Parnall Peto
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| Parnall Peto | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Description | ||
| Role | Naval reconnaissance | |
| Crew | two, pilot and observer | |
| First Flight | 4 June 1925 | |
| Entered Service | ||
| Manufacturer | George Parnall and Company Limited | |
| Armament | ||
| Guns | None | |
| Bombs | None | |
The Parnall Peto was a small seaplane designed to Air Ministry specification 16/24 in the early 1920s for use as a submarine-carried reconnaissance aircraft.
Half a dozen examples were designed and built by George Parnall and Company, one being lost with the submarine HMS M2 when her hangar flooded. It was one of the most challenging projects which the company undertook, because of the very small hangar in which the aircraft had to fit, mounted immediately in front of the submarine's conning tower.
Of mixed wood, fabric, aluminium and steel construction, it had unequal span, Warren-braced folding rectangular wings. The first aircraft, N181, was powered by a 128hp Bristol Lucifer engine and had mahogany plywood "Consuta" type floats. Performance was generally satisfactory but improvements were made and the machine was rebuilt with new wings, metal floats and a 169 hp Armstrong Siddeley Mongoose engine. Tests both on the sea and in the air showed that designer, Harold Bolas, had met the requirements and it was officially judged to be exceptionally good.
The aircraft was launched using a compressed air catapult mounted on the forward casing of the submarine and recovered using a crane.
With the loss of M2, the Royal Navy abandoned submarine-launched aircraft, although most other navies also experimented with the concept in the interwar years.
[edit] Specifications
General characteristics
- Crew: two (pilot and observer)
- Length: 22 ft 6 in ()
- Wingspan: 28 ft 5 in ()
- Height: 8 ft 11 in ()
- Wing area: 174 ft² ()
- Empty weight: 1,300 lb ()
- Loaded weight: 1,950 lb ()
- Powerplant: 1× Armstrong Siddeley Mongoose IIIC five-cylinder air-cooled radial engine with two bladed wooden propeller, 135 hp ()
Performance
- Maximum speed: 113 mph at sea level
- Service ceiling: 35,000 ft (11,300 m)
- Rate of climb: 600 ft/min ()
- Endurance 2 hours
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