Blackburn Blackburn
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The Blackburn R-1 Blackburn was a 1920s British single-engine fleet spotter/reconnaissance aircraft built by Blackburn Aircraft.
History
The Blackburn was developed to meet a naval requirement (Specification 3/21) for a carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft and gun spotting aircraft. Blackburn designed a new fuselage and used the wing and tail surfaces from the Blackburn Dart. The pilot sat in an open cockpit above the engine, a navigator sat inside the fuselage and a gun position was located at the rear of the fuselage cabin. The aircraft's two-bay wings could fold for stowage aboard aircraft carriers, with the upper wing attached directly to the fuselage, which filled the interplane gap. Armament was a single forward-firing Vickers machine gun mounted externally to the left of the pilot, with a Lewis gun on a Scarff ring for the gunner.Template:Sfn
Three prototypes were flown during 1922, leading to an initial production contract for 12 aircraft.Template:Sfn The production aircraft were designated Blackburn I and the first deliveries to the Fleet Air Arm at Gosport began in April 1923. 18 more Blackburn Is were built in 1923–1924.Template:Sfn Its first operational deployment was with No. 422 Fleet Spotter Flight, which deployed aboard Script error: No such module "WPSHIPS utilities". in the Mediterranean in 1923.Template:Sfn
A further order was placed for 29 Blackburns with the more powerful Napier Lion V engine, designated the Blackburn II. The upper wing was raised Script error: No such module "convert". to improve handling.Template:Sfn A few Blackburns were used as dual-control trainers and all the Blackburn Is were converted to II standard before the type became obsolete in 1931, when they were replaced by the Fairey IIIF.
Variants
- Blackburn
- Prototype, three built.
- Blackburn I
- Production version with a 449 hp (335 kW) Napier Lion IIB engines, 33 built.Template:Sfn
- Blackburn II
- Improved production version with a 464 hp (346 kW) Napier Lion V, and increased gap between wings. 29 built.Template:Sfn
- Blackburn Trainer
- Trainer version of Blackburn I, fitted with side-by-side cockpit and dual controls. Known by the Fleet Air Arm as the Bull. Two out of Blackburn I batch.Template:Sfn
Operators
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Specifications (Blackburn I)
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
References
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Bibliography
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