Saunders-Roe SR.A/1

infobox Aircraft
name =SR.A/1
type =Flying boat fighter
manufacturer =Saunders-Roe



caption =
designer =
first flight =15 July 1947
introduced =
retired = 1951
status = Experimental
primary user =Royal Air Force
more users =
produced =
number built = 3
unit cost =
developed from =
variants with their own articles =The Saunders-Roe SR.A/1 was a prototype flying boat fighter aircraft designed and build by Saunders-Roe. It was tested by the Royal Air Force shortly after World War II.

Design and development

The SR.A/1 was directly inspired by the (modest) successes experienced by the Imperial Japanese Navy with seaplane fighters such as the Nakajima A6M2-N (an adaptation of the Mitsubishi Zero) and the Kawanishi N1K. In theory, seaplanes were ideally suited to conditions in the Pacific theatre, and could turn any relatively calm area of coast into an airbase. Their main disadvantage came from the way in which the bulk of their floatation gear penalised their performance compared to other fighters. Saunders-Roe realised that the new turbojet engine presented an opportunity to overcome this drawback. Not requiring clearance for a propeller, the fuselage could sit lower in the water and utilise a flying boat-type hull. The company approached the Air Ministry with the idea then known as the SR.44 , which led to specification E.6/44 and an accompanying development contract for three prototypes in May 1944.

The first prototype flew on July 15 1947, and while it and its two sisters proved to have good performance and handling, the need for such aircraft had completely evaporated with the end of the war. Furthermore, the success of the aircraft carrier in the Pacific had demonstrated a far more effective way to project airpower over the oceans. In addition, the cockpit canopy was small and heavily framed, giving the pilot a poor view outside the aircraft. The project was finally abandoned in May 1951.

Although the aircraft never received an official name, it was referred to by company workers as 'Squirt'.

Operators

;UK
*Royal Air Force

urvivors

The first prototype, serial number "TG263", has been preserved, and is on display at Solent Sky (previously Southampton Hall of Aviation). Both other aircraft were lost in accidents during the four-year flight test programme.

pecification

aircraft specifications
plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
ref=British Aircraft Directory [http://britishaircraft.co.uk/aircraftpage.php?ID=133]
crew= 1
capacity=
payload main=
payload alt=
length main= 50 ft
length alt=14.24 m
span main=46 ft
span alt=14.02 m
height main=16 ft 9 in
height alt=5.11 m
area main= 415 ft²
area alt= 38.6 m²
airfoil=
empty weight main= 11,262 lb
empty weight alt= 5,108 kg
loaded weight main= 16,225 lb
loaded weight alt= 7,360 kg
useful load main=
useful load alt=
max takeoff weight main= 19,033 lb
max takeoff weight alt= 8,633 kg
more general=
engine (jet)=Metropolitan-Vickers Beryl MVB.1
type of jet= turbojets
number of jets=2
thrust main= 6,460 lbf
thrust alt= 28.8 kN
thrust original=
afterburning thrust main=
afterburning thrust alt=
engine (prop)=
type of prop=
number of props=
power main=
power alt=
power original=
max speed main= 512 mph
max speed alt= 824 km/h
cruise speed main=
cruise speed alt=
stall speed main=
stall speed alt=
never exceed speed main=
never exceed speed alt=
range main= 1,200 miles
range alt= 1,920 km
ceiling main=
ceiling alt=
climb rate main= 5,800 ft per minute
climb rate alt= 1,768 m/min
loading main= 39 lb/ft²
loading alt= 190 kg/m²
thrust/weight= 0.40

Endurance: 2 hrs 24 min
power/mass main=
power/mass alt=
armament=
*4x 20 mm Hispano Mk 5
*2x 1,000 lb (454 kg) bombs or
*16x 120 lb (55 kg) rockets
avionics=

ee also

aircontent

links=yes
has sequence=no
has relations=yes
has lists=yes
see also?=no
sequence=
related=
similar aircraft=
* Convair F2Y Sea Dart
lists=
* List of fighter aircraft
* List of aircraft of the RAF
* List of seaplanes and flying boats
see also=

References

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A431272 BBC: Aircraft of the Isle of Wight]
* [http://fire.prohosting.com/hud607/uncommon/aircraft/sra1/index.html Uncommon Aircraft]
* [http://britishaircraft.co.uk/aircraftpage.php?ID=133 British Aircraft Directory entry]
* [http://tanks45.tripod.com/Jets45/Histories/SRA-1/SRA1.htm SRA/1 At Jets45]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9ks7RF9TBM Movie footage of the SR.A/1 in flight]