British machine guns for French aircraft

[Denny]

I recently read that the Brits, early on, traded the French machine guns for airframes and engines. Can anybody verify that. I never thought about it, but might that explain why the Lewis gun was standard equipment on the Bebe?
DD

[gregoire]

The first french fighter were fitted with french made Hotchkiss. Then there a licensed production of Lewis (for the vicker i don't know) I think UK was more interested by motor than by airframe

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Denny:
England was more interested in French engines than airframes, which they built themselves. They bought Gnômes, LeRhônes, Clergets and Hispano-Suiza engines and also the license to manufacture them in England. All French aircraft in 1917-1918 were armed with the Vickers machine gun. The Lewis was an American machine gun which was license built in England and France. France was planning to build under license the Sopwith Dolphin, powered with the 300 Hp Hisso, it would have gone into Escadrille service in 1919.
GOD PROTECT AMERICA,
Dan-San

[gregoire]

Dan, I have never eard about france interested by the dolphin care to tell us more

[Denny]

Dan: As usual, your depth of knowledge is amazing. In "Winged Warfare" by Michael Paris, he says the Brits were passing lewis guns to the French to expedite engine and aeroplane deliveries. "The RFC kept itself short of weapons in order to maintain machines and spare parts" (Paris 227). I had never heard of that. As was already mentioned, the French had the Hotchkiss gun, so why the Lewis gun? Then, I saw that the Lewis was standard equipment on the Bebe. Was there something about the Lewis gun that made it more attractive as armament at that stage and for that particular bird? Was the Hotchkiss used someplace else?
Why not on the Bebe? Just questions that came to mind.
DD

[EdStevens]

I'm perfectly willing to stand corrected, but I think the Lewis was just a more practical weapon for use on aircraft than the Hotchkiss. The Hotchkiss appears larger and probably heavier, but most importantly was fed by a 30-round strip of bullets, feeding from the side. Compared to the Lewis' drum-fed system, which as we know was doubled for use on aircraft, this system is a poor competitor. Does anyone know if an effort was made to replace this strip with a side-mounted drum or belt feed?

The Hotchkiss MK I* was converted by the British to fire .303 from belts or 30 round trays, but it was still inferior to the Lewis. Sustained firing of much more than 30 rounds per minute would result in serious overheating and function problems.