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The Supermarine Sparrow (later called the Sparrow I) was a British two-seat light
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 ...
designed by R.J. Mitchell and built at
Supermarine Supermarine was a British aircraft manufacturer. It is most famous for producing the Spitfire fighter plane during World War II. The company built a range of seaplanes and flying boats, winning the Schneider Trophy for seaplanes with three cons ...
's works at Woolston, Southampton. It first flew on 11 September 1924. After being rebuilt in 1926 as a parasol
monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
, it was re-designated Sparrow II. The Sparrow was Supermarine's earliest landplane. It was a wooden two-seat
sesquiplane 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 a ...
powered by a Blackburne Thrush. It had foldable wings with different cross sections; to allow the aircraft to take-off and land over short distances, Mitchell gave the wings a high
angle of attack In fluid dynamics, angle of attack (AOA, α, or \alpha) is the angle between a Airfoil#Airfoil terminology, reference line on a body (often the chord (aircraft), chord line of an airfoil) and the vector (geometry), vector representing the relat ...
. The Sparrow behaved erratically during tests. It was entered for the 1924 Two-Seater Light Aeroplane Competition but suffered engine failure during the competition. A substitute engine failed during the race, forcing the pilot to land at short notice, and the plane was eliminated. Sparrow II was heavier and slower than its predecessor. It was entered for the 1926 competition at Lympne but, having made a forced landing near
Beachy Head Beachy Head is a Chalk Group, chalk headland in East Sussex, England. It is situated close to Eastbourne, East Sussex, Eastbourne, immediately east of the Seven Sisters, Sussex, Seven Sisters. Beachy Head is located within the administrative ar ...
, was eliminated. Mitchell went on to use Sparrow II to test new aerofoil designs for the
Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...
. It was subsequently sold to a flying club and was scrapped in 1933.


Background

Following the end of World War I, private flying in the UK was progressed slowly. Ex-military aircraft were generally unsuitable, having been designed during the war to suit specific purposes, and aircraft companies considered that little profit could be obtained from aircraft made for private use. In 1923, the
Royal Aero Club The Royal Aero Club (RAeC) is the national co-ordinating body for air sport in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1901 as the Aero Club of Great Britain, being granted the title of the "Royal Aero Club" in 1910. History The Aero Club was foun ...
organised the first of a series of annual flying competitions at
Lympne Lympne (), formerly also Lymne, is a village on the former shallow-gradient sea cliffs above the expansive agricultural plain of Romney Marsh in Kent. The settlement forms an L shape stretching from Port Lympne Zoo via Lympne Castle facing Ly ...
,
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
, for single-seat aircraft. The following year,
Supermarine Supermarine was a British aircraft manufacturer. It is most famous for producing the Spitfire fighter plane during World War II. The company built a range of seaplanes and flying boats, winning the Schneider Trophy for seaplanes with three cons ...
entered the Sparrow for the Two-Seater Light Aeroplane Competition, which was held in late September and early October 1924. The winner's prize was for "the best light plane designed and built in Great Britain, suitable for flying clubs and the private owner".


Design

The Sparrow was Supermarine's earliest design for a landplane, following the company's change of identity from Pemberton-Billing Ltd in 1916. Designed by R.J. Mitchell, Supermarine's young chief designer, the Sparrow was a wooden two-seat
sesquiplane 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 a ...
, with wings that were designed to fold. The two wings had different cross sections. The aircraft was powered by a Blackburne Thrush piston engine, with dual controls. The engine was, however, untried. The
fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...
was built of fabric-covered
plywood Plywood is a composite material manufactured from thin layers, or "plies", of wood veneer that have been stacked and glued together. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured boards, which include plywood, medium-density fibreboa ...
. The propellers were made to match the rotation speed of the engine, which, at 3500
rpm Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...
, was unusually high. The aircraft's hull and struts were painted dark blue. Mitchell took the need for the aircraft to handle short take-off and landing runs into his design. He ensured that the wings were given a high
angle of attack In fluid dynamics, angle of attack (AOA, α, or \alpha) is the angle between a Airfoil#Airfoil terminology, reference line on a body (often the chord (aircraft), chord line of an airfoil) and the vector (geometry), vector representing the relat ...
, providing the fuselage with an upward kink. Both wings were fitted with
aerofoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is a streamlined body that is capable of generating significantly more lift than drag. Wings, sails and propeller blades are examples of airfoils. Foils of similar function designed ...
s.


