1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Saro London 01: Air Ministry Photo· Public domain
what is it?
The Saunders Roe A.27 London was a British military biplane flying boat built by the Saunders Roe company. Only 31 were built, entering service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1936. Although due for replacement by the outbreak of the Second World War, they saw some active service pending the introduction of the unsuccessful Lerwick.
How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 24.4 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 92 years ago, in 1934.
- Top speed is 1.9× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 24.4 m: about 5 cars parked nose to tail.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1934
- introduced
- 1936
- retired
- 1941
- status
- retired
- number built
- 31
- role
- reconnaissance flying-boat
- makers
- Saunders-Roe
- engines
- 2× Bristol Pegasus X
- crew
- 6
- length
- 17.2 m
- wingspan
- 24.4 m
- height
- 5.7 m
- max take-off weight
- 8,346 kg
- top speed
- 249 km/h
- cruise speed
- 206 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 6,066 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q1751872, Wikipedia: Saro London (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.