Sopwith Dolphin info

A friend of mine who recently completed a well-received Red Baron 3D "flight model" for the French and German aircraft is now working on one for the British.

He was wondering if anyone had the Gross Weight, Top Speed, and Climb to 2,000 meters time for the Sopwith Dolphin.

Also, any comments on it's flight characteristics and handling would be helpful. (Pilot reports, test flight comments, pilot anecdotes, etc.) I've read that it was more maneuverable than the SE5a and Spad. Is this true?

Thanks in advance,
Dean

[MikeW]

Dean,

figures as follows:-

Dolphin I 200 hp geared Hispano Suiza

gross weight (2 off Vickers + 1 Lewis) = 1959lb
speed at 10000 ft = 121.5mph
speed at 15000 ft = 114mph
climb to 10000 ft = 12min 5 sec
climb to 15000 ft = 23min
service ceiling 20000ft


Dolphin II 300 hp direct drive Hispano Suiza

gross weight (2 off Vickers) = 2358lb
speed at 10000 ft = 140mph
speed at 16400 ft = 133mph
climb to 10000 ft = 8 min 20 sec
climb to 16400 ft = 12min 10sec
service ceiling 24600ft


Dolphin III 200 hp direct drive Hispano Suiza

gross weight (2 off Vickers) = 2000lb
speed at 10000 ft = 117mph
speed at 15000 ft = 110mph
climb to 10000 ft = 11min 20 sec
climb to 15000 ft = 21min 50 sec
service ceiling 19000ft

It was faster than a Camel, and more manoeuvrable than a SE5. Don't know much about Spads!

Mike

[totoroman]

I'd send you all the detailed specs on surface areas and dimensions... except that I can't find them. are you guys gonna include the two Lewis guns in addition to the two Vickers? I've read that No.87 Squadron was actually the only unit which opted to keep the extra Lewis guns... mounting them on the lower wings outside of the propeller arcs. that might be fun to see on RB3d!

I'm thinking that he will only have the twin Vickers machine guns. Although I agree that it would be interesting to see the 4-gun Dolphin in RB3D, I'm not sure that 87 Squadron is included in the sim. : (

Just curious...What was the victory tally of 87 Squadron whilst equipped with these heavily armed Dolphins? Was this armament setup effective in actual combat?

Dean

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Dean:
The production Sopwith 5F1 Dolphin performance with one Lewis mounted on the cabane section reduced it's performance considerably, the ceiling dropped from 21000 ft. to 19000 ft. and it's air speed @ 10000 Ft altitude dropped from 119.5 mph to 111.5 mph.
The Dolphin with a wing span of 32.5 ft would be less manoeuvrable than the S.E.5a with a span of 26 '71/2". The Dolphin's gross weight with 2 Vickers only was 1970 lbs., the S.E.5a with the geared 200 HP Hispano-Suiza 8Ba (same engine) weighed in at 1953 lbs and it's ceiling was 22000 ft. and it's a/s @ 15000 ft was 121 mph. The Dolphin had more drag with it's two bay wings than the S.E.5a. I read everything I had and not one book compared the two machines only one stated that the S.E.5a would be the preference for single seat squadrons and would be given priority in production.
Blue skies,
Dan-San Abbott

Thanks to everyone. This was very helpful.

VBR,
Dean

Just a couple of addenda.

I seem to recall reading in a book about Jerry Pentland, an Aussie in the RAF, that he liked the Dolphin. I think he used to sight with the Vickers and let go with all 4 guns when on target. Of course the Lewises were only good for 96 rounds each.

The other thing I seem to recall in the book is the pilots liked the Dolphin coz' it would turn at height (>20000ft) without losing altitude. It was one of the few planes that could take on the high-flying German recce 2 seaters.

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Gordon:
That is correct, The Sopwith 5F1 Dolphin with it's higher aspect ratio wings 7.06:1and greater wing area 263.25 sq.ft. vs the S.E.5a with A/R of 5.33 and a wing area of 245.8 sq.ft.made it more manoeuverable at higher altitudes. When squadron formations were stepped, the Dolphin was on top with the S.E.5a in the middle and the Camel on the bottom. Each at their best altitude for fighting.
There was little difference between the Dolphin and the S.E.5a in measured performance until you got over 20,000 ft. Where the S.E.5a would stall in a turn the Dolphin breezes right through it, wing area and aspect ratio, that is the difference.
Blue skies,
Dan-San Abbott

Dan
I stand in awe at the depth of your knowledge.
The only things I can add from my suspect memory are that the pilots head protruded above the upper wing. Broken neck if it turned over when landing. I had always thought that the Lewis guns were removed because of the possibility of the damage to the pilot's face in the event of a bad landing. Probably why they were positioned on the lower wing, when retained.
This was the first real, multi-gun fighter.
Kind regards
Peter S.

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Peter:
Thank you very much Peter, It is just that I have spent my life in the study of WW1 aviation, what was done then set the foundation for today.
The powers to be, became concerned with the cabane mounted Lewis MG, fearing that some excited pilot might shoot his own prop off in the heat of battle , thus the Lewis' were removed. I think it was 87 Squadron remounted them on the lower wings outside the propeller disc and set them to converge, I think at 250 yards. Pilot's were fearful of a rollover as the result of a poor landing. It was not really a good fighting machine and this is reflected in it's low squadron deployment. Had it been a real winner, and with Sopwith's ability to produce it would have equipped many more squadrons of the RFC/RAF.
Blue skies,
Dan-San