The Schneider Cup Racers

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How it started....

At a time floatplanes and flying boats were barely capable of leaving the water, the Frenchman
Jacques Schneider introduced in 1911 at a banquet following the 4th annual James Gordon
Bennet race for landplanes the Schneider Cup for a similar race with seaplanes. One of the
rules was that the winning country had to organize the next race. The official name of the
prize, in French was "Coupe d'Aviation Maritime Jacques Schneider". If an aero club won three
races in five years they would retain the cup and the winning pilot would receive 75,000 francs.
The races were supervised by the F.A.I. (Fédération Aeronautique International) and the Aero
Club in the hosting country. Each club could enter up to three competitors with an equal
number of alternates. Jacques Schneider, the son of a wealthy arms manufacturer, had a
vision that the seaplane was the best and fastest way to span the big oceans. Without the
need of airfields and runways and with all harbour and boat facilities this would be in his vision,
the only relevant way of air transport. It was indeed a vision that resulted not only in the fast
development of the floatplane over the years, but also in the availability of a new generation of
very powerful aircraft engines. It is very striking that the ultimate Schneider Cup racer, the
Macchi-Castoldi MC-72, set a world speed record for seaplanes that is still unbeaten today,
although it never participated in any Schneider Cup contest.

Sadly enough for Jacques Schneider himself, he died on 1 May 1928 at the age of only 49 as
a poor man, at a time when vast amounts of money were spent for the trophy he had
introduced! In this article, we will not only give an overview of the most important Schneider
Cup racers, but also of the lesser known types that never qualified! One thing must still be said
on the Schneider Cup: although it is mentioned so even in Italian, it actually was not a cup. It is
more precisely described as a Trophy. In fact it was a sculpture of bronze and glass showing
some ancient figures from the Greek and Roman mythology. It is now exhibited in the Science
Museum in London. It can be seen at the same location where the Supermarine S-6B is also
exhibited.

The locations and results

The first Schneider Cup race was held in 1913 in the Mediterranean Sea with the start and
finish just outside the port of Monaco over a course of exactly 10 km. The course had to be
flown 28 times. Since the race was won by a Frenchman, France was again the organizing
country for the next year.

For the 1914 race, the same course was followed as in the preceding year. The British team
won the race, but because of the outbreak of the First World War the next Schneider Cup race
was held in 1919 at Bournemouth UK just outside Poole harbour. Because of very dense fog,
only one plane flown by the Italian pilot Janello managed to finish the 20 miles triangular
course ten times. However, since he used the spare marking boat lying ashore as a turning
point, he was disqualified and the whole race was nullified by the organization. It was not until
1922 that Janello was as yet declared as official winner.

In spite of Janello's initial disqualification, Italy was prepared to be the host for the race of
1920. It was held outside the port of Lido in the Adriatic Sea where a triangular course of
37.117 km had to be flown ten times. Only one pilot, the Italian Luigi Bologna, managed to

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pass all qualification tests for the race which he won flying alone in his Savoia S.12bis flying
boat. Also in 1921 the race was held in Venice, although on a different course of 24.6 km. to
be flown 16 times. Only the Italians managed to qualify for the race. The only French
contender, Sadi Lecointe in a Nieuport-Delage racer, had to withdraw because he failed the
navigation test. The race was won by the Italian pilot Giovanni de Briganti in a Macchi M.7.
The two other Italian pilots both failed to finish. The Italian victory meant that the next race in
1922 was also hosted by Italy. This time the contest was held in the Golfo di Napoli with start
and finish at Naples harbour. A triangular course of 28.5 km had to be flown 13 times.
Although the Italians had a very strong team, the UK won the race when Henry Biard finished
in his Supermarine Sea Lion II racer with a speed of 145.7 mph. Three Italians scored at the
next places.

In 1923 the UK organized the event at Cowes on the Isle of Wright. A course of 37.2 km with
tow turning points between Cowes harbour and Selsey on the British mainland had to be flown
8 times. This year, the Americans entered the race with a number of specially designed very
fast and powerful floatplanes. Lt. David Ritterhouse and Lt. Rutledge Irvine scored very
convincingly a first and second place with their Curtiss CR-3 racers that were some 36 km/h
faster than Henry Biard who finished third with the good old Sea Lion racer! Only these three
pilots managed to finish. The 1924 race was hosted by the U.S.A. at Baltimore where a
triangular course was set out in the Chesapeake Bay. The US team was well-prepared with
their Curtiss racers. However, both the UK and Italy were unable to use their racers that year.
The Americans were sportive enough to postpone the race for the next year!

In 1925, the Baltimore race was convincingly won by Jimmy Doolittle in a Curtiss R3C racer.
The UK pilot Hubert Broad finished second in his Gloster III racer, while the Italian pilot de
Briganti finished third and last. All other competitors retired or failed to meet the preliminary
tests. In particular the UK was very unlucky with its new Supermarine S.4 racer when Henry
Biard flew it at high speed in a shallow dive into the Chesapeake Bay because of extreme
flutter. He luckily survived the crash! The contest of 1926 was again hosted by the Americans.
The location was also near the Chesapeake Bay, although it was a different course than that of
the previous year. Start and finish was at Norfolk naval air base with a triangular course of 50
km. over the Hampton Roads waters. The course had to be flown 7 times. It was a race
between the Italians and the Americans; there were no entries from the U.K. this year! The
winner was Major Mario de Bernardi in his Fiat A.S.2 racer. Lt. Frank Schilt and Lt. Adriano
Bacula finished second and third while Lt. William Tomlinson finished as fourth and last in his
Curtiss Hawk floatplane.

