AirCo DH.5

Scout / Light Bomber Biplane Aircraft

United Kingdom | 1917

"The AirCo DH.5 tried - rather unsuccessfully - to mesh some very distinct design qualities of previous de Havilland designs."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/16/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

With the vantage point afforded to pilots of the earlier Airco DH.2 model, famous aircraft designer Geoffrey de Havilland set about to create an improved version through the DH.5. The end result was, however, one of de Havilland's more forgettable designs of the war - not highly regarded by either pilots charged with flying her or the historians left to cover her exploits. It did operate with a more useful interrupter gear allowing for better service from a fixed, forward-firing machine gun and held a light bombing capability. First flight was in August of 1916 with service introduction in May of the following year. Its operational limitations left just 552 examples built with the only users becoming the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) of Britain and the Australian Flying Corps (AFC).

The Airco DH.5 biplane scout was somewhat unique in its design - a key quality being the backward-staggered upper wing element which allowed the pilot in a forward-set cockpit much improved views to the front and sides of his aircraft. As a "fighting scout" this proved ideal for spotting one's enemy first certainly held its advantages. The aircraft was powered by a sole 110 horsepower Le Rhone 9J 9-cylinder rotary engine in the nose driving a two-blade wooden propeller unit. A typical biplane wing assembly was used through a single bay approach and applicable struts and cabling provided the needed support as well as control for moving surfaces. The struts leaned noticeably rearwards to compensate for the upper wing placement over the aircraft. Armament was 1 x 7.7mm Vickers machine gun while a modest bomb-carrying capability was also given - 4 x 25lb bombs under the fuselage. With the interrupter gear, the gun could be installed over the engine housing and fired through the spinning propeller blades while also being relatively accessible by the pilot to clear weapon jams.

As unique was the DH.5 design was attempting to be, the aircraft went on to have less-than-stellar performance and the mere appearance of the aircraft along airfields for pilots familiar with "traditional" biplanes was enough to put off most. The stigma against the DH.5 was so great that the model earned an unflattering reputation for instability though this quality was not a proven one. Couple this with the fact that the aircraft required a greater amount of training and experience to be able to handle effectively in a dogfight and the DH.5 was in operational service for no longer than eight months over any front. By January of 1918, the DH.5 was no longer an option and quickly replaced by more acceptable types as the war began to turn a corner - the DH.5 even failed as a basic trainer.

Despite this, the DH.5 was still noted for its rugged construction which led to a sound over-battlefield piece where it operated at its best at low altitudes in the strike role instead of the high altitude (10,000 feet+) dogfighting role where performance dropped considerably. As a dogfighter, the DH.5 was a rather limited value mount for the position of the upper wing blocked a critical rearward view and the sole machine gun armament limited its offensive output against targets in its crosshairs. The light bombload was something of a saving grace for it allowed the DH.5 to operate in the bomber role and strike at unprotected targets.

Five RFC squadrons eventually operated the type (Nos. 24, 32, 41, 64, and 65) and two AFC were also handed the DH.5 (No.2 and No.7 (Training)). None of the airframes survived the test of time as museum showpieces.

Production was seen from AirCo as well as British Caudron, Darracq (of France), and March, Jones, and Cribb.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the AirCo DH.5 Scout / Light Bomber Biplane Aircraft.

1 x Le Rhone 9J 9-cylinder rotary engine developing 110 horsepower.
Propulsion

102 mph
164 kph | 89 kts
Max Speed

16,001 ft
4,877 m | 3 miles
Service Ceiling

273 miles
440 km | 238 nm
Operational Range

815 ft/min
248 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the AirCo DH.5 Scout / Light Bomber Biplane Aircraft.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

22.0 ft
6.71 m
O/A Length

25.7 ft
(7.82 m)
O/A Width

9.1 ft
(2.78 m)
O/A Height

1,493 lb
(677 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the AirCo DH.5 Scout / Light Bomber Biplane Aircraft .

STANDARD:
1 x 7.62mm Vickers machine gun in fixed, forward-firing position at upper fuselage; synchronized to fire through the spinning propeller blades.

OPTIONAL:
4 x 25lb light bombs under the fuselage.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the AirCo DH.5 family line.

DH.5 - Base Series Designation

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the AirCo DH.5. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 552 Units
Contractor(s): Aircraft Manufacturing Company Ltd (AirCo) / de Havilland - United Kingdom

[ Australia; United Kingdom ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 120mph

Lo: 60mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (102mph).

Graph Average of 90 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

552

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

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Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

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Image from the Public Domain.

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Image from the Public Domain.

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Image from the Public Domain.

❮ ❯

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT

GROUND ATTACK

CLOSE-AIR SUPPORT

TRAINING

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1

Going Further...
The AirCo DH.5 Scout / Light Bomber Biplane Aircraft appears in the following collections:

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