Handley Page HP.14
| HP.14 / Type R/200 | |
|---|---|
| Role | Carrier Based Reconnaissance Aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Handley Page |
| First flight | 1917 |
| Status | Prototype |
| Number built | 3 |
|
| |
The Handley Page HP.14, also designated Handley Page R/200 was a prototype British naval reconnaissance aircraft of World War I, capable of operating from the decks of the Royal Navy's aircraft carriers or as a floatplane. Only three were built, the Parnall Panther being preferred.
Design and development
The R/200 was designed in 1917 to meet an Admiralty requirement for a two-seat reconnaissance fighter capable of operating either as a floatplane or from the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers, the flush deck HMS Argus and the partly converted cruiser HMS Furious. The R/200 was a small single-bay biplane powered by a 200 hp (149 kW) geared Hispano-Suiza 8 V-8 engine with a frontal radiator. Handley Page received an order for six prototypes in summer 1917.[1]
The first two prototypes, fitted with floats were flown in December 1917, with the third prototype, fitted with a wheeled undercarriage flying in February 1918. Test results were poorer than the competing Parnall Panther, and as Handley Page was concentrating on production and development of the O/400 and V/1500 heavy bombers, the remaining three prototypes, together with a prospective production order for 20 aircraft were cancelled in March 1918.[2]
Specifications (R/200) (landplane)
Data from Handley Page Aircraft Since 1907 [3]
General characteristics
- Length: 25 ft 6 in (7.74 m)
- Wingspan: 36 ft 0 in (10.98 m)
- Height: 10 ft 9½ in[4] (3.29 m)
- Wing area: 390 ft² (36.2 m²)
- Empty weight: 1,882 lb (855 kg)
- Max. takeoff weight: 2,990 lb (1,360 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Hispano-Suiza 8 water-cooled V-8, 200 hp (149 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 83 knots (95 mph,[4] 153 km/h) at 6,500 ft (1,980 m)
- Service ceiling: 12,000 ft (3,660 m)
- Wing loading: 7.67 lb/ft² (37.6 kg/m²)
- Power/mass: 0.067 hp/lb (0.11 kW/kg)
- Clomb to 10,000 ft (3,050 m): 29 min 30 s[4]
Armament
- Guns: one .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis gun
See also
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
References
- Barnes, C. H. Handley Page Aircraft Since 1907. London: Putnam, 1976. ISBN 0-370-00030-7.
- Bruce, J.M. British Aeroplanes 1914–18. London:Putnam, 1957.
External links
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