The 1927 contest was again hosted by the Italians in Venice. It was flown over a course of 50
km. set out above the Adriatic Sea with start and finish in front of the excelsior Hotel on the
Lido Boulevard. The course had to be flown seven times. This time, it was an all-British affair
with Flt. Webster and Flt. Worsley as first and second in their Supermarine S.5 racers. All other
contestants had to retire during the race. Because of the ever increasing time and costs to
develop and build the special racing planes, it was decided that from this year the Schneider
Cup race was to be held every two year, instead of every year. With the UK as a host, the next
race was held in 1929 near Calshot naval air base on the south coast of the UK. Here, a 30 km
course had to be flown seven times. Start and finish was near the pier at Ryde on the Isle of
Wight. Flight officer Waghorn completely out-flew the Italian competition in his new Rolls
Royce 'R' powered Supermarine S.6 racer with an average speed that was more than 70 km/h
faster than Dal Molin in his Macchi M.59R. D' Arcy Greig finished third in the Supermarine S.5.

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Flight officer Atcherly also succeeded to finish the race in the second S.6, but he was
disqualified for cutting a pylon.

With two races won on a row, the UK needed a third victory to become the permanent owner
of the Schneider Trophy. However, the 1931 races, to be organized again by the U.K. were far
from certain since the Italians came the conclusion that their latest Macchi-Castoldi MC.72
racer would not be ready in time. Further, the RAF had withdrawn its financial support because
'they saw no further need’ for financing these expensive seaplanes. At the last moment, a
wealthy British widow, Lady Houston, decided to give sufficient financial support for further
improvement of the Supermarine S.6 racer. With a further up-rated engine it was designated
as the S.6B. There were no other competitors for the race of this year and that meant it had to
be flown alone by the S.6B. Flt. Lt J.N. Boothman made this final flight to secure the trophy for
the U.K. when he finished the 7 laps of the 50 km course with an average speed of 547 km/h.

The aircraft

Initially, only modified landplanes like the Sopwith Tabloid and the Deperdussin fitted with
floats were used. Though the races were not held during the First World War years, aircraft
development progressed very quickly during those years. At the first race after the war in 1919
we already see specially designed racing planes like the Savoia S.13 and Supermarine Sea
Lion. In just a few years, we also see the development of these still quite cumbersome flying
boats into aerodynamically refined and highly powerful floatplanes combining the smallest
possible airframe with the most powerful engine. We also see that the average speed of the
winning plane almost tripled from 189.7 km/h in 1921 to 547.3 km/h in 1931. The 'big players’
in the Schneider Cup racers were Italy, the UK, the USA and initially also France. Oddly
enough, Germany never played any role in this contest although during the twenties, Dornier
twice designed a special Schneider Cup racer. Both designs, however, never progressed any
further that the drawing board. We will now shortly review a number of important and less
important racing machines designed and built by the four most important participating
countries. However, a number of them, in particular from France, were either never entered in
the races or failed to qualify.

The Italian Racers:

Macchi M-7 Machi M-19

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The Macchi M-7 flying boat was successfully entered in the 1921 race where it finished first.
Even the next year, the M-7 managed to finish fourth! On the photo we see the improved M-
7bis carrying racing number 10 during the 1922 race at Naples when it was flown by Piero
Corgnolino. It was powered by a 260 hp Isotta-Frascini engine. In 1922, Cornoglino finished
with an average speed of almost 200 km/h.

The Macchi M-19 was built specially for the

1921 Schneider Cup contest. It was powered
by a 680 hp Fiat A-14 liquid-cooled engine
driving a four-bladed tractor propeller.
Although it had a much higher top speed than
the winning Macchi M-7 of the 1921 race, the
pilot Arturo Zanetti had to abort the race when
his engine caught fire after a crankshaft
failure. The neatly designed biplane flying
boat was destroyed by fire after its emergency
landing.

Macchi M-17
The M-17 was also a small flying boat specially built for the Schneider cup races. Two were
built, fitted with a 260 hp Isotta-Frascini engine. The first one with racing no. 36 was destroyed
during a landing but the second one entered the 1922 race in Venice where it finished third. It
was flown by Arturo Zanetti at an average speed of 214 km/h carrying race number 9 and the
civil registration I-BAHG.

The earlier Macchi M-17 and M-19 flying boat

biplanes were finally developed into the
Macchi M-33 flying boat racer for the 1925
contest at Baltimore U.S.A. However, with a
new generation of floatplanes it was evident
the flying boat was a dead end in the
Schneider Cup race! Of the two M.33's
entered one had to withdraw and the other
finished third and last at an average speed
some 100 km/h less than the winning U.S.
Curtiss racer!

Macchi M-39

Macchi developed a completely new racer as a low-wing floatplane with the most powerful
engine available: the 800 hp Fiat A.S.2. As type M-39, three were built for the 1926 race at
Hampton Roads, U.S.A. Another fourth machine with a lower rated engine was built as a
trainer, but this plane unfortunately crashed on Lake Varese during test flights killing
Commandante Marchese Vittorio Centurione, the Italian team leader. All three M-39's entered
the race, but Captain Ferrarin had to retire on the fourth lap with an overheated engine. Mario
de Benardi and Adriano Bacula finished first and third, convincingly beating the U.S. biplane
racers. The average speed of Mario de Benardi was for that time, an incredible 396.85 km/h.

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The photo shows the M-39 racer as exhibited today at the Italian air force museum at Vigna de
Valle near Rome.

Largely based on the earlier M-39 racer, Macchi built for the 1927 Schneider cup races an
aerodynamically more refined racing floatplane as the M-52. Three were built; one with the 800
hp Fiat A.S.2 engine and two with an A.S.2 up-rated to produce 1000 hp. They had a shorter
wing span than the M-39 while also the twin floats were reduced in both length and volume.
The two M-52's fitted with the 1000 hp engine were capable to reach a top speed of more than
480 km/h. All three M-52's were entered in the 1927 race at Venice, flown by Capt. Frederico
Guazetti, Major Mario de Bernardi and Captain Arturo Ferrarin. All three M-39 had to retire
during the final race. Bernardi had to make an emergency landing on the 2nd lap because of
engine failure while Ferrarin had to already retire at the first lap with engine troubles. Finally,
Guazetti had to retire on the 6th lap because of a leaking fuel line. We can only conclude the
Italians were not very lucky with their M-52! On the picture we see the Italian team standing in
front of one of the M-52's.

