The Aeromarine 40 was a two seat flying boat trainer aircraft used during WW1 as well. Whereas the Aeromarine 39 was mostly land based, the 40 was water based, which is why it had a hull instead of wheels. The 40 had the standard biplane wing configuration and at the end of each wing, was a pontoon, which kept each wing afloat when it wasn't flying. Also powered by the Curtis OXX engine, the plane also featured a V-8 water cooling engine system. 200 of these aircraft were ordered by the US navy towards the end of 1917. The 40B had a maximum speed of 71 miles per hour, a range of 319 miles, and a service ceiling of 1900 feet.
Both these planes were used as ways of reconnaissance for the allies. The pilot would fly the plane and the passenger would look below and try to determine the setup of the enemy troops. During the First Battle of the Marne, allied pilots spotted a gap in the German line. The allies exploited this weakness and were able to drive the German army back. These planes were also used as bombers for they could fly behind the enemy line and drop small explosives. However, both surveying for informations or dropping bombs behind the enemy lines was dangerous because the planes were very vulnerable to ground fire. Before the use of machine guns on planes, if enemy planes engaged each other, they would try to throw grenades or shoot each other with pistols or rifles, and as you might guess was not very successful. Towards the end of the war however, machine guns began to be placed on the nose and for the passenger on these planes. Innovations like the interruptor, which synchronized the firing of the machine guns on the nose of the plane with the spinning of the propeller, allowed for battles called dogfights. Dogfights were often fatal for the pilot because the cockpit was extremely exposed. The most skilled pilots were called aces.
I really enjoyed reading your post, as I am very interested in historical technology and weaponry. I liked how you included detailed specifications for both planes, as it highlights how the technology advanced over time. I was surprised by how capable these planes were, as airplanes had only been invented for less than 20 years. The Wright Brothers had made the first controlled and sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft on December 17, 1903.
ReplyDeleteI thought that your post was interesting and I liked it. I really liked how you not only included how they worked and how they were used by also gave an example for when they were used and how they impacted that battle. I do have a couple questions though. Was it ever effective to fly above 8000 ft near their maximum. I mean if they were trying to see the enemy lines I would expect gas, dust, and smoke from the battle would make it hard to see. Also were there any specific ways that both sides would counter airplanes? From what I've found online is that they mainly used other airplanes in order to do this. They mostly used handguns at the start but they were ineffective at larger ranges. Furthermore, how efficient and practical were these planes. We learned that a lot of new technologies such as the tank were greatly impactful on the war yet few of them actually made it to the front lines due to technical difficulties. Did planes suffer from the same problems too? But I do see how airplanes could really help one side out. On average, no man's land stretched for about 350 yards meaning that it must've been easy to scout and then return quickly.
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