Sopwith 1-1/2 Strutter

[roy litchfield]

Here are another 2 photos.

[Adrian Roberts]

Roy

Thanks for the very interesting and detailed photos.

I get the impression that the colour is paler than the British PC12 Dark Brown, especially as the numbers are black on a paler background, so probably the aircraft are French

Adrian

[Dolphin]

Roy

As Adrian says, the aeroplane looks like a 1½ Strutter in French service, similar to the Sop. 1.A2 below. The colour scheme of the photographed aircraft appears to be a standard French finish of overall clear doped lined with a darker colour, probably dark brown, on the top of the fuselage around the cockpits.

If the photos had caught an Escadrille emblem on the fuselage side [there's a hint of it in your first photograph, unless it's the top of a number, but it's not there on the second image - different machines?] we might be able to identify the unit.

Regards

Gareth

[J T Gray]

If it is of any interest the lastest "Flypast" magazine has a two-page spread on a movie titled "Flyboys" currently in production with a plot based round the Lafayette Escadrille.

The magazine article has a photo of a 1 1/2 Strutter replica which has air under it's wheels - whether it's a genuine flyer or just being "hopped" I don't know, but it does look ass though you might get to see one flying on the big screen soon.

Of course this doesn't mean that the movie will be any good...

Adrian

[Gibbo]

Some people in France are currently restoring a Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter to flying condition. Their web site says that it'll be the 4th example flying but the only original.

1 1/2 Strutter restoration

A group based at the Museum of Flight at East Fortune in East Lothian are building a replica from scratch, which is also intended to be flyable. Their workshop isn't usually open to visitors but normally you can visit it & speak to them once a year, when the Museum holds its annual Festival of Flight. Unfortunately this year's event was cancelled as it was scheduled for the Saturday before G8 & Edinburgh Airport couldn't handle the aircraft for both.

Judging by the French group's web site & my visit to East Fortune a year ago, the aircraft in the film won't be either of these but a poster on the Internet Movie Databse says that several replica & original aircraft are being used.

I know something you don't know...

by - aj_march (Sat May 7 2005 04:12:40 ) Ignore this User | Report Abuse

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Just paid a visit to the airfield at which the film is being filmed, they have 3 Nieuport replicas, a Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter replica, another Sopwith of some description (possibly a Pup), as well as from the Shuttleworth Collection a GENUINE Bristol Fighter and the oldest flyable aircraft in the world, a 1909 Bleriot.

IMDB

Incidentally the IMDB says that 2 films called Flyboys are in production. The WW1 one is due out in 2006. The one to be released this year is a modern day adventure film.