Sopwith Camel Country: UK Type: Fighter Manufacturer: Sopwith Service: 1917 - 1918 First Flight: December 1916 Production: 5490

The Sopwith Camel Scout is a British World War I single-seat fighter aircraft that was famous for its manoeuvrability.

The type entered squadron service in June 1917 with No. 4 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service, near Dunkirk. The following month, it became operational with No. 70 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. By February 1918, 13 squadrons were fully equipped with the Camel.

The Camel was a superlative fighter. The aircraft offered heavier armament and better performance than the Pup and Triplane. Agility in combat made the Camel one of the best remembered Allied aircraft of the First World War. Together with the S.E.5a, the Camel helped to wrest aerial superiority away from the German Albatros scouts. The Camel was credited with shooting down 1,294 enemy aircraft, more than any other Allied scout.

By mid-1918, the Camel was approaching obsolescence as a fighter, limited by its slow speed and comparatively poor performance over 12,000 ft (3,650 m). It found a new lease of life as a ground-attack aircraft and infantry support weapon. During the German Offensive of March 1918, flights of Camels harassed the advancing German Army, inflicting high losses (and suffering high losses in turn) through the dropping of 25lb (11 kg) Cooper bombs and ultra-low-level strafing. The protracted development of the Camel's replacement, the Sopwith Snipe, meant that the Camel remained in service until the Armistice.

General characteristics