Sopwith Dolphin - An Underappreciated Workhorse
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 4 окт 2024
- For this Saturday Extra, we return to aviation videos. And to the Great War, where we look at another underrated fighter aircraft. In this case, the Sopwith Dolphin. Probably the least known of Sopwith's major aircraft designs, well behind the Camel, Triplane and Pup. In spite of having a very large production run.
...albeit, with most of that production run being scrapped for lack of engines.
The Dolphin was a very capable fighter for its day and age. Fast, agile, and with excellent high altitude performance and pilot visibility. However, it entered service late and with engine troubles.
Declared obsolete soon after the Armistice, the Dolphin faded into obscurity. Let's try and change that, with this video.
Further Reading:
www.amazon.com...
www.amazon.com...
www.amazon.com...
www.amazon.com...
www.amazon.com...
www.amazon.com...
warbirdtails.n...
www.rafmuseum....
www.baesystems...
The Dolphin's fate reminds me of the Grumman Bearcat, another refined high-performance aircraft that came too late for the conflict and became quickly obsolete after the war. But at least the Dolphin actually got to prove itself in combat. Also, it could have had all the guns for its era.
Love the look of these old birds. I've got the Lego version of the Camel, which is pretty excellent
last time I was there , there is a Dolphin in the RAF museum
Keep the variety coming
The German Rumpler C.IV, and it's derivatives, was virtually beyond interception for allied fighters until the Dolphin, thanks to it's high compression altitude compensating Maybach 300 hp engine.
Amercan soldiers seeing the contrails these aircraft left at their 20,000ft operating altitude thought it was a secret weapon.
Love the Great War aircraft vids keep em comin
I love your content man, keep up the great work and thank you for all the informative videos.
More aviation please!! World War One aircraft preferably! Thank you!
From sunken ship to flying ship, but i like it
Bartholomew Bandy sent me! ❤
Thanks (for also making videos like this)
Perhaps a consideration to creating content about Heroes, Anti Heroes and Villains of both maritime and aerial personnel.
Captains, admirals, aces, engineers and designers, shipyards and so on... and b;y villain I meant the worst villain of all, Herman Goering.
I wish to know more about who was in charge of Kormoran, and Sydney, those crew as well as what ideology was in the mind of the people about IJN Yamato in the end: all Japanese were monsters, or not?
I apologize, a good content creator and I want more ... geez!
Cheers
For Al Gore's Rhythm!
I've got no issue with doing aviation... plenty of interesting history out there beyond the seas. This was interesting, I've only ever heard of the Sopwith Camel, wasn't even aware they had a whole line up of different type of craft
What a fascinating Great War raptor! I think I have seen this airframe in pictures before, but I had always mistook it for a Camel variant, or a French Spad variant. I am roughly familiar with the Scout Experimental 5, but I had never heard of an aircraft our performing it to such a degree prior to this vid.
I’m glad to see you making another aviation vid! Naval and aviation history often walk parallel paths, and the Great War really was the Wild West of wartime aviation. I do have one question, and it’s based on the diagram of the different varieties of Sopwith aircraft made during the war. Is the Triplane shown a repurposed Fokker Triplane, or did they just make their own design based loosely on a captured German model? I had to do a double take when I saw that, as I have never heard/seen an allied Triplane model before.
Cheers again for another awesome video! Can’t wait to we what Bird of Prey you cover next!
The Sopwith Triplane entered service in late spring of 1917, and similar to the Dolphin, was an excellent design that was fast and highly maneuverable.
The Fokker Triplane entered service in September of 1917, and while not a copy of the Sopwith, that plane was definitely the impetus for Fokker.
The Germans built quite a few Triplane designs from different manufacturers, only Fokker had any success with them.
The other comment covered it, but I also have a (fairly old at this point) video on the Sopwith Triplane.
(And another on Triplanes in general, for that matter)
Cheers for the info! I’m surprised that the allied triplane entered service before the more well known Fokker triplane. Were there ever any engagements between allied and German triplanes?
Cheers for the comment, and I’ll have to check out the vid on the allied triplane. You also answered a question I have held onto since I used to watch the Dogfights series. I always wondered how the pilots thought of the canopy mounted Lewis guns, but I think having risk of the gun flying back into your face kinda answers that for me.
Cheers again! Can’t wait for what else is in store!
@@DragonShadowfire1, no. The Sopwith was out of service *just* in time for the Fokker to enter service.
Online discussions from 20 years ago concluded that the two planes' relative advantages made them pretty much a match, the Sopwith being faster and the Fokker being more heavily armed, both being very nimble and quick-climbing.
😄👍🛩