White and Thompson No. 3

White and Thompson No.3
Role	Flying boat
National origin	United Kingdom
Manufacturer	White and Thompson
Designer	Norman Thompson
First flight	1 August 1914
Introduction	1914
Primary user	Royal Naval Air Service
Number built	9

The White and Thompson No. 3 was a British flying boat of the First World War. While the prototype was originally designed to compete in an air-race around the UK, eight more similar aircraft were built for the Royal Naval Air Service.

Development and design

In 1914, the White and Thompson Company Limited, of Bognor Regis, England, who had become exclusive licence holders for Curtiss flying boats for Great Britain the previous year, decided to build two different flying boats, one single-engined and a larger twin-engined machine, to compete in the Daily Mail £5,000 Circuit of Britain race for seaplanes, scheduled to start on 10 August that year.^[1][2]

The first to be completed was the single engined machine, designated the White and Thompson No. 2 Flying Boat.^[3] This was a two-bay, uneven-span pusher biplane powered by a 120 hp (90 kW) Beardmore built Austro Daimler engine mounted between the upper and lower wings. Its hull, construction of which was subcontracted to S.E.Saunders was of copper sewn mahogany (or Consuta) over a wooden frame and carried a crew of two in a side by side cockpit.^[2][4][5]

It first flew on 1 August 1914, but was impressed by the Royal Naval Air Service owing to the situation in Europe,^[2] with Britain declaring war with Germany on 4 August. An order for eight similar flying boats followed, designated White and Thompson No.3. These had rounded wingtips and a larger tail fin, and had the central fin surface that was mounted above the upper wing centre-section on the prototype replaced by two smaller surfaces above the wings. The production aircraft were powered by a 120 hp Beardmore engine, although one aircraft was fitted with a 150 hp (112 kW) Hispano-Suiza.^[6]

Operational history

The prototype, fitted with bomb-racks, proved reliable and popular, and was operated by the RNAS until being wrecked in June 1915.^[2][7] The first production aircraft was delivered to No. 1 Squadron RNAS on 7 February 1915. The No. 3 flying boats, which could be fitted with a Lewis gun on the port side of the cockpit were used for anti-submarine patrols from various bases both in the United Kingdom and France (with one force landing in the Netherlands and being interned) and latterly for training.^[8][9]

Operators

 United Kingdom

• Royal Naval Air Service

Specifications (Prototype)

Data from Bognor's Boats ^[8]

General characteristics

• Crew: Two
• Length: 27 ft 6 in (8.38 m)
• Wingspan: 45 ft 0 in (13.72 m)
• Height: 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m)
• Wing area: 400 ft² (37.2 m²)
• Airfoil: RAF 6 ^[10]
• Empty weight: 1,600 lb (727 kg)
• Loaded weight: 2,400 lb (1,091 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Austro-Daimler, 120 hp (90 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 61 knots (70 mph, 113 km/h ^[11])
• Wing loading: 6.00 lb/ft² (19.5 kg/m²)
• Power/mass: 0.05 hp/lb (0.08 kW/kg)
  
• Endurance: 6 hours
• Climb to 10,000 ft (3,050 m): 33 min 40 sec

Armament

• Guns: 1x .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun
• Bombs: Provision for underwing bomb racks

See also

Related development

• Curtiss Model F
• Norman Thompson N.T.2B

Related lists

• List of seaplanes and amphibious aircraft
• List of aircraft of the Royal Naval Air Service

Footnotes

1. Flight 17 July 1914, p.731.
2. London 1996, p.71.
3. Goodall 1995, p. 28.
4. Flight 11 September 1914, pp. 933-935.
5. London 1994, p.73.
6. Bruce 1957, pp.650-651.
7. Goodall 1995, pp.28—29.
8. London 1996, p.72.
9. Thetford 1978, p.433.
10. Goodall 1995, p.29.
11. Production aircraft 74 knots (85 mph, 137 km/h)

References

• "The Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom: Official Notices to Members", Flight, 17 July 1914, p. 731.
• "Testing the White and Thompson Flying Boat". Flight, 7 August 1914, p. 834.
• "The "Round Britain" Machines". Flight, 11 September 1914, pp. 933–935.
• "The "Round Britain" Machines". Flight, 9 October 1914, pp. 1014–1016.
• Bruce, J.M. British Aeroplanes 1914-18. London:Putnam, 1957.
• Goodall, Michael H. The Norman Thompson File. Tunbridge Wells, UK: Air-Britain, 1995. ISBN 0-85130-233-5.
• London, Peter. "Island Pioneers; Aircraft Production Origins on the Isle of Wight". Air Enthusiast, No.56, Winter 1994. Stamford, UK:Key Publishing. ISSN 0143-5450. pp. 71–77.
• London, Peter. "Bognor's Boats: The Aircraft of Norman Thompson". Air Enthusiast, No. 66, November–December 1996. Stamford, UK:Key Publishing. ISSN 0143-5450. pp. 70–75.
• Thetford, Owen. British Naval Aircraft since 1912. London:Putnam, Fourth edition, 1978. ISBN 0-370-30021-1.

External links