Product Description

The Sopwith Pup was the forerunner of the hugely successful Sopwith Camel, which duly became the most successful fighter of World War 1. The first proper British fighting scout, the first Pups â€" the Royal Naval Air Service â€" arrived on the Western Front in 1916. Although regarded as a ‘nice’ aeroplane to fly, pilots who used it in combat gained much success during the first half of 1917. The Royal Flying Corps also used the Pup from January 1917 onwards, with the final combats with the machine occurring in December of that year. This book describes the combat careers of the successful Pup aces, how they flew and how they fought.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #315502 in Books
• Brand: Osprey Publishing
• Published on: 2005-07-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 96 pages

Review
"I have reviewed a few of the Osprey "Aces of..." titles and found this book to be of the same high quality as the rest of the series. The photography and color plates are outstanding... Overall, this is an excellent book, and I highly recommend it." -Rob Auer, Proceedings

From the Publisher
Osprey's Aircraft of the Aces series combines full colour artwork, the best archival contemporary photography, and first hand accounts from aces to bring history's greatest airborne conflicts to life.

About the Author
Norman Franks lives in East Sussex and is a recognised authority on both World War 1 and World War 2 aviation history. With around 80 published works on his subject, he has written many titles for Osprey.

Customer Reviews

Before the Camel...There Was the Pup!
Sopwith's delightful Pup biplane is the subject of this Osprey 'Aircraft of the Aces' volume by Norman Franks. Introduced into service in September 1916 by 54 Squadron, the graceful little fighter proved a worthy opponent of the Albatros fighters then in German service. Before it was replaced by Camels in the fall of 1917, the Pup ran up an enviable combat record, 29 pilots making ace in the aircraft.

Despite being armed with only a single. 303 machine gun, the Pup was widely beloved by its pilots who found it a responsive, agile and sturdy fighting machine. In all, eight RFC or RNAS units operated the Pup and, interestingly enough, an RFC and an RNAS pilot shared top gun honors in the Pup, both being credited with 11 victories.

Franks' books is replete with tales of Pup pilots like Oliver Sutton, Reg Charley, Joe Fall, Maurice Scott, Bob Little and Arthur Lee 'yanking and banking' with the dreaded Hun. Franks incorporates several first-person accounts in his narrative which help capture the flavor of those long-ago combats as does a contemporary document entitled 'Notes on Aerial Fighting in Formation' by a Naval 8 Pup pilot. Eighty photos and six pages of color side-views complement the text.

Considering it was only equipped with an 80hp engine - compared to the 160 hp engine powering German fighters - the Pup acquitted itself well during its frontline service. Franks' book is a nicely written, well-illustrated tribute to Sopwith's legendary fighter. Recommended.