Armstrong Whitworth Atlas
Armstrong Whitworth · United Kingdom · first flew 1925 · reconnaissance aircraft
The Armstrong Whitworth Atlas was a British single-engine biplane built as an army co-operation aircraft for the Royal Air Force in the 1920s and 1930s. It was the first purpose-designed aircraft of that type to serve with the RAF.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Mid-mounted, swept |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | Two crew positions, with a hook that could be fitted under the fuselage to pick up messages |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Single-bay biplane with sweptback metal wings
- Single radial engine in the nose
- Two crew positions, with a hook that could be fitted under the fuselage to pick up messages
A single-engined two-seat biplane with swept metal wings and a radial engine, and wing slats fitted to production aircraft.
Specifications
- The Armstrong Whitworth Atlas has a length of 8.7 m (29 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 12.05 m (40 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 229 km/h (142 mph).
- Typical crew: 2.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
It was designed by a team under John Lloyd as a private venture, and the prototype first flew on 10 May 1925. The wings were redesigned with sweepback after the prototype could not be sideslipped steeply, and automatic slats and more sweepback later cured dangerous stall behaviour.
Variants
The Atlas I was the army co-operation version, with 271 built for the RAF, and the Atlas Trainer was a dual-control version, with 175 built. The Atlas II was a more powerful version with a Panther engine, of which 15 were built for the Kwangsi Air Force of China, and Greece built a lower-cost version.
Where you'll see it
The first 37 aircraft were ordered in 1927 and entered service with Nos 13 and 26 Squadrons. The Atlas was replaced by the Hawker Audax by 1935, and the Royal Canadian Air Force flew 16 until 1940.
Related aircraft
- Armstrong Whitworth Awana
- Armstrong Whitworth Wolf
- Armstrong Whitworth Ara
- Armstrong Whitworth Siskin
- Aichi Experimental Type 15-Ko Reconnaissance Seaplane
- Albatros L 65
- Ansaldo A.120
- Astra-Protopopescu
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