Short Folder
Encyclopedia
Short Folder is a generic name often applied to several different Short Brothers'
aircraft types designed and built prior to and during World War I
. Short Brothers developed and patented
folding wing mechanisms for ship-borne aircraft from 1913
; the wings were hinged so that they folded back horizontally alongside the fuselage (as shown in the image), reducing the storage space required for stowing them aboard ship.
Shorts produced many 'folder' aircraft; in addition large numbers of Shorts' designs were produced by other companies, including Brush Electrical Engineering Co. Ltd.
, Robey & Co. Ltd., J Samuel White, Frederick Sage & Co. Ltd., S E Saunders Limited
, Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company, Supermarine Aviation Works Ltd., Mann, Egerton & Co. Ltd.
and Westland Aircraft Works Ltd..
Short Folders saw service in many theatres of World War I, notably in the Cuxhaven Raid
in 1914, in the Dardanelles
and in the disabling of the SMS Königsberg in East Africa in July 1915. The theatres of war served by the various 'folders' ranged from the Arctic Circle through the Mediterranean and Africa to Mesopotamia, although the engines of the time were unable to perform ideally in hot climates and elevated altitudes.
After World War I, most were retired, although some remained in service with the Greek Navy into the 1920s and the Estonian Air Force into the 1930s.
Short Brothers
Short Brothers plc is a British aerospace company, usually referred to simply as Shorts, that is now based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1908, Shorts was the first company in the world to make production aircraft and was a manufacturer of flying boats during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s...
aircraft types designed and built prior to and during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Short Brothers developed and patented
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
folding wing mechanisms for ship-borne aircraft from 1913
1913 in aviation
This is a list of aviation-related events from 1913:-January:*13 January – Brazilian naval aviation commences with the foundation of a flying school.-February:...
; the wings were hinged so that they folded back horizontally alongside the fuselage (as shown in the image), reducing the storage space required for stowing them aboard ship.
Shorts produced many 'folder' aircraft; in addition large numbers of Shorts' designs were produced by other companies, including Brush Electrical Engineering Co. Ltd.
Brush Electrical Machines
Brush Electrical Machines is a manufacturer of large generators for gas turbine and steam turbine drive applications, based at Loughborough in Leicestershire, United Kingdom....
, Robey & Co. Ltd., J Samuel White, Frederick Sage & Co. Ltd., S E Saunders Limited
Saunders-Roe
Saunders-Roe Limited was a British aero- and marine-engineering company based at Columbine Works East Cowes, Isle of Wight.-History:The name was adopted in 1929 after Alliot Verdon Roe and John Lord took a controlling interest in the boat-builders S.E. Saunders...
, Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company, Supermarine Aviation Works Ltd., Mann, Egerton & Co. Ltd.
Mann Egerton
Mann, Egerton & Company Ltd. was an automotive and aerospace company headquartered in Norwich, United Kingdom. During its history the company was variously active in automotive retailing, aircraft manufacturing, automotive coachbuilding and electrical services.It was formally founded in 1905 by...
and Westland Aircraft Works Ltd..
Short Folders saw service in many theatres of World War I, notably in the Cuxhaven Raid
Cuxhaven Raid
The Cuxhaven Raid was a British ship-based air-raid on the German naval forces at Cuxhaven mounted on Christmas Day, 1914.Aircraft of the Royal Naval Air Service were carried to within striking distance by seaplane tenders of the Royal Navy, supported by both surface ships and submarines...
in 1914, in the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
and in the disabling of the SMS Königsberg in East Africa in July 1915. The theatres of war served by the various 'folders' ranged from the Arctic Circle through the Mediterranean and Africa to Mesopotamia, although the engines of the time were unable to perform ideally in hot climates and elevated altitudes.
After World War I, most were retired, although some remained in service with the Greek Navy into the 1920s and the Estonian Air Force into the 1930s.
Short Brothers First World War folding aircraft types
(approximate numbers produced in brackets)- Short S.41 typeShort S.41|-See also:-References:*Barnes, C.H. Shorts Aircraft since 1900. London:Putnam, 1967.*Bruce, J.M. "". Flight, 14 December 1956. pp. 921–926.*Bruce, J.M. British Aeroplanes 1914-18. London:Putnam, 1957....
- experimental prototype (3) - Short S.63 type - reconnaissance seaplane (4)
- Short Admiralty Type 74Short Admiralty Type 74-External links:* -See also:...
- reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (8) - Short Type 81 - reconnaissance/bombing/torpedo-carrying seaplane (5)
- Short Type 135 - reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (1)
- Short Type 136 - reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (1)
- Short Type 166 - reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (26)
- Short Type 184Short Type 184|-Manufacturers:Source: Barnes and James#Brush Electrical Engineering Co. Ltd. #Frederick Sage & Co. Ltd. #J. Samuel White #Mann, Egerton & Co. Ltd. #Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company #Robey & Co. Ltd. #S E Saunders Limited...
- reconnaissance/bombing/torpedo-carrying seaplane (936) - Short BomberShort Bomber-See also:...
- long-range landplane bomber (83) - Short Type 827Short Type 827|-See also:-External links:...
- reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (108) - Short Type 830Short Type 827|-See also:-External links:...
- reconnaissance/bombing seaplane (18) - Short 310 - reconnaissance seaplane/torpedo bomber (128)
- Type 320Short Type 320|-See also:...
- reconnaissance seaplane/torpedo bomber (127)
Later Short Brothers folding aircraft types
(year of first flight in brackets)- Short N1B ShirlShort Shirl|-The name:Shirl is not a common English word. The Oxford English Dictionary gives four meanings. Two of these, "shrill" and "rough", re hair are very old and seem to have fallen out of use in Elizabethan times. Two usages remained extant at the beginning of the 20th century: "a trimming" and a...
- shipborne torpedo-bomber (1919) - Short Sporting Type - commercial biplane floatplane (1919)
- Short SA.1 SturgeonShort SturgeonThe Short Sturgeon was a British aircraft originally designed in the Second World War as a high-performance torpedo bomber. With the end of the war in the Pacific it was no longer needed as such. Through shifting priorities postwar, the Sturgeon was redesigned first into a target tug and then later...
- prototype anti-submarine aircraft (1946) - Short SB.6 SeamewShort SeamewThe Short SB.6 Seamew was a British aircraft designed in 1951 by David Keith-Lucas of Shorts as a lightweight anti-submarine platform to replace the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm 's Grumman Avenger AS 4 with the Reserve branch of the service...
- anti-submarine aircraft (1953)