WOW163 Avro 504 (Night Fighter Variant)

Out of Stock

SKU: 14634 Category: mothballed

Description

WOW163: The Avro 504 was a two seater First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind that served in WW1, in any military capacity, during that conflict. More than 10,000 were built from 1913 until production ended in 1932.

Small numbers of early aircraft were purchased by the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) prior to the start of the First World War and were taken to France when the war started. One of these aircraft was the first British aircraft to be shot down by the Germans, on 22 August 1914. The pilot was 2nd Lt. Vincent Waterfall and his navigator Lt Charles George Gordon Bayly (both of 5 Sqn RFC). The RNAS used four 504s to form a special flight in order to bomb the Zeppelin works at Friedrichshafen on the shores of Lake Constance. Three set out from Belfort in north-eastern France on 21 November 1914, carrying four 20 lb (9 kg) bombs each. While one aircraft was shot down, the raid was successful, with several direct hits on the airship sheds and the destruction of the hydrogen generating plant.

This hand carved 1/30 scale Mahogany model represents one of the late war Avro 504’s that were used for night fighting and is now flying with the Shuttleworth collection here in the UK.