https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Aircraft_Factory_F.E.2
Between 1911 and 1914, the Royal Aircraft Factory used the F.E.2 (Farman
Experimental 2) designation for three quite different aircraft that shared only
a common "Farman" pusher biplane layout.
The third "F.E.2" type was operated as a day and night bomber and fighter by the
Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Along with the single-seat D.H.2
pusher biplane and the Nieuport 11, the F.E.2 was instrumental in ending the
Fokker Scourge that had seen the German Air Service establish a measure of air
superiority on the Western Front from the late summer of 1915 to the following
spring.
all pushers based on the general layout employed by the French aircraft
This "re-use" of the F.E.2 designation has caused much confusion.
The shooting arrangement was described by Frederick Libby, an American ace who
served as an F.E.2b observer in 1916:
"When you stood up to shoot, all of you from the knees up was exposed to the
elements. There was no belt to hold you. Only your grip on the gun and the sides
of the nacelle stood between you and eternity. Toward the front of the nacelle
was a hollow steel rod with a swivel mount to which the gun was anchored. This
gun covered a huge field of fire forward. Between the observer and the pilot a
second gun was mounted, for firing over the F.E.2b's upper wing to protect the
aircraft from rear attack ... Adjusting and shooting this gun required that you
stand right up out of the nacelle with your feet on the nacelle coaming. You had
nothing to worry about except being blown out of the aircraft by the blast of
air or tossed out bodily if the pilot made a wrong move. There were no
parachutes and no belts. No wonder they needed observers.
Role
Fighter/Reconnaissance, Night Bomber
Manufacturer
Royal Aircraft Factory
First flight
February 1914
Introduction
September 1915
Retired
1918
Status
Retired
Primary user
Royal Flying Corps
Produced
Number built
1,939
Variants
F.E.1, Vickers VIM
The F.E.2a entered service in May 1915 with No. 6 Squadron RFC, which used the
F.E.2 in conjunction with B.E.2s and a single Bristol Scout. The first squadron
to be equipped entirely with the F.E.2 was 20 Squadron, deploying to France on
eventually about ? of the F.E.2s were built as fighters (816) and ? as bombers
(395). The F.E.2b and F.E.2d variants remained in day operations well into 1917,
while the "b" continued as a standard night bomber until August 1918. At its
peak, the F.E.2b equipped 16 RFC squadrons in France and six Home Defence
squadrons in England.
By autumn 1916, the arrival of more modern German fighters such as the Albatros
D.I and Halberstadt D.II meant that even the F.E.2d was outperformed and by
April 1917, it had been withdrawn from offensive patrols. Despite its
obsolescence in 1917, the F.E.2 was still well liked by its crews for its
strength and good flight characteristics and it still occasionally proved a
difficult opponent for even the best German aces. Rittmeister Baron von
Richthofen was badly wounded in the head during combat with F.E.2d aircraft in
F.E.2 as a "Vickers" type, confusing it with the earlier Vickers F.B.5.
In combat with single-seater fighters, the pilots of F.E.2b and F.E.2d fighters
would form what was probably the first use of what later became known as a
Lufbery circle (defensive circle). In the case of the F.E.2, the intention was
that the gunner of each aircraft could cover the blind spot under the tail of
his neighbour and several gunners could fire on any enemy attacking the group.
On occasion formations of F.E.2s fought their way back from far over the lines,
while under heavy attack from German fighters, using this tactic.
Specifications (F.E.2b)
General characteristics
Crew: Two (pilot & observer)
Length: 32 ft 3 in (9.83 m)
Wingspan: 47 ft 9 in (14.55 m)
Height: 12 ft 8 in (3.85 m)
Empty weight: 2,061 lb (937 kg)
Loaded weight: 3,037 lb (1,380 kg)
Performance
Maximum speed: 80 knots (91.5 mph, 147 km/h)
Endurance: 3 hours
Service ceiling: 11,000 ft (3,353 m)
Rate of climb: 39 minutes 44 sec to 10,000 ft (3,048 m)
Power/mass: 0.053 hp/lb (86 W/kg)
Armament
Guns: 1 or 2x .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun for observer (one mounted in front and
one firing back over the top wing)
1 or 2x .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun sometimes mounted for the pilot's use in the
F.E.2d
Bombs: up to 517 lb (235 kg) of bombs
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