For the 1929 Schneider Cup race, Macchi's

chief designer Mario Castoldi made an even
further refined design based on the M-52. It
was powered by an 1800 hp. Isotta-Fraschini
engine which fitted very tight in the airframe
with three rows of cylinders bulging on the
fuselage nose. Cooling was extended by
additional flush radiators fitted on both
fuselage sides. Three were built, but
unfortunately one crashed during test flights
over the Garda Lake in Italy killing pilot
Giuseppe Motta. That meant that only two
machine were available for the 1929 race,
Macchi M-67 which were entered together with one of the
earlier M-52 racers. During the race, both M-67's failed to finish. Giovanno Monti had to retire
his M-67 with engine troubles. The other M-67, flown by Remo Cadringher had to retire when
the pilot became intoxicated from engine fumes. The only Italian who finished the race was Dal
Molin at the third place in his old M.52.

A less successful contender for the 1929 race

was the Savoia-Marchetti S.65. It was a highly
unconventional design with a very short
fuselage with fore and aft mounted Isotta-
Fanchini Asso V-12 engines of 1080 hp each.
It further had a single tail, mounted on
a rudimentary tail boom. With its enormously
powerful engines the S.65 had a great
potential as a winner.

It was entered in the 1929 race, but it failed in

the preliminary tests because of engine
overheating. It was lost a year later in a crash
on the Garda lake killing pilot Dal Molin. Savoia-Marchetti S.65

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Another unsuccessful racer for the 1929 Schneider Cup event was the Piaggio P.7. Just like
the Savoia-Marchetti S.65 it was a highly unusual design. It did not have floats as was so
characteristic for the other Schneider Cup racers. Instead, it was fitted with two short fuselage-
mounted hydro-skis and a tail-mounted boat propeller. It was fitted with a 970 hp Isotta-
Frascini close-cowled engine driving not only a two-bladed propeller in the nose, but also the
boat propeller with a clutch-coupled extension shaft. Due to coupling problems with the boat
propeller the P.7 never left the water during test flights made by Dal Molin. It only made some
test runs on the Garda Lake before further development was abandoned.

Piaggio P.7 Here we see the P.7 in the water for towing
trails behind a fast boat in order to get it out of
the water. All attempts failed!

Based on the success of the Macchi racers,

Fiat decided to build their own airframe for
their liquid-cooled A.S.5 V-12 engine and to
participate also in the Schneider Cup event of
1929. Three, or possibly four were built under
the type designation C-29, the first one only
serving as an airframe for static testing. The
first flying prototype had a vertical stabilizer
without the downward extension as on the
later machines and it was flight-tested with an
open cockpit. Most likely, this first
unregistered machine was later used for
conversion in the first of the two original Fiat C-29 prototype
racers with registration serials MM129 and
MM130. MM129 crashed shortly after take off from the Garda Lake but test pilot Francesco
Agello was luckily rescued without major injury. MM130 was shipped to Calshot as a back-up
for the Macchi's, but it was not flown. MM130 is now on exhibit in the Italian air force museum
at Vigna di Valle. In the photo we see the first prototype with the original tail configuration and
open cockpit.

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Photo of MM129 (although the suffix MM was Photo of the second C-29 racer, no. MM130
not used!) on its transport trolley

A colour postcard of the C-29 at Vigna di Valle.

Undoubtedly, the last Italian Schneider Cup racer had the potential to be an absolute winner.
Designed by Mario Castoldi as the MC.72, this was the smallest possible airframe combined
with the most powerful engine available: the Fiat A.S.6. In fact, this engine existed of two
coupled A.S.5 engines driving two contra-rotating propellers and producing 2600 hp. For
cooling, flush radiators were used wherever there was space, even on the floats and wings!

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In total four MC.72's were built, but flying
these temperament-full monsters was found
not to be an easy task and three of the four
were involved in crashes. The MC.72 was
entered for the 1931 race, but engine
overheating problems caused it had to be
withdrawn, leaving the British Supermarine
S.6B as the only contestant. The potential of
the MC.72 as a winner was clearly shown
three years later when Francesco Agello
established an absolute world speed record of
709 km/h. This record still stands today for the
Float Plane category The remaining MC.72 is
now exhibited in the Italian air force museum Macchi-Castoldi MC.72
at Vigna di Valle. In the photo we see the MC.72 being prepared for a flight.

The British Racers:

Specially designed by Avro for the 1919
Schneider Cup races, the Avro 539 was in
fact the smallest possible airframe that could
be designed round the 240 hp Siddeley
Puma engine. With its wooden structure and
very short fuselage this small biplane was
finished well in time for the race of 10
September. It carried the civil registration G-
EALG. Although officially entered, it was not
flown in the race. It only served as a back-up
for the Supermarine Sea Lion I racer. After the
Schneider Cup race, it was converted into a
landplane to participate in the famous aerial
Avro 539 derbies of that time. However, it was
damaged in a landing accident. It was
repaired and fitted with a much more powerful Napier Lion engine of 450 hp. Re-registered as
G-EAXM it was again not very lucky since it was totally wrecked on its first flight. In the photo
we see G-EALG in the landplane version.

Based on the N1B Baby fighter flying boat, Supermarine designers F.J. Hargreaves and R.J.
Mitchell designed a Schneider Cup racer for the 1919 event at Bornemouth. Although the N1B
Baby was never taken in production, its design was largely taken over for the new racer, which
was named the Sea Lion. It was fitted with the most powerful British liquid-cooled engine of
that time, the Napier Lion. It was a biplane flying boat with the engine driving a pusher
propeller mounted on a fuselage pylon between the wings. It carried the civil registration G-
EALP. During the race it was flown by Basil D. Hobs, but he only flew one lap because of the
thick fog. When he retired from the race, the Sea Lion sank because its hull was punctured on
an earlier landing. For the 1920 event at Venice, the Supermarine team headed by R.J.
Mitchell constructed a second improved racer as the Sea Lion II, but it would not be ready until
the next race in 1922. Fitted with a similar powered Napier Lion engine, but with a smaller
upper wing and an aerodynamically more refined fuselage, the pilot Henry Biard managed to
beat the Italian competition. The Sea Lion II also carried a civil registration: G-EBAH. In fact

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the Sea Lion II was based on the airframe of the Supermarine Sea King II amphibian scout
fighter.

