R27 weighed 1,630 pounds (739 kilograms). It used a 0.605:1 reduction gear and turned a forged duralumin Fairey Aviation fixed-pitch airscrew with a diameter of 8 feet, 6 inches (2.591 meters). In the 1931 configuration, it produced 2,350 horsepower at 3,200 r.p.m. The Type R was a racing engine with 4 valves per cylinder and a compression ration of 6:1. (FLIGHT)įor the 3 kilometer record, S.1595 was powered by a liquid-cooled, supercharged, 2,239.327-cubic-inch-displacement (36.696 liter) Rolls-Royce Type R single-overhead-camshaft (SOHC) 60° V-12 engine, number R27. Rolls-Royce Type R SOHC 60° V-12 racing engine. The fuselage panels were corrugated for strength, and several small parallel passages transferred lubricating oil from the fin tank to the engine, and further cooled the oil. The skin panels also served as surface radiators. The engine had a high oil consumption rate and the vertical fin was the oil supply tank. The engine coolant, a mixture of water and ethylene glycol, was circulated between these layers, which are known as surface radiators. The wing surfaces were constructed of two thin layers of duralumin with a very small space between them. There were no radiator or oil cooler intakes. In an effort to achieve the maximum possible speed, aerodynamic drag was eliminated wherever possible. The S.6B had an empty weight of 4,560 pounds (2,068 kilograms) and gross weight of 5,995 pounds (2,719 kilograms). The wing area was 145 square feet (13,5 square meters). The float plane was 28 feet, 10 inches (8.788 meters) long, with a wingspan of 30 feet, 0 inches (9.144 meters) and height of 12 feet, 3 inches (3.734 meters). It was of all-metal construction and used a high percentage of duralumin, a very hard alloy of aluminum and copper, as well as other elements. The Supermarine S.6B was a single-place, single-engine, low-wing monoplane with two fixed pontoons as an undercarriage. There were two S.6Bs, with the second identified as S.1596. The racer was developed from Mitchell’s earlier S.4, S.5 and S.6 Schneider Cup racers, and was built at the Supermarine Aviation Works (Vickers), Ltd., Southampton, on the south coast of England. S.1595 was Vickers-Supermarine S.6B Monoplane, designed by Reginald Joseph Mitchell, who would later design the legendary Supermarine Spitfire fighter of World War II. In recognition of his flights with the High Speed Flight of the Royal Air Force in connection with the Schneider Trophy Contest, 1931, culminating in the establishment of a world’s speed record on 29th September, 1931. In recognition of his achievement in winning the Schneider Trophy Contest, 1931.įlight Lieutenant George Hedley Stainforth. The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the Air Force Cross to the undermentioned officers of the Royal Air Force :. George Stainforth was the first pilot to fly faster than 400 miles per hour. The official record time as published by the FAI is 655 kilometers per hour (407 miles per hour). Run 4: 405.4 miles per hour (652.4 kilometers per hour)Īverage: 408.8 miles per hour (657.9 kilometers per hour) Run 3: 409.5 miles per hour (659.0 kilometers per hour) Run 2: 405.1 miles per hour (651.9 kilometers per hour) Run 1: 415.2 miles per hour (668.2 kilometers per hour) The course was flown between Hill Head and Lee-on-Solent, on the Hampshire shoreline, with Flight Lieutenant Stainforth making four runs, two in each direction, to minimize the effect of winds. This would later be used to calibrate the time measurements. Also new was the fuel mixture of “wood alcohol” (methanol), gasoline and ethanol, being used in the engine for the first time.ĭuring the speed runs, the High-Speed Flight squadron engineering officer flew along the course at an altitude of 400 meters, carring a sealed barograph. Supermarine S.6B S.1595 had engine R27 installed, along with a new airscrew provided by Fairey Aviation Company Ltd. Fortunately, the special speed record engine, number R27, was not installed in S.1596 at the time of the accident. While being towed back to RAF Calshot, the airplane sank. S.1596 had been damaged on landing after a test flight, 16 September. ![]() The High-Speed Flight had originally intended to use the second S.6B, S.1596, fitted with a specially-prepared Rolls-Royce Type R engine, for the 3 kilometer record attempt. Supermarine S.6B S.1595 at the London Science MuseumĢ9 September 1931: After waiting all day for the fog to clear, at 5:49 p.m., Flight Lieutenant George Hedley Stainforth of the Royal Air Force High-Speed Flight at RAF Calshot, made a 43-second takeoff run and began an attempt to set a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over a 3 Kilometer Course. ¹ His airplane was a Supermarine S.6B, number S.1595, the same seaplane that won the Coupe d’Aviation Maritime Jacques Schneider race on 13 September.
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