Saunders-Roe Skeeter
Saunders-Roe · United Kingdom · first flew 1948 · helicopter
The Saunders-Roe Skeeter was a British light all-metal two-seat training and scout helicopter with a single piston engine.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, rotary |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, fuselage-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 8.13 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Three-bladed main rotor and three-bladed tail rotor on a triangular-section tailboom
- Enclosed glazed canopy with removable doors for the two-man crew
- Fixed tricycle undercarriage with interchangeable wheels
A small two-seat helicopter with a glazed bubble cockpit, a slim tailboom and a nose-wheel undercarriage.
Specifications
- The Saunders-Roe Skeeter has a length of 8.13 m (27 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 9.75 m (32 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 175 km/h (109 mph).
- Typical crew: 2.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
The design began as the Cierva W.14, and the first prototype flew at Eastleigh on 10 October 1948. A larger Mark 2 first flew on 20 October 1949, and a resonance problem was cured by a redesigned undercarriage and new blade dampers.
Variants
The Skeeter 6 (AOP.10 and T.11) was an evaluation batch with 200 hp Gipsy Major engines. The AOP.12 production version had a 215 hp Gipsy Major, and the turbine-powered Saro P.531 was developed separately.
Where you'll see it
Production orders for 64 AOP.12s were placed in 1956 and deliveries began in 1958. Interest from the Bundeswehr secured an export order, and 78 were built in addition to ten prototypes.
Related aircraft
- Saunders-Roe SR.A/1 Shrimp
- Saunders-Roe Princess
- Saunders-Roe SR.53
- Saro P.531
- Bell XH-15
- Bratukhin B-11
- Hiller UH-12
- Mil Mi-1
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