The Parnall Panther was a British carrier based spotter and reconnaissance aircraft designed and developed by Parnall and Sons in the latter years of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, continuing in service until 1926. A total of 150 Panthers were built by

Bristol Aeroplane Company The Bristol Aeroplane Company, originally the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, was both one of the first and one of the most important British aviation companies, designing and manufacturing both airframes and aircraft engines. Notable a ...

since after the end of World War I Parnall had stopped aircraft manufacture.

Development

The Parnall Panther was designed by Harold Bolas, who had joined Parnall and Sons after leaving the Admiralty's Air Department, where he had served as deputy chief designer under Harris Booth.Mason 1994, pp. 249, 250. It was planned to meet the requirements of Admiralty Specification N.2A for a two-seat reconnaissance aircraft capable of operating from

aircraft carriers An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

. The first prototype (serial ''N91'') flew in 1917, with a further five prototypes being produced.Thetford 1994

Design

The Panther was a wooden, single-bay

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

, which, unusually for the time, was fitted with a birch plywood

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

which could be folded for shipboard storage, the fuselage being hinged aft of the observer's cockpit. The pilot and observer were seated in individual cockpits in the deep fuselage, this giving a good view for landing, but restricting access to the pilot's cockpit. Inflatable flotation airbags were fitted beneath the wings to keep the aircraft afloat in the event of ditching into the sea, with a hydrovane fitted in front of the undercarriage in order to stop the aircraft nosing over.

Operational history

After evaluation, an order for 300 Panthers was placed with Parnall in 1918. However, this was reduced to 150 following the end of the year. Parnall, which had been purchased by W. & T. Avery Ltd. rejected this reduction in the order, so the order was transferred to the

,Donald 1997, p. 722. the order being completed between 1919 and 1920. The Panther served with Spotter Reconnaissance Flights aboard the aircraft carriers ''HMS Argus'' and ''HMS Hermes''. While the Panthers handled well in the air, the elderly Bentley engines proved unreliable, and the system of longitudinal arrestor wires in use aboard British aircraft carriers at the time, was unsatisfactory, resulting in many accidents. Panthers continued in service with the Fleet Air Arm until 1926, being replaced by the Fairey IIID. Twelve Panthers were sold to the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

in 1921–22, with two being sold to the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in 1920.Baugher, Joe
"US Navy and US Marine Corps BuNs, First Series – A51 to A5999."
''US Navy/US Marine Corps Aircraft Bureau Numbers,'' 14 January 2009. Retrieved: 11 June 2011.

Operators

; *

Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

** No. 205 Squadron RAF ; *

Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service The was the air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War. The Japanese military acquired their first aircraft in 1910 ...

; *

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Specifications

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * *

External links

Parnall Panther
– British Aircraft Directory {{Authority control 1910s British military reconnaissance aircraft Panther Carrier-based aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Biplanes Aircraft first flown in 1917