Beardmore W.B.I

For a description of the format and data included in Production Tables, see here.

Contents

Type Description

• W.B.I
• Large 2 seat biplane bomber for submission to the Admiralty Bomber Competition of 1915-16. The aircraft featured high-aspect ratio three-bay wings to enable an attack in a long shallow glide in order to achieve tactical surprise. The heavily staggered wings were not made to fold owing to the interplane strut configuration and, because the mainwheels of the undercarriage were located well forward, the aircraft would have rested on its tailskid if the wings were folded. Ailerons were provided on upper and lower wings, interconnected by external cables. The undercarriage was cumbersome, consisting of two pairs of mainwheels, each pair being provided with two small forewheels on struts extending forward, cross-braced and wire-braced to the lower wings. The W.B.I was designed to carry six 112 lb bombs, probably suspended from two parallel beams attached beneath the fuselage between the two main wheel mounting structures. The bombs were to be aimed by the observer/gunner who, occupying the rear cockpit situated well aft, was provided with an aperture in the underside of the fuselage for sighting, and two large transparent panels in the sides. Provision was made for a 0.303in Lewis machine gun with ring mounting in the observer's cockpit. One 230 h.p. B.H.P. powerplant initially; later one 240 h.p Sunbeam.

Projected Variants

• W.B.IA Atlantic
• Variant of the W.B.I. with larger span four bay wings. The pilot and observer were located very much in rear of the main plane, the pilot being midway between the main and tail planes and the observer immediately in front of the fixed fin which emerged from the fairing round the observer's cockpit. One 500 h.p. Beardmore Atlantic powerplant.

Production Details

Notes

1. Actually Works Contract Numbers.
2. From MacKay [1], the machine was originally known as the 'Experimental Bomb-Dropper Aircraft' and was allocated serial N525. Following an accident and repairs, it had gained its Beardmore Type Number W.B.I. From Cross and Cockade [3], "On May 25, 1917, the WB1 was at RNAS Station Cranwell awaiting erection. By now it was known as the Beardmore RE12 Bomber - the significance of this designation is not known, but it may have indicated Richards Experimental No 12."
   Additionally from Cross and Cockade, "The naval experimental serial number N525 was allotted to the WB1 against Contract No AS7123. The RFC serial B9467 was allotted to a Beardmore Competition Bomber against the same Contract No AS7123. It is not known if this was a number given to the naval machine for eventual transfer to the RFC or if it had originally been intended that two separate machines should be built. However it seems that only the one machine was, in fact, built."

Production References

1. Beardmore Aviation 1913-1930, Charles MacKay (A. MacKay, 2012)
2. Royal Navy Aircraft Serials and Units, 1911-1919, Ray Sturtivant and Gordon Page (Air-Britain Publications, 1992
3. Cross and Cockade Vol 5 No 2
4. Janes All The Worlds Aircraft 1919, ed. C.G. Grey (Sampson Low, 1919)