ship s crew. airline ceased operations on 30 september 1958.

saunders-roe princess g-alun @ farnborough sbac show in september 1953

the technically advanced saunders-roe princess first flew in 1952 , later received certificate of airworthiness. despite being pinnacle of flying-boat development, none sold, though aquila airways reportedly attempted buy them. of 3 princesses built, 2 never flew, , scrapped in 1967. in late 1940s, saunders-roe produced jet-powered sr.a/1 flying-boat fighter, did not progress beyond flying prototypes.

ansett australia operated flying-boat service rose bay lord howe island until 1974, using short sandringhams.

on 18 december 1990, pilot tom casey completed first round-the-world flight in floatplane water landings using cessna 206 named liberty ii.