In the photo we see the Sea Lion III with its

characteristic round-shaped front radiator.
For the event at Cowes it carried the race
number 7

This was, however, not the final end of the

Sea Lion racer. Mitchell's team developed it
further into the Sea Lion III. This was the
original Sea Lion II with a much more
aerodynamically refined airframe, although it
had the same type of engine; the Napier Lion,
but now rated at 550 hp. In the 1923 race at Cowes it was flown with the same civil markings
(G-EBAH) as the Sea Lion II. In spite it was far inferior in speed when compared with the
winning Curtiss racers (who finished first and second) Henry Biard managed to finish the race
at a very credible third place. With the arrival of the fast American floatplanes it was evident
that the days of the flying boat as a competitive racer were over for future Schneider Cup
contests. After the race G-EBAH was taken over by the Marine Aircraft Experimental
Establishment at Felixstowe as a high speed test plane, carrying the serial number N170. It
crashed on its second flight there, killing Fl. Off. E. Paul-Smith.

With Great Britain being the host of the

Schneider Cop races of 1923, Blackburn
decided to design and build a special single-
seat/single engine flying boat racer. Fitted
with the usual Napier Lion of 450 hp and
named Pellet, the Blackburn design was a
small biplane flying boat with exceptional
clean lines. Capable of reaching a speed of
more than 250 km/h it was a very competitive
plane.

Blackburn Pellet

We see here the Pellet upside-down on the

water after the first mishap. At least it showed
to have some buoyancy in this position!

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It was entered in the 1923 race at Cowes carrying the civil registration G-EBHF, but it failed
during the preliminary tests where it was found to be so nose-heavy that twice it ended upside-
down in the water! Pilot Kenworthy only got a wet suit the first time when he was thrown out of
the plane, but the second time he barely escaped drowning. The damaged Pellet was never
repaired. In the photo we see the Pellet on the Hamble River after being launched into the
water from the Fairey slipway.

Gloucester Aircraft Corporation, later

abbreviated as Gloster, had developed in
early twenties a remarkable racing plane for
the famous aerial derbies. Designed by Henry
Folland, it became known as the Gloster
Bamel, although its official name was Gloster
Mars I. The Bamel was so successful that
after its racing career as a land plane it was
acquired by the Marine Aircraft Experimental
Establishment at Felixstowe. Fitted with floats
the small biplane was used as a trainer for the
High Speed Flight division pilots. Based on
the Gloster I as it was known by that time,
Gloster III
Henry Folland's team built in 1924 a more
refined and faster version as the Gloster II floatplane as a racer for the Schneider Cup contest
of that year. It unluckily crashed during early testing. In spite of this unhappy event, Folland
received funds for a new Schneider Cup racer for the next year. Designated the Gloster III it
was a biplane on floats fitted with a 700 hp Napier Lion VII engine resembling more or less the
U.S. Curtiss racers that dominated the 1924 race.

Two were built, carrying the RAF serial numbers

N194 and N195. N194 was flown for the first time
on 3 June 1925 by the American pilot Bert Hinkler
and both racers showed enough potential to be
entered for the Schneider Cup event in the U.S.A.
However, during the initial trials N194 was
damaged and only N195 was able to start. It
entered the race together with the new
Supermarine S.4 monoplane racer, but only the
Gloster III would finish the race in a credible
second place behind the Curtiss R3C-2 racer
flown by Jimmy Doolittle. Pilot of the Gloster III at
Baltimore was Hubert Broad. This photo shows the second Gloster III
N195 fitted with additional wing flush-
After the Baltimore race, N195 was further type radiators and a partly enclosed
improved, but it was never used again at the next cockpit.
racing event. Instead, it served as a trainer for the
High Speed Flight pilots. In the photo we see the still unpainted first Gloster III no. N194 shortly
after it was completed. The vertical tail was later increased in size for the final racing version.

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 In the photo we see a rare pre-war colour postcard illustration of the N222

After the relative success of the Gloster III, Folland's team received funds for the design and
construction of an even faster successor. It was known as the Gloster IV and followed in large
lines the preceding Gloster III. However, extreme care was taken for good streamlining. For
the RAF High Speed Flight three Gloster IV's were built receiving the serial numbers N222,
N223 and N224. All three Gloster IV's were fitted with an up-rated Napier Lion of 900 hp. All
three racers were slightly different. N222 and N224 were fitted with direct drive engines to the
two-bladed aluminium propeller. N223 was fitted with a transmission that produced some 15
hp. less on the propeller. All three Gloster IV's were supplied to the High Speed Flight at
Calshot over the period July-August 1927 and all were shortly flown before they were shipped
to Venice for the Schneider Cup event of that year. For the race, N223 was selected to enter
while the other two racers were kept as stand-by. It was flown by Fl. Lt. S.M. Kinkead, but his
speed was some 100 km/h. lower than the winning Supermarine S.5 monoplane and he had
no chance at all to win. Kinkead had to retire in fourth place on the 6th lap because of severe
engine vibration. After he landed, it was discovered that one of the propeller blades was almost
sheared off! After the race all three Gloster IV's were returned to the Gloster factory for
modification as trainers for the next race. The N224 was experimentally fitted with a broad
chord propeller for testing purposes. Later it was sold to a private pilot, Mr. Amhurst Villiers,
who wanted to convert it to a wheel-based plane to beat the world speed record, but this idea
never materialized. N223 was lost when Ft. Lt. Boothman crashed it during a landing incident
on 19 December 1930. N222 was used for training until 1931 and made an additional 147
flights before it was broken up. The days of the biplane racers were definitely over......

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 A photo of the N222 in its final form with an The N224 in its final form after the Schneider
extra ventral vertical tail extension. Cup race fitted with an experimental broad-
chord two-blade propeller and modified tail.

