Wight Seaplane

Seaplane
	Wight Type 840 on anti-submarine patrol 1915
Role	Biplane floatplane
National origin	United Kingdom
Manufacturer	J Samuel White & Company Limited (Wight Aircraft)
Designer	Howard T Wight
Introduction	1915
Retired	1917
Primary user	Royal Navy
Number built	52

The Wight Seaplane was a British twin-float seaplane produced by J Samuel White & Company Limited (Wight Aircraft). It was also known as the Admiralty Type 840.

Design and development

Designed by Howard T Wight and built by the aircraft department of the shipbuilding company J Samuel White & Company Limited, the Wight Seaplane was a slightly smaller version (61 ft (18.59m) span) of the Wight Pusher Seaplane. The aircraft was a conventional two-float seaplane with tandem open cockpits and a nose mounted 225 hp (168 kW) Sunbeam engine. Fifty two aircraft were built and delivered and an extra 20 were produced as spares production being undertaken by Portholme Aviation and William Beardmore & Co., Ltd.^[1]

Operational history

The Wight Seaplane served with the RNAS at Dundee Felixstowe, Scapa Flow and Gibraltar, being used for anti-submarine patrols between 1915 and 1917.^[2]

Operators

United Kingdom

Royal Navy
- Royal Naval Air Service

Specifications (Seaplane)

Data from The British Bomber since 1914 ^[1]

General characteristics

Length: 41 ft 0 in (12.50 m)
Wingspan: 61 ft 0 in (18.59 m)
Height: ()
Wing area: 568 ft² (52.8 m²)
Empty weight: 3,408 lb (1,549 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 4,810 lb (2,186 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Sunbeam, 225 hp (168 kw)

Performance

Maximum speed: 81 mph (70 knots, 130 km/h)

Armament
One 810 lb (370 kg) 14 inch torpedo or equivalent weight in bombs.

References

1 2 Mason, Francis K (1994). The British Bomber since 1914. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-85177-861-5.
↑ Thetford, Owen (1982). British Naval Aircraft since 1912. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. p. 455. ISBN 0-370-30480-2.

Mackay, Chales Edward (2012). Beardmore Aviation: The Story of a Scottish Industrial Giant's Aviation Activities. A Mackay. ISBN 978-0957344303.

*The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing.

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[mason_bomber-1] 1 2 Mason, Francis K (1994). The British Bomber since 1914. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-85177-861-5.

[thetford_naval-2] Thetford, Owen (1982). British Naval Aircraft since 1912. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. p. 455. ISBN 0-370-30480-2.