SUPERMARINE S.5

The Supermarine S.5 was a British low-wing racing seaplane with a fixed float undercarriage from the interwar period. The length of the machine (in the N220) was approximately 7.3 meters, with a wingspan of approximately 8.15 meters. The drive was provided by a single 900 HP Napier Lion VIIA engine. The prototype flight took place in 1927. The machine never entered mass production - only three were produced. Supermarine S.5 was countered for one purpose - it was to achieve success in the competition for the Schneider Trophy. Its design was based on the successful Supermarine S.4 aircraft. Compared to its predecessor, the new machine was primarily characterized by a drive unit with significantly greater maximum power, it was also slightly shorter and had a smaller wingspan. However, it has retained the general structural layout and many technical solutions. The machine in 1927 was quite successful in the course of air races in Venice, but its designer Reginald Mitchell decided to redesign it and use it as a kind of base for a new racing plane, which turned out to be a successful Supermarine S.6.