Airco DH.4

"DH-4" redirects here. For the 1950s flying platform, see de Lackner HZ-1 Aerocycle.
Airco DH.4
DH.4 above the clouds in France
Role Light bomber / General purpose
Manufacturer Airco
First flight August 1916
Introduction March 1917
Retired 1932 (United States Army)
Primary users United Kingdom
United States
Number built 6295, of which 4846 were built in the United States.[1]
Unit cost
$11,250
Variants DH9, DH9A, Dayton-Wright Cabin Cruiser

The Airco DH.4 was a British two-seat biplane day bomber of World War I. It was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland (hence "DH") for Airco, and was the first British two-seat light day-bomber to have an effective defensive armament. It first flew in August 1916 and entered service with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) in March 1917. The majority of DH.4s were actually built as general purpose two-seaters in the United States, for service with the American forces in France.

The DH.4 was tried with several engines, of which the best was the 375 hp (280 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle engine. Armament and ordnance for the aircraft consisted of one 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Vickers machine gun for the pilot and one 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun on a Scarff ring mounting for the observer. Two 230 lb (100 kg) bombs or four 112 lb (51 kg) bombs could be carried. The DH.4 entered service on 6 March 1917 with No. 55 Squadron in France.

Design and development

The DH.4 was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland as a light two-seat day bomber powered by the new BHP engine. The prototype first flew in August 1916, powered by a prototype BHP engine rated at 230 hp (170 kW).[2] While the DH.4 trials were promising, the BHP engine required major redesign before entering production, and the Rolls-Royce Eagle engine was selected as the DH.4's powerplant. The first order for 50 DH.4s, powered by 250 hp (186 kW) Eagle III engines was placed at the end of 1916.[3]

The aircraft was a conventional tractor two bay biplane of all-wooden construction. The crew of two were accommodated in widely spaced cockpits, separated by the fuel tank.[3] It was armed with a single forward-firing synchronised Vickers machine gun and one or two .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis guns fitted on a Scarff ring fired by the observer. A bomb load of 460 lb (210 kg) could be fitted to external racks. While the crew arrangement gave good fields of view for the pilot and observer, it caused communication problems between the two crew members, particularly in combat, where the speaking tube linking the cockpits was of limited use.[4]

As production continued, DH.4s were fitted with Eagle engines of increasing power, settling on the 375 hp (280 kW) Eagle VIII, which powered the majority of frontline DH.4s by the end of 1917. Because of the chronic shortage of Rolls-Royce aero engines in general, and Eagles in particular, alternative engines were also investigated, with the BHP (230 hp/170 kW), the Royal Aircraft Factory RAF3A (200 hp/150 kW), the Siddeley Puma (230 hp/170 kW) and the 260 hp (190 kW) Fiat, all being used in production aircraft.[3] None of these engines could match the Rolls-Royce Eagle; however, there were simply not enough Eagles available.

In American production, the new Liberty engine proved suitable as a DH.4 powerplant. The Liberty was also to eventually power the British DH.9A.

Production

An early production DH.4

Production was by Airco, F.W. Berwick and Co, Glendower Aircraft Company, Palladium Autocars, Vulcan Motor and Engineering, and the Westland Aircraft Works in the UK. A total of 1,449 aircraft (from orders for 1,700 aircraft) were made in the UK for the RFC and RNAS.[5] SABCA of Belgium made a further 15 in 1926.[6]

In the United States, the Boeing Airplane Corporation, Dayton-Wright Airplane Company, the Fisher Body Corporation, and the Standard Aircraft Corporation produced the DH-4 with the Liberty L-12 engine for the American air services. A total of 9,500 DH-4s were ordered from American manufacturers, of which 1,885 actually reached France during the war.[1]

After the war, a number of firms, most significantly Boeing, were contracted by the U.S. Army to remanufacture surplus DH-4s to DH-4B standard. Known by Boeing as the Model 16, deliveries of 111 aircraft from this manufacturer took place between March and July 1920, with 50 of them returned for further refurbishments three years later.[7]

In 1923, the Army ordered a new DH-4 variant from Boeing, distinguished by a fuselage of fabric-covered steel tube in place of the original plywood structure. These three prototypes were designated DH-4M-1 (M for modernized) and were ordered into production alongside the generally similar DH-4M-2 developed by Atlantic Aircraft. A total of 22 of the 163 DH-4M-1s were converted by the Army into dual-control trainers (DH-4M-1T) and a few more into target tugs (DH-4M-1K). Thirty of the aircraft ordered by the Army were diverted to the Navy for Marine Corps use, these designated O2B-1 for the base model, and O2B-2 for aircraft equipped for night and cross-country flying.[8]

