Farman HF.20
| HF.20 | |
|---|---|
| Role | Reconnaissance aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Farman |
| Designer | Henri Farman |
| First flight | Template:Avyear |
The Farman HF.20 and its derivatives were a family of reconnaissance aircraft produced in France shortly before and during the First World War. It was a refined version of the Farman MF.11 "Shorthorn" that did away with the type's distinctive landing skids and incorporated design features from Henri Farman's designs. It entered service with the French Belgian and Serbian armies in 1913 (two aircraft conducting reconnaissance during the Siege of Shkoder in the First Balkan War with one crashing), and with the British RFC and RNAS shortly after the outbreak of war. The type was also licence-built in the UK by Airco and Grahame-White.
The HF.20 was seriously underpowered, and a variety of engines were trialled in the hope of correcting this, none with much success. The problem was eventually solved only when an engine of twice the power of the original powerplant was fitted to the HF.27 variant, by which time the aircraft was already obsolete. Nevertheless, the performance of this machine made it adequate for use on secondary fronts.
Variants
- HF.20 - original version with Gnome engine
- HF.21 - version with Gnome Lambda engine
- HF.22 - version with Gnome Lambda engine
- HF.23 - version with Gnome Lambda engine
- HF.24 - version with Gnome Lambda engine
- HF.25 - version with Gnome Lambda engine
- HF.27 - version with Canton-Unné R-9 engine
Operators
Specifications (HF.20)
General characteristics
- Crew: Two, pilot and observer
Performance
References
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. pp. 380–381.
- World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 894 Sheet 14–15.