Evening All,
A long time ago I decided to attempt a freelance conversion, (ie make my own, not based on a magazine article), and I chose as my subject the BE 2a. I really wanted to build a BE 2c as there were no kits available at the time, but I could not find suitable plans. I did however have the Profile number 133 on the BE 2, 2a and 2b, so I decided to use a drawing from there. I used the Airfix DH 4 as a donor: I modified the wings and used the struts, wheels and propellor and scratch built the rest. I thought at the time that BE 2a no 347 was the first RFC machine to land in France after the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914, as flown by Lt Harvey-Kelley. In fact Harvey-Kelley was flying no 471, but I only found that out much later. (J.M. Bruce stated that H-K was flying 347 in the Profile and he was a highly respected aero-historian). I still have the model although after over 40 years and some house moves it is in need of some minor repair. It is also a bit crude by my current standards:
Many years later I found myself in possession of a perspex display case and I needed something to fill it. Most of the subjects that I investigated were too large to fit, but then P. Hare and A. Wilcox published
BE2a: A Definitive History and I already had a copy of the Albatros DataFile on the BE 2, 2a and 2b so I had access to some accurate drawings. Later I was sent copies of the original drawings from the archives at Farnborough which meant that I had a wealth of information for such an early type. I was hesitant about this project because I would have to scratch build the Renault 70 hp engine, but then Beto on ww1aircraftmodels website kindly sent me a resin kit which I was able to use as a template. I did use the flywheel from his kit as it was far better than anything I could make!
I have used Barracuda resin seats for the pilot and observer, and a Gaspatch spoked wheel: the rest of the model is made from the usual materials, namely brass bar and rod, plastic sheet, strip and rod, assorted bits of wire and guitar string, wood, and monofilament thread and EZ line for rigging and control wires. As usual I only used a soldering iron, craft knife, razor saw, tweezers, a hand chuck and drills, and files and glasspaper to make the model, and everything is hand painted.
I chose to represent RNAS machine no 50 which was delivered to the RNAS wing at Eastchurch, Kent in February 1914 and almost immediately became the favoured machine of the leader, Commander C.R. Samson. I have depicted it as shown in a photograph taken in the spring of 1914 before any national markings were painted on. I consider that in the Brobdignagian, (super-huge), scale adding detail to a model is a bit of a waste of time if it cannot be seen, so I have left off all of the panels around the engine and the fabric covering on the fuselage. In addition I have left parts of the wings and tailplane uncovered so that people can see how these early machine were constructed:
The BE (Bleriot Experimental) type was designed by Geoffrey de Haviland and F M Green at the Royal Aircraft Factory Farnborough in 1911. It probably owed much to A V Roe’s Type D biplane of 1911 which was the first practical aircraft to be designed in Britain. When in July 1911 a Voisin pusher was sent to the factory at Farnborough for repair, the superintendent M. O’Gorman sought permission to redesign the machine to make it easier to fly and then instructed de Haviland to design a new inherently stable machine. The result was the BE 1 which was a two seater tractor biplane with unequal span wings. The BE 1 made its first flight on 4 December 1911 and was handed over to the RFC in the spring of 1912 and given the number 201.
A second machine was built from scratch as was called the BE no 2, a designation that came to be attached to all subsequent machines of this design. This was built to be a standard against which other types would be assessed in the Military Aircraft Trials which were to be held at Larkhill in August 1912. The purpose of these trials was to find a suitable machine which could be used to equip the new Royal Flying Corps. In the trials the BE 2 out performed all the other types and although it was not officially a competitor it was nonetheless selected for production.
In August 1912 it set an altitude record of 10560 feet. The Royal Aircraft Factory produced detailed engineering drawings for its designs, unlike most aircraft companies in Britain at that time, so it was easy for copies of the drawings to be sent to manufacturers who could start production quickly. Production machines were designated BE 2a and were built by at least 8 companies, the first being delivered to the RFC in February 1913 to No 2 Squadron. In April 1913 two machines (nos 46 and 47), were delivered to the Royal Naval Air Service Wing at Eastchurch.
The BE 2a set some important early records and was used in many experiments, including the use of wireless telegraphy to help aircraft sort artillery fire and report the results back to the ground. On 22 November 1913 Captain C. A. H. Longcroft flew non-stop from Montrose to Southampton and then to Farnborough in 7 hours 20 minutes, a distance of 550 miles. Two BE 2a’s were sent to Point Cook in Australia where they were used by the Central Flying School for training, machine number 2 being in use until 1922.
In August 1914 the BE 2a was by far the most numerous and important of the collection of aeroplanes flown by the RFC and RNAS. Four squadrons flew aircraft to France: Lt. H. D. Harvey-Kelley flying BE 2a 471 being the first pilot to land in France. Later that month BE 2a 242 flown by Lt. G. W. Mapplebeck carried out the first British wartime aerial reconnaissance. Major E. L. Gerrard carried out a bombing raid on the Zeppelin sheds in Dusseldorf in a BE 2a from the RNAS with three other aircraft - a round trip of over 200 miles.
BE 2a number 50 was delivered to the RNAS Wing at Eastchurch in February 1914 and immediately became the personal aircraft of Cmdr C. R. Samson. He took the machine to Dunkirk in August 1914 and flew it in Belgium and France for the rest of the year and early 1915. In February the RNAS aircraft and personnel were transferred to the Aegean to support the Dardanelles campaign, being based at Tenedos. Samson carried out the first aerial reconnaissance sortie on 23 March, and on 2nd April attempted a bombing raid. Most of the sorties carried out by the RNAS machines were for reconnaissance, artillery spotting and bombing. Samson made 99 flights in no 50, and a further 14 were made by other pilots in the Aegean in 1915. The last recorded flight was on 10 December 1915 and the machine was struck off charge and broken up in January 1916 after 113 flying hours in the Aegean theatre.
The BE 2a was modified in small ways to become the BE 2b, these machines being delivered and flown at the same time as the BE 2a’s. However de Haviland and his team at Farnborough were continuing to experiment with and improve the design so the in 1914 they produced the BE 2c which was almost a completely new type which went on to be produced in huge numbers in 1915 and 1916.
If you have got this far, thanks for looking.
Stephen.