Operational history

British military service

The DH.4 entered service with the RFC in January 1917, first being used by No. 55 Squadron.[3] More squadrons were equipped with the type to increase the bombing capacity of the RFC, with two squadrons re-equipping in May, and a total of six squadrons by the end of the year.[3] As well as the RFC, the RNAS also used the DH.4, both over France and over Italy and the Aegean front.[3] The DH.4 was also used for coastal patrols by the RNAS. One, crewed by the pilot Major Egbert Cadbury and Captain Robert Leckie (later Air Vice-Marshal) as gunner, shot down Zeppelin L70 on 5 August 1918.[9] Four RNAS DH.4s were credited with sinking the German U-boat UB 12 on 19 August 1918.[9]

The DH.4 proved a huge success and was often considered the best single-engined bomber of World War I.[N 1] Even when fully loaded with bombs, with its reliability and impressive performance, the type proved highly popular with its crews. The Airco DH.4 was easy to fly, and especially when fitted with the Rolls-Royce Eagle engine, its speed and altitude performance gave it a good deal of invulnerability to German fighter interception,[10] so that the DH.4 often did not require a fighter escort on missions, a concept furthered by de Havilland in the later Mosquito in World War II.

A drawback of the design was the distance between pilot and observer, as they were separated by the large main fuel tank. This made communication between the crew members difficult, especially in combat with enemy fighters.[11] There was also some controversy (especially in American service) that this placement of the fuel tank was inherently unsafe.[12] In fact, most contemporary aircraft were prone to catching fire in the air.[N 2] The fire hazard was reduced, however, when the pressurised fuel system was replaced by one using wind-driven fuel pumps late in 1917,[11] although this was not initially adopted by American-built aircraft.[14] The otherwise inferior DH.9 brought the pilot and observer closer together by placing the fuel tank in the usual place, between the pilot and the engine.

Despite its success, numbers in service with the RFC actually started to decline from spring 1918, mainly due to a shortage of engines, and production switched to the DH.9, which turned out to be disappointing, being inferior to the DH.4 in most respects. It was left to the further developed DH.9A, with the American Liberty engine, to satisfactorily replace the DH.4.

When the Independent Air Force was set up in June 1918 to carry out strategic bombing of targets in Germany, the DH.4s of 55 Squadron formed part of it, being used for daylight attacks.[4] 55 Squadron developed tactics of flying in wedge formations, bombing on the leader's command and with the massed defensive fire of the formation deterring attacks by enemy fighters.[15] Despite heavy losses, 55 Squadron continued in operation, the only one of the day bombing squadrons in the Independent Force which did not have to temporarily stand down owing to aircrew losses.[16]

After the Armistice, the RAF formed No. 2 Communication Squadron, equipped with DH.4s to carry important passengers to and from the Paris Peace Conference. Several of the DH.4s used for this purpose were modified with an enclosed cabin for two passengers at the request of Andrew Bonar Law.[17] These aircraft were designated DH.4A, with at least seven being converted for the RAF, and a further nine for civil use.[18]

United States military service

At the time of its entry into the war, the United States Army Air Service lacked any aircraft suitable for front line combat. It therefore procured various aircraft from the British and French, one being the DH.4. As the DH-4, it was manufactured mostly by Dayton-Wright and Fisher Body for service with the United States from 1918, the first American built DH-4 being delivered to France in May 1918, with combat operations commencing in August 1918.[19] The powerplant was a Liberty L-12 of 400 hp (300 kW) and it was fitted with two .30 in (7.62 mm) Marlin (a development of the Colt-Browning) machine guns in the nose and two .30 in (7.62 mm) Lewis guns in the rear and could carry 322 lb (146 kg) of bombs. it could also be equipped with various radios like the SCR-68 for artillery spotting missions. The heavier engine reduced performance compared with the Rolls-Royce powered version, but as the "Liberty Plane" it became the US Army Air Service standard general purpose two-seater, and on the whole was fairly popular with its crews.

A formation of DH-4s in flight

Aircrew operating the DH-4 were awarded four of the six Medals of Honor awarded to American aviators. First Lieutenant Harold Ernest Goettler and Second Lieutenant Erwin R. Bleckley received posthumous awards after being killed on 12 October 1918 attempting to drop supplies to the Lost Battalion of the 77th Division, cut off by German troops during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive;[19] while Second Lieutenant Ralph Talbot and Gunnery Sergeant Robert G. Robinson of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) were awarded the Medal of Honor for beating off attacks from 12 German fighters during a bombing raid over Belgium on 8 October 1918.[20][21] The type flew with 13 U.S. squadrons by the end of 1918.[22]

