Supermarine S.5
The Supermarine S.5 was a 1920s British single-engined single-seat racing seaplane built by Supermarine. Designed specifically for the Schneider Trophy competition, the S.5 was the progenitor of a line of racing aircraft that ultimately led to the Supermarine Spitfire fighter. Design and development The Supermarine S.5 was designed by Reginald Mitchell for the 1927 Schneider Trophy. Following the earlier loss of the S.4 before the 1925 Schneider Trophy event Mitchell designed a new monoplane racer. Unlike the S.4's all-wood structure, the S.5 was of mixed construction with the semi-monocoque fuselage, including the engine cowlings, mainly duralumin; the wire-braced wings had spruce spars and spruce-ply ribs and a plywood skin. The horizontal tail surfaces were made of wood. Wing surface radiators made up of corrugated copper sheets replaced the Lamblin type radiators of the S.4.: oil was cooled by corrugated steel radiators on either side of the fuselage. The entire fuel load was carried in the starboard float, which was closer to the aircraft's centreline than the port float. Three aircraft were built, one with a direct drive Napier Lion VIIA engine, and the other two with a geared Napier Lion VIIB engine. Operational history The first aircraft flew for the