Sopwith Snipe
Manufacturer: Sopwith Aviation Company
Type: Fighter
First Introduced: 1918
Number Built: 497
<-----775 D.VII aircraft were in service at the same time.Engine: Bentley B.R.2, 230 hp
Wing Span: 31 ft 1 in
Length: 19 ft 10 in
Height: 9 ft 6 in
Empty Weight: 1312 lb
Gross Weight: 2020 lb
Max Speed: 121 mph
Ceiling: 19,500 ft
Endurance: 3 hrs
Crew: 1
Armament: 2 machine guns
http://www.wwiaviation.com/british1918.htmlA descendant of the Sopwith Camel, the Sopwith Snipe was equipped with a more powerful engine and provided better visibility from the cockpit. Though not much faster than the Camel, the Snipe had a better rate of climb and pilots found it much easier to fly.
On 27 October 1918, Canadian ace William Barker made the Sopwith Snipe famous in a single-handed battle with more than 60 enemy aircraft that earned him the Victoria Cross. Flying the Sopwith Snipe, Captain Elwyn King scored 7 victories making him the highest scoring ace to fly this aircraft.
http://www.wwiaviation.com/aces/ace_Barker_William.htmlName: William George Barker
Country: Canada
Rank: Major
Service: Royal Flying Corps Royal Air Force
Units: 4, 9, 15, 28, 66 (RFC) 139, 201 (RAF)
Victories: 50Date Of Birth: November 3, 1894
Place of Birth: Dauphin, Manitoba
Date Of Death: March 12, 1930
Place of Death: Rockcliffe Aerodrome, near Ottawa
Barker joined the Canadian Mounted Rifles in December of 1914. He spent a year in the trenches before transferring to the Royal Flying Corps in April of 1916. After starting out as a mechanic, he qualified as an observer in August 1916 and shot down his first enemy aircraft from the rear seat of a B.E.2d. Assigned to England in November 1916, he soloed after 55 minutes of dual instruction and received a pilot's certificate in January of 1917.
A month later, he was back in France flying an R.E.8 until wounded by anti-aircraft fire on August 7, 1917. When he recovered, he served as a flight instructor before returning to combat duty in France. In November of 1917, his squadron was reassigned to Italy where Barker's Sopwith Camel became the single most successful fighter aircraft of the war. Logging more than 379 hours of flight time, Barker shot down 46 enemy aircraft before Camel #B6313 was retired from service and dismantled on October 2, 1918.
That month, he assumed command of the air combat school at Hounslow. Deciding he needed to brush up on air combat techniques for his new assignment, Barker joined 201 Squadron for ten days in France. During that time, he saw no action and was about to return to England when he decided to make one more excursion over the front.
On October 27, 1918, while flying alone,
he encountered sixty Fokker D.VIIs flying in stepped formation. In this hreoic battle with Jagdgeschwader 3, Barker shot down four enemy aircraft despite serious wounds to both legs and his elbow. Fainting from pain and loss of blood, he managed to crash land his Snipe safely behind British lines. Barker received the Victoria Cross (VC) for this action.
Victoria Cross (VC)
"On the morning of the October 27, 1918, this officer observed an enemy two-seater over the Foret de Mormal. He attacked this machine and after a short burst it broke up in the air. At the same time a Fokker biplane attacked him, and he was wounded in the right thigh, but managed, despite this, to shoot down the enemy aeroplane in flames. He then found himself in the middle of a large formation of Fokkers who attacked him from all directions, and was again severely wounded in the left thigh, but succeeded in driving down two of the enemy in a spin. He lost consciousness after that, and his machine fell out of control. On recovery, he found himself being again attacked heavily by a large formation, and singling out one machine he deliberately charged and drove it down in flames. During this fight his left elbow was shattered and he again fainted, and on regaining consciousness he found himself still being attacked, but notwithstanding that he was now severely wounded in both legs and his left arm shattered, he dived on the nearest machine and shot it down in flames. Being greatly exhausted, he dived out of the fight to regain our lines, but was met by another formation, which attacked and endeavored to cut him off, but after a hard fight he succeeded in breaking up this formation and reached our lines, where he crashed on landing. This combat, in which Major Barker destroyed four enemy machines (three of them in flames), brought his total successes to fifty enemy machines destroyed, and is a notable example of the exceptional bravery and disregard of danger which this very gallant officer has always displayed throughout his distinguished career." VC citation, London Gazette, November 30, 1918