Following the end of World War I, America had a large surplus of DH-4s, with the improved DH-4B becoming available, although none had been shipped to France. It was therefore decided that there was no point in returning aircraft across the Atlantic, so those remaining in France, together with other obsolete observation and trainer aircraft, were burned in what became known as the "Billion Dollar Bonfire".[23] With limited funds available to develop and purchase replacements, the remaining DH-4s formed a major part of American air strength for several years, used for many roles, with as many as 60 variants produced.[24] DH-4s were also widely used for experimental flying, being used as engine testbeds and fitted with new wings. They were used for the first trials of air-to-air refueling on 25 June 1923, and one carried out an endurance flight of 37 hours, 15 minutes on 27–28 August, being refueled 16 times and setting 16 new world records for distance, speed and duration.[25] The DH-4 remained in service with the United States Army Air Corps, successor to the United States Army Air Service, until 1932.[26]

DH-4s were also used by the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps, both during World War I and postwar. The Navy and Marine Corps received 51 DH-4s during World War I, followed by 172 DH-4B and DH-4B-1 aircraft postwar and 30 DH-4M-1s with welded steel-tube fuselages (redesignated O2B) in 1925.[27] They remained in service with the Marine Corps until 1929, being used against rebel factions in Nicaragua in 1927, carrying out the first dive-bombing attacks made by U.S. military forces.[27] The U.S. Navy converted some DH-4M-1s into primitive air ambulances that could carry one stretcher casualty in an enclosed area behind the pilot.[28]

Civil use

Robertson Aircraft Corp. operated DH-4 mailplane (CAM 2) 1926 at the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum.

Following the end of World War I, DH.4s and 4As were used to operate scheduled passenger services in Europe by such airlines as Aircraft Transport and Travel, Handley Page Transport and the Belgium airline SNETA, G-EAJC of Aircraft Transport and Travel flying the first British commercial passenger service from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome to Paris Le Bourget on 25 August 1919, carrying a reporter from the Evening Standard newspaper and a load of newspapers and other freight.[29][30] They were used by Aircraft Transport and Travel until it shut down in 1920, while Handley Page Transport and SNETA continued operating the DH.4 until 1921. One aircraft was used by Instone Air Lines until its merger into Imperial Airways in 1924.[31]

In 1923 the U.S. Post Office released a stamp featuring the DeHavilland Biplane being used for airmail service[32]

DH.4s were also used by the Australian airline QANTAS, flying its first airmail service in 1922.[33] Twelve DH.4s forming part of the Imperial Gift to Canada were used for forestry patrol and survey work, spotting hundreds of forest fires and helping to save millions of dollars worth of timber, with the last example finally being withdrawn in 1927.[34]

The U.S. Post Office also adopted the DH-4 to carry air mail.[35] In 1919, the DH-4B was standardised by the US Post Office, being modified to be flown from the rear cockpit with a 400 lb (180 kg) watertight mail compartment replacing the forward cockpit. The airmail DH-4B were later modified with revised landing gear and an enlarged rudder.[36] DH-4s were used to establish a coast-to-coast, transcontinental airmail service, between San Francisco and New York, a distance of 2,680 mi (4,310 km), involving night flight, the first services starting on 21 August 1924.[35] The DH-4 continued in Post Office service until 1927, when the last airmail routes were passed to private contractors.

Variants

Wright Radial Engine (R-1) fitted to a De Havilland DH-4B airframe.

UK variants

Soviet variants

United States variants

[37]

XCO-7 
(Boeing Model 42) Two-seat observation version with Boeing designed wings, enlarged tailplane and divided landing gear.
XCO-8
Was a designation of one Atlantic DH.4M-2 fitted with Loening COA-1 wings and powered by a Liberty 12A engine.

Operators

Civil operators

 Australia
 Belgium
 United Kingdom
 United States

Military operators

 Belgium
 Canada
 Chile
 Cuba
 Greece
 Iran
 Mexico
 Nicaragua
 New Zealand
 South Africa
 Soviet Union
Spain Kingdom of Spain
 Turkey
 United Kingdom
 United States

Survivors

The DH-4B on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

Specifications (DH.4 - Eagle VIII engine)

Data from The British Bomber since 1914[3]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