After the 1923 Schneider Cup contest it was

evident the Supermarine Sea Lion III was at
the end of its development. With the U.S.
Curtiss racers as winners of that year, it was
evident the Mitchell's design team at
Supermarine had to come up with a
completely different design as a possible
winner.

With the Sea Lion I, II and III known at

Supermarine as the types S.1, S.2 and S.3,
On the photo we see the S.4 at Calshot during the new racer received the type designation
the initial flight testing in August 1925. S.4. It was a mid-wing cantilever monoplane
fitted on two floats fitted with a Napier Lion VII
engine producing 700 hp. The S.4 was largely constructed of wood. For the 1925 event in
Baltimore one was built. Although the military serial N197 was assigned to the S.4, this was
never painted on the fuselage. For the race it was painted glossy white while the metal parts
around the engine we kept in bare metal finish. Except for the racing number 4 on both sides
of the fuselage, it only carried the Union Jack flag on its rudder.

In this photo we see Biard ready for take off

at Baltimore on 23 October 1925 for his
disastrous flight that ended in a crash.

The S.4 was completed in five months time

only, making its first flight on 25 August 1925
from Calshot naval air station. Pilot on this
occasion was Henri Biard. The flight tests
revealed that the S.4 was capable of
reaching speeds of more than 360 km/h
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which was promising enough to enter the machine in the race at Baltimore with Biard as pilot.
Unfortunately, Baird already crashed before the race at a high speed run when excessive wing
flutter made the racer uncontrollable. Luckily, he survived the crash although he was almost
drowned.

After the failure of the S.4 Mitchell's team started with a successor based on all the hard
lessons learned from this unlucky Schneider Cup racer. An extensive wind-tunnel program
was run to find out the most efficient airframe for the new racer for the next event in 1927.

Designated as the Supermarine S.5, Supermarine designed and built an all-metal braced low-
wing racer with a Napier Lion engine up-rated to 900 hp. For cooling, extensive use of surface
radiators was made with coolers fitted not only on the fuselage, but also on the wings. Three
S.5 racers were built, receiving the serial numbers N219, N220 and N221. N219 had a direct-
drive engine while the other two had geared Lion engines giving some 25 hp. less on the
propeller. The first S.5 made its maiden flight on 7 June 1927, flown by Fl. Lt. O.E. Worsley.

On the photo we see the S.5 (most likely N219) The first S.5 racer, N219, at Calshot.
during flight-testing in the U.K

Flight testing progressed without major problems and for the Schneider Cup race at Venice in
September 1927 N219 and N220 were shipped to Italy and entered into the race. Both S.5's
were unbeatable and Ft. Lt .N. Webster followed by Ft. Lt. O.E. Worsley finished first and
second with respectively the direct-drive N219 and the geared N220. Unfortunately, Ft. Lt.
S.M. Kinkead was killed in N221 on 12 March 1928 when he tried to set a world speed record.

As a back-up plane for the 1927 race in

Venice, Shorts had built a simple low-risk racer
fitted with the very reliable Bristol Mercury I
radial air-cooled engine of 960 hp. Named
Crusader.

In the photo we see the Crusader on the water

with its close-helmeted cowlings for each
cylinder. It was painted in a glossy white/dark
blue colour scheme

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 In this photo we see the Crusader carrying
serial number N226 at the Short Rochester
works

It was mainly constructed of wood with a very

characteristic broad-chord elliptical shaped
wing. The Crusader was completed by 18
April 1927 and test flown on several
occasions by a number of pilots. However,
it met disaster on 11 September when test
pilot H.M. Schofield discovered shortly after
the start that the controls did not function
properly. Schofield crashed it into the water,
but fortunately he survived with only a number of painful bruises. The direct reason for the
crash was discovered when the wreckage was salvaged and investigated: the control cables
for the ailerons were crossed!

Based on the earlier Gloster IV biplane, Henry Folland's team designed an even more refined
biplane racer for the next Schneider Cup event as the Gloster V. However, since the racing
results obtained with the Gloster IV clearly showed the days of the biplane were over, it was
never built. Instead, Folland designed a braced low-wing monoplane racer with a very sleek
fuselage as the Gloster VI. In fact, this type bore a close resemblance to the successful
Supermarine S.5!

This photo of the second Gloster VI clearly

shows the very sleek lines . Because it was
painted in a very attractive golden colour, it
was sometime called the Golden Arrow.

In the photo we see N249 with the portraits of

Orlebar (l.) and Stainford (r)

Two Gloster VI racers were built for the 1929

race. The Gloster VI was of mixed
construction. Fuselage and floats were made
from duralumin while the wings were made of
wood. They received the serial numbers
N249 and N250. Both machines were
supplied to the RAF High Speed Flight at
Calshot in August 1929. However, testing
went very slowly, not only because of the bad
weather, but also because of the fact that the
Napier Lion engines refused to run properly
at full power. With a power output of 1320 hp it was evident this engine was at the end of its
development! Since the engine problems could not be solved in time, both Gloster VI racers
were eventually withdrawn. A day after the race, Ft. Lt. Stainford tried to settle a new world-
speed record with N249. At last, the Lion worked satisfactory at full power and on a 3 km
course, Stainford set a new record of 538 km/h. However, only half an hour later Sq. Ldr.

14
Orlebar broke it in the new Supermarine S.6! After the event, both Gloster VI's were used as
trainers by the High Speed Flight, but they were only flown on a very limited scale.

For the Napier Lion powered Supermarine S.5 it was more or less evident that this engine was
at the end of its development and that a new high-powered engine was needed to win the
Schneider Cup event. When Rolls Royce offered their new racing engine Type "R" to Mitchell's
team, Supermarine started with the design and construction for a suitable airframe for this
engine. Type "R" was a large twelve cylinder liquid-cooled V6 engine producing 1900 hp. The
Rolls Royce "R" was larger than the earlier Napier Lion and as a consequence the fuselage of
the new racer, designated as the S.6, was somewhat larger than that of the S.5. For the rest,
both types were more or less similar although the S.6 also had slightly larger floats.

