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Biplane History
The word "biplane" literally means
two planes or wings. From the Wright brothers' first flight on
December 17, 1903, in their biplane aircraft the Wright Flyer I, until a few
years before WW2, the biplane literally ruled the skies. WW1 saw the biplane rapidly
developed from a simple mobile aerial observation and artillery
spotting platform into a specialized war machine with dedicated
interceptors, fighter-bombers and heavy bombers. Mono-planes and
Tri-planes were tried by both sides in the fighter role in WW1 with
some success, but none remained in front line service for long,
being replaced with biplanes as soon as improved aircraft designs became
available.
Biplane Use Between WW1 and WW2
Between the wars the biplane
became a mail carrier, passenger carrier and a play thing of the
rich. This was due, in part, to the large number of surplus military
biplane aircraft available at relatively low prices. Monoplanes had existed from a
very early date but only became dominant with the introduction of
new monocoque designs in the later part of the 1930's. Up to this
time the biplane was the best available aircraft design solution.
Biplane Service during WW2
By the outbreak of WW2 most
operational military aircraft were monoplanes, with the
notable exception of basic biplane trainers, which included the
Boeing Kaydet,
Bucker
Bu-131 Jungman and the
de-Havilland dh82a Tiger Moth
biplanes. Many civilian biplanes were eventually pressed into
service with military forces during WW2, but this was out of necessity rather than choice. One
notable exception was the Fairey Swordfish biplane, which remained
the Royal Navy's main carrier borne torpedo bomber from 1935 until
the end of WW2, regardless of the numerous attempts to replace it
with newer biplane and monoplane aircraft designs.
Biplane Aircraft Production After WW2
After WW2 ended, many ex military
biplane trainers were sold cheaply on the civilian market for use as
trainers, crop dusters and personal private biplane aircraft transports. Biplane
aircraft were
still manufactured after WW2 for special purposes, the American Pitt's Special
was designed as an advanced aerobatic biplane aircraft and the largest
single engine biplane, and the Russian Antonov
AN2 was designed as a "land anywhere" flying truck
primarily for agricultural use although, due to it's outstanding STOL
capabilities and ruggedness, it was used in considerable numbers by the Soviet armed forces
for dropping paratroops.
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