The Sopwith Camel
Top fighter technology in the middle of WWI, it was outdated by the end of the war.
WWI provided such an intense testing ground for early aviation that the simple wooden planes of just before the war were almost antiques just a few years later.
Although it is near the peak of early biplane technology, Pilots of the Sopwith Camel used to joke that flying one would get you a cross, but it was a toss up as to whether it would be the Victoria Cross, the Red Cross, or a wooden cross over your grave. This WWI biplane was notorious for being difficult to control and slow, but it was also highly maneuverable in a dogfight, and well armed with twin machine guns. The machine gun mount gave it the hump which gave it the nickname “camel” by which we remember it. It was officially the Sopwith F1. Its worst feature was a strong tendency to spin uncontrollably out of a stall at anything below 48 mph.
Nonetheless it was the air superiority fighter of the middle of WWI, for probably about one year it was the best military aircraft in the world, but it was quickly surpassed. By the end of the war, camels were relegated to infantry air support, and a model for trench fighting was among the first aircraft to employ armor. From his cockpit armored against fire from below by a large iron plate the pilot fired downward mounted machine guns into ground troops, and dropped small bombs up to about 22 pounds by hand into trenches and other enemy troop concentrations. Despite its short service a Camel (serial number B6313) was the most successful fighter aircraft in RAF history with 46 confirmed kills of enemy aircraft including observation balloons.
The Camel was built with a variety of engines ranging from 110 to 150 hp, the largest engine was a Bently. There was also a very strange rear cockpit design with a gun turret for shooting down enemy zeppelins used in a British home defense role. This design is extremely unique, but the camel was already known for being front heavy with its machine guns in the normal front cockpit location.
The Camel had a wingspan of 28 feet, a top speed of 115 mph, and weighed a little over 900 lbs empty, and almost 1500 lbs loaded with fuel and ammunition for combat. It had a maximum ceiling of 21,000 feet, but was not very effective as a fighter above 12,000 feet. Remembering that it is was made of wood, canvas and wire it was an amazingly effective weapon for the Allies during WWI. The courage and daring of its pilots are so admirable that it is no surprise that they are legendary.
Note: Although I am attempting to avoid the temptation to focus on military hardware in Transportation History, the Sopwith Camel is such a perfect example of how radically WWI accelerated the development of aviation technology that it rates at least an honorable mention in Transportation History for that reason alone.