For the 1929 Schneider Cup race two S.6's

were built, carrying the serial numbers N247
and N248. Both machines were painted in a
very attractive blue and silver colour scheme.
The S.6 N247 was flown for the first time on
10 August 1929 by Sq. Ldr. A.H. Orlebar. On
25 August 1929 Orlebar made the first flight in
N248. Both machines handled very well and
fully met the expectations for speed! Both
machines were entered in the 1929 race and
both planes finished first and second so it
seemed. They were flown by Fl. off. H.R.
Wagman and Fl. Off. R.L.R Atcherly at an
average speed of respectively 528.9 and
In the photo we see S1595 at Calshot. 523.9 km/h. Unfortunately, Atcherly was
disqualified after the race for cutting a pylon, but at least, the U.K. had now won two respective
races and only needed a third to come in the final possession of the trophy!

For the next race in 1931, finances seemed to

prevent them from being held. Both Italians
and Americans had already announced that
they had no racers available in time for this
event and when the RAF staff declared they
saw no further use in the development of
these highly specialized seaplanes it was
almost the end of the race of that year.
Fortunately a wealthy widow, Lady Houston,
gave sufficient financial back-up to prepare
two S.6's for the race. They were fitted with
more powerful Rolls Royce "R" engines
producing 2350 hp. Designated as the S.6B
and fitted with serial numbers S1595 and The two S.6B's and the spare S.6 N248 during
S1596 they were both entered in the race, but the 1931 race.
eventually S1595 flown by John Boothman
entered the race as the only participant. He finished with an average speed of 547 km/h and
finally won the trophy for the U.K.! After the race, the S.6B, S1595 established a new world
speed record of 655.8 km/h. It was flown by ft. Lt. G.H. Stainford on 29 September 1931. On

15
this occasion the engine was further boosted until it produced 2600 hp. The S.6B S1595 is
now exhibited in the Science Museum in London.

The American Racers:

In the 1923 Schneider Cup race at Cowes in

the U.K., American planes and pilots
participated for the first time. Lt. Frank Wead
had to withdrawn in his Navy-Wright TR-3A
racer, but Lt. David Rittenhouse and Lt.
Rutledge Irvine won the race very
convincingly at first and second place with a
speed margin of some 35 km/h over no. 3,
the Supermarine Sea Lion III. Instead of the
usual small high-powered flying boats of the
earlier events they entered the race in a
totally new Curtiss floatplane racer fitted with In the photo we see A-3080 of Lt. Irvine on the
a Curtiss D-12 engine of 465 hp. Designated slipway at Cowes
as the CR-3, they were in fact not totally new,
but further improved racers already used on earlier occasions in the U.S.A. as a landplane
fitted with wheels. The CR-3 was a biplane with braced wings fitted with flush-type surface
radiators fitted in the upper wings. Two CR-3's were built, carrying the serial numbers A-3080
and A-3081. The U.S. Navy sponsored planes were entered in the race carrying the racing
numbers 3 and 4 on the rudder and fuselage.

16
 After the success of the CR-3, Curtiss
converted a more developed and
aerodynamically refined landplane racer, the
R2C-1 into a Schneider Cup racer on floats as
the R2C-2. It was specially built for the 1924
race in the U.S.A. but since this was cancelled
the R2C-2 was never entered. Instead, it
served as a trainer for the next year event in
1925. For this race, Curtiss had converted
three new R3C-1 landplane racers into
In this photo we see Irvine's CR-3 just before Schneider Cup floatplane racers. Three R3C-
the start 1's were built, carrying the registrations
A6978, A6979 and A7054. All three were
converted with floats for the Schneider Cup, and all were finally entered in the race at
Baltimore. A6978, carrying race number 3, was flown by U.S. Army pilot Lt. James Doolittle.
A6979 and A7054, carrying race numbers 2 and 1, were flown by U.S. Navy pilots Lt. George
Cuddihy and Lt. Ralph Ofstie. The R3C-2 was fitted with a 600 hp Curtiss V-1400 engine,
driving big two-bladed Reed aluminium propellers. Doolittle won the 1925 race with a large
margin over the second plane, the British Gloster III flown by Hubert Broad. The other two
R3C-2's had to retire during the race.

Doolittle's No. 3 as shown today in the National In this photo we see Lt. Cuddihy moments
Air and Space museum in Washington DC before take-off for the race in the 1925 race

In the 1926 race at Hampton Road one R3C-2,(no. A6978) was again entered in the race,
flown by Lt. Frank Schilt. He finished second behind the Macchi M.39 monoplane racer flown
by Mario de Bernardi. An improved version of the third R3C-2, # A7054 was also entered but it
crashed during the preliminary trials. It was evident the time of the biplane racer was over.

17
 For the 1927 race, both U.S Army and U. S
Navy did not give any support for new racers
since it was evident the Curtiss racers were at
the peak of their development and the design
of new monoplane racers was not a priority
any longer because of their extreme costs.
Fortunately a group of interested
businessmen were prepared to raise some
$100,000 for the design and construction of a
new competitive racing machine. Based on
the ideas of racing pilot Al Williams, former
Curtiss employee Charles Kirkham designed
Kirkham-Williams biplane on the water with and built in his newly established workshop at
pilot Al Williams standing on the float. It carried Long Island, New York a wooden biplane
the registration X-648 on the rudder. racer largely based on the Curtiss racers.
Packard supplied a new and very powerful
liquid-cooled engine for this project: the Packard X-2775 engine of 1250 hp. In fact this engine
consisted of two 625 hp Packard V-1500 V-12 engines coupled with a mutual crankcase with
one part upright and the other one inverted to form a 24-cylinder X-type engine with four rows
of six cylinders. In this form, the new Kirkham-William racer as it was called was the most
powerful biplane racer ever built for the Schneider Cup event. The racing team was, however,
not very lucky with the new racer since it only accumulated a very flew flying hours before the
race in Venice. They asked the organizing committee for a time extension, but because this
was not granted the entry for the race had to be withdrawn. It was later converted to a
landplane with a fixed wheel undercarriage and managed to set a new world-speed record of
519 km/h but this record was never officially recognized.