See also

Related development


References

Notes
  1. ↑ Quote: "Certainly the DH.4 was without peer among the day-bombing aeroplanes used by the aerial forces of any of the combatant nations."[4]
  2. ↑ Sometimes derided as the "Flaming Coffin," Gorrell's History of the Air Service of the AEF refuted the misconception. Quote: "Of 33 DH-4s lost to enemy action by the US Air Service, eight fell in flames- no worse than the average at the time."[13]
  3. ↑ 230 hp/171.5 kW for BHP Puma
  4. ↑ 106 mph for Puma engine variants
Citations
  1. 1 2 Jackson 1987, p. 58.
  2. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 53.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mason 1994, pp. 66–69.
  4. 1 2 3 Bruce 1952, p. 507.
  5. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 54.
  6. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 60.
  7. ↑ Bowers 1989, p. 67.
  8. ↑ Bowers 1989, p. 70.
  9. 1 2 Thetford 1978, p. 86.
  10. ↑ Jackson 1987, pp. 54–56.
  11. 1 2 Jackson 1987, p. 56.
  12. ↑ Maurer 1979, pp. 12, 87, 120, 132.
  13. ↑ Williams 1999, p. 83.
  14. ↑ Maurer 1979, p. 551.
  15. ↑ Williams 1999, p. 84.
  16. ↑ Williams 1999, p. 195.
  17. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 77.
  18. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 81.
  19. 1 2 "Fact Sheets: De Havilland DH-4." National Museum of the USAF. Retrieved: 19 April 2008.
  20. ↑ "The De Havilland DH-4, Workhorse of the Army Air Service." Air & Space Power Journal, Winter 2002. Retrieved: 9 May 2008.
  21. ↑ "Robert Guy Robinson, First Lieutenant, United States Marine Corps." Arlington National Cemetery Website. Retrieved: 9 May 2008.
  22. ↑ Angelucci 1981, p. 79.
  23. ↑ Swanborough and Bowers 1963, p. 198.
  24. ↑ Bruce 1952, p. 510.
  25. ↑ "Fact Sheets: Air-to-Air Refueling." National Museum of the United States Air Force. Retrieved: 10 May 2008.
  26. ↑ Swanborough and Bowers 1963, p. 199.
  27. 1 2 Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p. 156.
  28. ↑ "Help From The Skies." Popular Mechanics, November 1929.
  29. ↑ Jackson 1973, p. 41.
  30. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 79.
  31. ↑ Jackson 1973, p. 43.
  32. ↑ "24-cent DeHavilland Biplane". Smithsonian National Postal Museum.
  33. ↑ Jackson 1973, p. 40.
  34. ↑ Jackson 1973, pp. 70–71.
  35. 1 2 Pope, Nancy A."The de Havilland DH-4." Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Retrieved: 10 May 2008.
  36. ↑ Swanborough and Bowers 1963, p. 201.
  37. ↑ Jackson 1987, p. 67.
  38. ↑ "American airplanes: Lo - Lu." Aerofiles. Retrieved: 10 May 2008.
  39. ↑ Swanborough and Bowers 1963, pp. 202–203.
  40. ↑ Klaus, Erich. "Nicaragua Air Force Aircraft Types: de Havilland (Airco) DH.-4B." Aeroflight, 1 June 2003. Retrieved: 10 May 2008.
  41. ↑ United States Air Force Museum Guidebook 1975, p. 14.
  42. ↑ Fantasy of Flight Facebook Page, 2012
Bibliography
  • Angelucci, Enzo, ed. World Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. London: Jane's, 1991. ISBN 0-7106-0148-4.
  • Bruce, J.M. "The De Havilland D.H.4." Flight, 17 October 1952, pp. 506–510.
  • Bowers, Peter M. Boeing Aircraft since 1916. London: Putnam, Second edition, 1989. ISBN 0-85177-804-6.
  • Jackson, A.J. British Civil Aircraft since 1919: Volume 2. London: Putnam, Second edition, 1973. ISBN 0-370-10010-7.
  • Jackson, A.J. De Havilland Aircraft since 1909. London: Putnam, Third edition, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-802-X.
  • Mason, Francis K. The British Bomber since 1914. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books, 1994. ISBN 0-85177-861-5.
  • Maurer, Maurer, ed. The U.S. Air Service in World War I: Volume IV Postwar Review. Washington, D.C.: The Office of Air Force History Headquarters USAF, 1979.
  • Sturtivant, Ray and Gordon Page. The D.H.4/D.H.9 File. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 2000. ISBN 0-85130-274-2.
  • Swanborough, F.G. and Peter M. Bowers. United States Military Aircraft since 1909. London: Putnam, 1963.
  • Swanborough Gordon and Peter M. Bowers. United States Naval Aircraft since 1911. London: Putnam, Second edition, 1976. ISBN 0-370-10054-9.
  • Thetford, Owen. British Naval Aircraft since 1912. London: Putnam, Fourth edition, 1978. ISBN 0-370-30021-1.
  • United States Air Force Museum Guidebook. Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio: Air Force Museum Foundation, 1975.
  • Williams, George K. Biplanes and Bombsights: British Bombing in World War I. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Air University Press, 1999. ISBN 1-4102-0012-4.

External links

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