48023 SHORT CRUSADER

The Short Crusader is a British racing seaplane with a fixed-float landing gear from the interwar period. The drive was provided by a single Bristol Mercury engine with 810 HP. The prototype flight took place in 1927. Only one copy of this plane was built. As a standard, the machine did not carry any weapons. The Short Crusader was designed by the Short Brothers label specifically to participate in the 1927 Schneider Trophy competition. The plane had many innovative solutions, rarely used in aviation structures of the 1920s. First of all, it was a monoplane with elliptical wings. The machine was also powered by a powerful engine at that time, which allowed it to accelerate to 435 km / h, which was a great result at that time. The plane was also aerodynamically refined. After the end of the aviation competition for which it was designed, it was taken over by the British Air Force.