Sopwith Snipe

Single-Seat Biplane Fighter Aircraft

United Kingdom | 1918

"The Sopwith Snipe was an evolved form of the successful war-winning Sopwith Camel design - though not appearing until the final weeks of World War 1."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 11/09/2016 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

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The Sopwith Snipe took all of the components that had made the Sopwith Camel a legend in the middle years of World War 1 and introduced several new features that made this new design the most formidable Allied fighter. Appearing with just eight weeks left in the conflict, the Sopwith Snipe would nevertheless prove its worth against the very best Fokker designs available. In the end, the Herbert Smith-designed Snipe would continue to serve the Royal Air Force (RAF) in large capacity, surviving well into the inter-war years.

Externally, the Snipe took on the basic design of the Camel with a traditional biplane wing structure, fixed landing gear and single pilot seating. Armament consisted of two 7.7mm synchronized machine guns firing in a fixed-forward position. Where the Snipe stood out above its predecessor was internally, featuring an all-new more powerful engine, integrated oxygen and heating systems allowing the aircraft to fly higher and with a better straight-line speed. Power for the Snipe was derived from a Bentley B.R.2 rotary piston engine, delivering some 230 horsepower.

The Sopwith Snipe would go on to become the Thomas Sopwith firms last production aircraft by conflicts end. Nearly 500 examples would be produced and would serve in some capacity up until 1927.

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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 Sopwith 7F.1 Single-Seat Biplane Fighter Aircraft.

1 x Bentley B.R.2 rotary piston engine developing 230 horsepower.
Propulsion

121 mph
195 kph | 105 kts
Max Speed

19,521 ft
5,950 m | 4 miles
Service Ceiling

364 miles
585 km | 316 nm
Operational Range

1,300 ft/min
396 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 Sopwith 7F.1 Single-Seat Biplane Fighter Aircraft.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

19.8 ft
6.02 m
O/A Length

30.1 ft
(9.17 m)
O/A Width

8.8 ft
(2.67 m)
O/A Height

1,323 lb
(600 kg)
Empty Weight

2,028 lb
(920 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 Sopwith Snipe Single-Seat Biplane Fighter Aircraft .

STANDARD:
2 x 7.7mm Vickers fixed, forward-firing machine guns synchronized to fire through the spinning propeller blades.

OPTIONAL:
4 x 25lb bombs underwing

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Sopwith Snipe family line.

Snipe - Base Series Designation

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

Total Production: 497 Units
Contractor(s): Sopwith Aviation Company - United Kingdom

[ Australia; Brazil; Canada; Soviet Union; United Kingdom ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 150mph

Lo: 75mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (121mph).

Graph Average of 113 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

497

36183

44000

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

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

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❮ ❯

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

AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT

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 Sopwith Snipe Single-Seat Biplane Fighter Aircraft appears in the following collections:

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