After the failure of the Kirkham-Williams

biplane racer to perform in the 1927
Schneider Cup race, the Americans made a
last attempt for the 1929 race at Calshot, U.K.
The original biplane racer was
totally redesigned into a mid-wing monoplane
racer with an even more powerful Packard X-
2775 engine producing 1500 hp. It was
named Mercury I. The work was done by the
Naval Aircraft Factory at Philadelphia under
great secrecy. Racing Pilot Al Williams was
again a leading individual in this project. Great
care was taken for aerodynamic shaping of
the racer using wind-tunnel data from tests
with scale models and the result was an In the photo we see Al Williams almost
extremely good-looking racer. Upon meeting disaster during one of his attempts to
completion, Al Williams did the initial flight- get the Mercury airborne.
testing with the lower rated engine from the
biplane racer near the Santee Wharf of the Annapolis Military Academy. Because the both
floats were buried very deep in the water, and the torque of the big Packard engine produced a
tendency for the left wing to dig into the water he hardly managed to become airborne in the
plane because the use of full rudder and ailerons to keep the plane on a straight course

18
produced too much drag. He was also troubled by water spray hitting the propeller and
fuselage. He finally managed to make a short hop with the Mercury but because of a fuel
pressure drop he had to land on the water again, resulting in bending the propeller. In spite of
these problems, the Mercury was a very promising type and the disappointment of Williams’s
group must have been great when the U.S. Navy declined a request to transport the Mercury
by vessel to the U.K! They had no other choice than withdrawing their entry in the race.

Another shot of the Mercury racer at the Navy This side view clearly shows the attractive
wharf with removed engine plating shape of the Mercury racer

The French Racers:

Schneider Cup racer photo and it shows the In the photo we see the CAMS 36 at its
SPAD S.20 as entered in the 1919 race at mooring at Cowes. Carrying the race number
Bournemouth. Pilot was Sadie Lecointe but it 10 and the civil registration F-ESEC this small
never started during this year and the next year flying boat was powered by a 360 hp Hispano-
it was already outdated! The plane was fitted Suiza liquid-cooled engine driving a four-
with a 260 hp Hispano-Suiza 42 engine. bladed tractor propeller. The engine was
placed in a well-streamlined central pod on top
of the fuselage between the wings. It was
flown by Lt. Pelletier d' Oisy
After the initial success of Maurice Prévost during the first Schneider Cup race in 1913, the
French no longer dominated this event. After 1913 they did not even manage to finish any of
the races! The last year that France officially entered the Schneider Cup race was in 1923 at
Cowes, U.K. where they initially entered three planes: the Latham L.1, the CAMS 36 and the
CAMS 38. All three racers were biplane flying boats at a time the floatplanes came in to win!

19
Only the CAMS 38 managed to start during the race where but it retired after one lap. The
Latham L.1 did not start because of an engine failure while the CAMS 36 was damaged in a
collision before the race. Determined to make a last effort to win the Schneider Cup, the
French Ministry of Marine established a special training base at Etang de Berre on Lake
Hourtin near Marseille and a special group of pilots was selected for the 1929 event. Three
aircraft manufacturers, Bernard, Dewoitine and Nieuport-Delage were invited to design and
construct a new generation of winning floatplane racers using the same configuration as the
successful Italian and British racers. However, all machines were available too late to enter the
1929 race and the 1931 event was selected as the next occasion. Unfortunately, the French
team lost their leader in a fatal crash with the Bernard HV.120. Another pilot died of peritonitis
at the very young age of 34. Also, none of the racers was ready to participate in the 1931 race
at Calshot UK and finally the French team had to withdraw.

In the photo we see the Bernard HV-40.01

racer in the hangar at Berre fitted with an 800
hp Gnome-Rhône radial engine with closed
fitted cowlings for each cylinder, just as had
been done with the British Short Crusader
racer. The HV-40 flew for the first time in July
1931. Only one was built. Since it was already
apparent before its first flight it was not a
competitive machine with its maximum speed
of only 400 km/h, it was used as a trainer by
the pilot team.
Bernard HV-40.01

Bernard HV-41

A further developed Société des Avions

Bernard float racer was designed by Roger
Robert and S.G. Bruner under the type
designation HV-41. Powered by a 1,000 hp
Hispano-Suiza 'Spécial' the aircraft flew for
the first time in August 1929. After the crash
of Adjutant Florentin Bonnet in a Nieuport-

Delage NiD-62, France withdrew from the

contest of 1929 and the H.V.41 was used as
a training aircraft for the 1931 contest. In the
photo we see the HV-41 at Hourtin during
engine tests in 1929. The plane could reach a
maximum speed of 450 km/h. Only one was
built.

In this photo we see the HV-41 taxiing on the

water of Etang de Berre

20

Bernard HV-42.01
Here we see the second HV-42 at Berre with
the HV-41 at the background. The person on
the photo is M. Benassit, manufacturing
director of Bernard.
In the photo we see HV-120.02 F-AKAL at
Etang de Berre before its fatal crash in July
1931
Originally it was the intention to enter the
1929 race with a modified HV-41 with a more
powerful engine with improved cooling. In total
three of these racers were built, where the
original HV-41 was converted up to HV-42
standards. Fatalities during flight testing and
because it was already apparent they were
not fast enough were the reasons none of the
HV-42's were finally entered into the 1929
race.
In the photo we see the HV-42.01, which was
in fact the converted HV-41.
Rare shot of the HV-42 moments before take
off from the Etang de Berre.
For the 1931 race at Calshot, Hispano-Suiza
had prepared a new racing engine, the 1680
hp. 18R. Two new Bernard floatplane racers
were built and fitted with the new engine
under the type designations HV-120.01 and
HV-120.02. They carried the civil registrations
F-AKAK and F-AKAL. HV-120.01 had a
geared engine while the second machine had
a direct drive to the three-bladed propeller.
The HV-120 was flown for the first time on 25
March 1930 and could reach a speed of 540
km/h. The HV.120.02 crashed on 30 July
1931 at Berre, killing the flight section
commander Georges Bougault. Again, none
of the racers of the French were ready in time
for the race at Calshot and they had no other
option than withdrawing.
21
 The ultimate Bernard Schneider Cup racer
was the HV-220 intended for the 1931 race. It
was planned with a new Lorraine 12Rcr
'Radium' liquid-cooled engine offering some
2000-2200 hp. This would give the plane a
maximum speed of some 640 km/h.
Unfortunately for Bernard the Radium engine
was never supplied although the HV-220
airframe was completed including its contra-
rotating two-bladed propellers. A further
development was the HV-320 with a cockpit
totally sunken in the fuselage to produce
minimal drag. This type was intended to break
The photo was taken at the Bernard workshop the world speed record, but the record set by
at La Courneuve Francesco Agello in the Macchi-Castoldi MC-
72 must have shattered these French dreams
and the airframe was never completed. In the photo we see the completed Bernard HV-220
without its engine fitted, although this is not visible.

