Customer Reviews

SE 5/5a Aces of World War I (Aircraft of the Aces)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Royal Aircraft Factory SE 5a was one of Britain's two best fighters, the other being the Sopwith Camel. While the Camel reigned supreme at lower and medium altitudes, the SE 5a handled affairs at higher altitudes. Almost 100 British, Commonwealth and American pilots made ace in the SE 5/5a, many of their exploits being chronicled in this Osprey 'Aircraft of the Aces' volume by Norman Franks.

The SE 5a aces list reads like a 'Who's Who' of famous WWI pilots - Ball, McCudden, Mannock, Beauchamp Proctor, Rhys Davids, 'Taffy' Jones, George McElroy, Bill Lambert, 'Grid' Caldwell, etc. Relating the exploits of all those men would obviously require a book double or triple the length of this Osprey volume.

Within the book's 80-odd pages of text however Franks does a good job of touching upon each SE 5/5a squadron as they were formed and highlighting the backgrounds and successes of each's top-scoring pilots. Inclusion of several first-person accounts of dogfights is a definite plus.

Eleven pages of color profiles by Harry Dempsey and over 110 black & white photographs help illustrate the combat career of this sturdy warhorse and its brave pilots.

Nicely done, an excellent introduction.

Norman Franks' SE 5/5A ACES OF WORLD WAR 1 joins others in Osprey's 'Aircraft of the Aces' series to chart the Royal Aircraft Factory and its famous unit No. 56 during World War 1. Collections strong in either military history of the era or aviation history will find it packed with over a hundred photos, nearly forty new color art works, and detailed biographies of all pilots.

SE 5/5A ACES OF WORLD WAR I
NORMAN FRANKS
OSPREY PUBLISHING, 2007
QUALITY SOFTCOVER, $22.95, 96 PAGES, ILLUSTRATIONS, APPENDICES


Flown by some of the greatest Allies aces during the First World War-such as Billy Bishop, James McCudden, and Edward Mannock, the Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 (Scout Experimental #5) was without a doubt the most successful plane produced by the firm. A single-seat biplane with dihedral wings, H.P. Folland's design team focused on making it easy to fly. This characteristic enabled the Royal Flying Corps to entrust the plane to relatively inexperienced pilots. Thanks to the efforts of the engineers, this aircraft was as almost as maneuverable as its contemporary, the Sopwith Camel, but was noticeably faster and quieter.

Powered by a 150 horsepower (112 kw) Hispano-Suiza V; the SE-5 entered service on the Western Front in April, 1917. The adoption of a more powerful engine, a 200 horsepower (149 kw) Hispano-Suiza, led to the SE.5a version, which otherwise offered only a few differences from the SE.5. The first examples of the new model appeared in mid-1917 and replaced the SE.5 graduallly. Undoubtedly the SE-5a was handicapped at this time by the unreliability of its engine and by the limited effectiveness of the Constantinescu synchronizing gear. It was the first Allied scout plane with two machine guns: a Lewis gun on a Foster-mount on the top wing and a side-mounted Vickers gun in front of the cockpit. As soon as the problems had been resolved, the British bi-plane became a fighter with formidable capabilities. Toward the end of the war, some SE.5a's were employed in close support missions, armed with light bombs. The combined production of the SE.5 and the SE.5a reached 5,205, including some modified as two-seaters.

The SE.5 arrived at the Western Front with No. 56 Squadron in April, 1917, "Bloody April." In June, 1917, the improved SE.5a was delivered to the squadron, which was withdrawn briefly to the Home Front to cope with the Gotha bomber menace. By early summer, No. 15 Squadron was also equipped. By the winter of 1917-1918, Nos. 24, 32, and 64 Squadrons also received SE.5a's. The plane was also used in Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Palestine, and also on the Salonica Front. Many were assigned to the air defense of British territory, with unimpressive results.

SE.5/5a ACES OF WORLD WAR I is the only detailed account of the SE.5/5a currently in print. In all, there were almost 100 SE.5/5a aces, and a large number of them are profiled in this well-researched book. Supporting this book are more than 110 photographs, 37 brand new color artworks and detailed appendices listing every pilot who 'made ace' on the SE.5/5a.



Lt. Colonel Robert A. Lynn, Florida Guard
Orlando, Florida