Performance


Sparrow I

Sparrow I first flew on 11 September 1924, piloted by Henri Biard. It was refitted with a modified propeller on 27 September. Its behaviour when being tested was erratic. According to Biard, "it was as impudent as its name implied". The Sparrow was demonstrated before its designer, R.J. Mitchell, and other Supermarine directors. The engine failed when the plane was airborne, and the directors raced towards a hole in a hedge that it had crashed through. Biard was found, unscathed. Attempts to restart the engine failed, and the demonstration was called off. The Sparrow then flew back without further trouble. The
Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...
assessment described the Sparrow as lacking attention to detail — specifically referring to the inadequate design of the
landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for taxiing, takeoff or landing. For aircraft, it is generally needed for all three of these. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, s ...
and the excessive number of external controls. The pilot's view from the
cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...
was limited by the position of the upper wing. The three-cylinder
radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...
proved to be extremely unreliable, and the Sparrow was eliminated from the light aircraft trial due to engine failure, when a
connecting rod A connecting rod, also called a 'con rod', is the part of a reciprocating engine, piston engine which connects the piston to the crankshaft. Together with the crank (mechanism), crank, the connecting rod converts the reciprocating motion of the p ...
failed. An engine substituted to replace the original machine initially refused to start and then seized, forcing Biard to make an emergency landing. In the Grosvenor Trophy Race at Lympne on 14 October 1924, it came fourth with a speed of 62.08 mph (99.91 km/h). During the first lap of the race, the Sparrow overtook a Westland biplane and maintained this position until the sixth lap, when it was in turn overtaken by the
Bristol Brownie The Bristol Type 91 Brownie was a light sports aircraft produced in the United Kingdom by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in 1924. It was a low-wing cantilever monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainp ...
. The Sparrow was registered as ''G-EBJP'', but it never apparently carried the marking. Photographs of the aeroplane show that it was marked with numbers during the competitions it was entered for.


Sparrow II

Re-designated the Sparrow II, the aircraft was rebuilt and re-engined with a Bristol Cherub III engine. It entered the 1926 competition at Lympne as a parasol
monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
. Sparrow II was heavier and slower than its predecessor. Sparrow II was outclassed but successfully passed the elimination trials. It failed to pass the racing starting line; due to poor weather conditions, it made a forced landing near
Beachy Head Beachy Head is a Chalk Group, chalk headland in East Sussex, England. It is situated close to Eastbourne, East Sussex, Eastbourne, immediately east of the Seven Sisters, Sussex, Seven Sisters. Beachy Head is located within the administrative ar ...
on 12 September 1926, with Biard noticing that loose rivets were likely to cause the wings to fall off. Sparrow II was thus eliminated from the competition, which was won by the
Hawker Cygnet The Hawker Cygnet is a British ultralight sesquiplane aircraft of the 1920s. Background In 1924, the Royal Aero Club organized a Lympne light aircraft trials#1924, Light Aircraft Competition. £3000 was offered in prizes. An entry was made by ...
. Sparrow II competed for two other races the following week, but was unplaced in both. The Sparrow's participation in the 1926 trials delayed work being done at the time on the Supermarine Seamew. Mitchell used Sparrow II to work with the Air Ministry at RAF Worthy Down, fitting the aircraft with his aerofoil designs for other aircraft, and compared the results obtained with those produced using
wind tunnel A wind tunnel is "an apparatus for producing a controlled stream of air for conducting aerodynamic experiments". The experiment is conducted in the test section of the wind tunnel and a complete tunnel configuration includes air ducting to and f ...
tests. The aircraft was then sold to the Halton Aero Club. It survived until 1933, when it was scrapped.


Variants

;Sparrow I : Blackburne Thrush-powered biplane. ;Sparrow II :Sparrow I modified into a monoplane powered by a Bristol Cherub III piston engine.


Specifications (Sparrow I)


See also


Notes


References


Sources

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Further reading

* * * * {{Supermarine aircraft 1920s British sport aircraft Sparrow High-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1924