In the photo we see the single HD-412 built at The engineless Dewoitine HD-412
the Dewoitine works with the propeller already photographed afloat in the water.
in place but without an engine.

As a backup for the Bernard HV-220 and the Nieuport-Delage ND.650, Dewoitine also
constructed a last generation Schneider Cup racer as the HD-412. Planned with the same
Lorraine Radium engine as intended for the HV-220 it would have been capable of reaching
speeds of some 575-600 km/h. The fate of the HD.412 was the same as for the Bernard HV-
220: the special Radium engine was never fitted although the airframe was fully completed and
the plane never flew. So ended a very unlucky and frustrating period for the French aviation
industry!

The Races

The results of all Schneider Cup races can be summarized in the next table, although a
full book can be written about these spectacular and crowd-attracting events. These books
ARE in fact written: see literature list. At some of the races more than 200,000 spectators were
present!
22
Year Location Winning Nationality Pilot Speed km/h
Aircraft
Maurice
73.56
1913 Monaco Deperdussin France Prevost

Sopwith Howard
139.74
1914 Monaco Tabloid UK Pixton

Bornemouth Guido -
1919 UK Savoia S.13 Italy Janello (disqualified)

Luigi
172.5
1920 Venice, Italy Savoia S.12 Italy Bologna

Macchi Giovannide
189.66
1921 Venice, Italy M.7bis Italy Briganti

Supermarine Henri
234.51
1922 Naples, Italy Sea Lion III UK Biard

David
285.5
1923 Cowes, UK Curtisss CR-3 USA Rittenhouse

Baltimore, Curtiss R3C- James

374.28
1925 USA 2 USA Doolittle

Hampton Mario
396.69
1926 Roads, USA Macchi M.39 Italy Bernardi

Supermarine Sidney
453.28
1927 Venice, Italy S.5 UK Webster

Supermarine Henry
528.89
1929 Calshot,UK S.6 UK Waghorn

Supermarine John
547.31
1931 Calshot, UK S.6B UK Boothman

Conclusion

Jacques Schneider’s vision came true with the development of special high speed floatplane
racers, although at the end floatplanes and seaplanes were not the final answer for air
transport as is evident now. However, the Schneider Cup races played an enormous role in the
development of powerful engines and in future fighter development. Most striking example is
the Supermarine S.6B designed by R.J. Mitchell. The special Rolls Royce R engine had a
lifespan of only a few hours at full power, but it was the start of a new generation of high-
performing liquid-cooled engines. Within a few years a more durable version down-rated to
23
1050 hp was launched by Rolls-Royce as the Merlin. Influenced by his S.4, S5 and S.6 racers,
Mitchell created after the success of the S.6B a single-seat fighter fitted with this new Merlin
engine as the Supermarine Type 300. This new fighter flew for the first time on 5 March 1936
and showed to be a great promise. In fact, the Type 300 fighter, carrying the serial number
K5054 was the first prototype of the famous Spitfire.

Literature:
• C.F. Andrews and W.G. Cox, The Supermarine S4-S6B, Profile Publications no. 39,
1965
• C.F. Andrews and E.B. Morgan, Supermarine aircraft since 1914, Putnam-London UK,
1981
• C.H. Barnes, Shorts aircraft since 1900, Putnam-London UK, 1967
• Ralph Barker, The Schneider Trophy races, Chatto and Windus-London UK, 1971
• Peter M. Bowers, Curtiss aircraft 1907-1947, Putnam-London UK, 1979
• T.S Denham, Speed!, Pilot Press-Londom UK, 1929
• G.R. Duval, British flying boats and amphibians 1900-1952, Putnam-London UK, 1966
• Robert Hirsch, Schneider Trophy racers, Motorbooks International-USA, 1993
• A.J. Jackson, Avro aircraft since 1908, Putnam-London UK, 1990
• A.J. Jackson, Blackburn aircraft since 1909, Putnam-London UK, 1989
• Derek James, Gloster aircraft since 1917, Putnam-London UK, 1971
• Jean Liron, Les Avions Bernard, Docavia no. 31-Paris, France, 1990
• Charles A. Mendenhall, The air racer, Speciality Press, U.S.A., 1994

Websites:
There are numerous websites dealing with the Schneider Trophy races and racers, but the
most important site specially dedicated to floatplanes and flying boats is:
http://www.hydroretro.net/indexen.html

In memoriam:

Aeronautical development has sometimes lead to fatal accidents. The Schneider Trophy never
experienced any fatal accidents during the actual competition, but several pilots were killed
during the training for the races. This resulted in the following casualties:

• U.S.A: Harmon J. Norton in 1923 in a Curtiss CR-3 and Franck Connaut in 1926.

• France: Georges Bougault in a Bernard H.V.120, in 1931

• Great-Britain: Sam Kinkhead in 1928 and Jerry Brinton in 1931 in a Supermarine S.5

• Italy had five casualties: Vittorio Centurione in 1926 in a Macchi M-39; Giuseppe Motta
in 1929 in a Macchi M-67; Tomasso Dal Molin in 1930 in a Savoia S.65; Giovani Monti
and Stanislao Bellini in 1931 in a Macchi MC-72.

All images from Nico Braas collection

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