Short S.27

what is it?

The Short S.27 and its derivative, the Short Improved S.27 (sometimes called the Short-Sommer biplane), were a series of early British aircraft built by Short Brothers. They were used by the Admiralty and Naval Wing of the Royal Flying Corps for training the Royal Navy's first pilots as well as for early naval aviation experiments. An Improved S.27 was used by C.R. Samson to make the first successful take-off from a moving ship on 9 May 1912.

🔎How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 14.2 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 77 km/htop speed
• size 699 kgmax take-off weight

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 116 years ago, in 1910.
• 🚗Wingspan of 14.2 m: about 3 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

1910

number built

—

role

training and experimental

origin

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

makers

Short Brothers

engines

1× Gnome Omega

crew

2

length

12.8 m

wingspan

14.2 m

max take-off weight

699 kg

top speed

77 km/h

range

—

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.