Vickers Vimy
Encyclopedia
The Vickers Vimy was a British
heavy bomber
aircraft of the First World War
and post-First World War era. It achieved success as both a military and civil aircraft, setting several notable records in long-distance flights in the interwar period
, the most celebrated of which was the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
by Alcock and Brown
in June 1919.
in Leighton Buzzard
, designed a twin-engine biplane
bomber
, the Vickers F.B.27 to meet a requirement for a night bomber capable of attacking targets in Germany
, a contract being placed for three prototypes on 14 August 1917. Design and production of the prototypes was extremely rapid, with the first flying on 30 November 1917, powered by two 200 hp (150 kW) Hispano Suiza engines. It was named after the Battle of Vimy Ridge
.
Owing to engine supply difficulties, the prototype Vimys were tested with a number of different engine types, including Sunbeam Maoris, Salmson 9Zm
water cooled radial
s, and Fiat A.12
bis engines, before production orders were placed for aircraft powered by the 230 hp (170 kW) BHP Puma, 400 hp (300 kW) Fiat, 400 hp (300 kW) Liberty L-12
and the 360 hp (270 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII engines, with a total of 776 ordered before the end of the First World War. Of these, only aircraft powered by the Eagle engine, known as the Vimy IV, were delivered to the RAF.
, one of which had been deployed to France for use by the Independent Air Force
. The war ended, however, before it could be used on operations. The Vimy only reached full service status in July 1919 when it entered service with 58 Squadron
in Egypt. The aircraft formed the main heavy bomber force of the RAF for much of the 1920s. The Vimy served as a front line bomber in the Middle East and in the United Kingdom from 1919 until 1925, when it was replaced by the Vickers Virginia
, but continued to equip a Special Reserve bomber squadron, 502 Squadron
at Aldergrove in Northern Ireland
until 1929. The Vimy continued in use as a training aircraft, many being re-engined with Bristol Jupiter
or Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar radial engine
s. The final Vimys, used as Target aircraft for searchlight
crews remained in use until 1938.
plywood), which was developed at and first flew from the Joyce Green airfield in Kent
on 13 April 1919. Initially, it bore the interim civil registration K-107, later being re-registered as G-EAAV.
The prototype entered the 1920 race to Cape Town; it left Brooklands
on 24 January 1920 but crashed at Tabora
, Tanganyika
on 27 February.
A Chinese order for 100 is particularly noteworthy, although a failure to pay interest from April 1922 probably led to the order not being completed. Forty of the 43 built were delivered to China, but most remained in their crates unused, with only seven of these being put into civilian use.
Fifty-five military transport versions of the Vimy Commercial were built for the RAF as the Vickers Vernon
.
, 20 aircraft were secretly converted into bombers under the order of the Zhili clique warlord Cao Kun
, and later participated in the Second Zhili-Fengtian War
.
During the Second Zhili-Fengtian War, these bomber versions of the Vimy Commercial were initially highly successful due to the low-level bombing tactics used, with the air force chief-of-staff of the Zhili clique, General Zhao Buli (趙步壢) personally flying many of the missions. However, on 17 September, returning from a successful bombing mission outside Shanhai Pass
, General Zhao's bomber was hit by ground fire from the Fengtian clique
in the region of Nine Gates (Jiumenkou, 九門口) and had to make a forced landing. Although General Zhao was able to make a successful escape back to his base, the bombers subsequently flew at much higher altitude to avoid ground fire, which greatly reduced their bombing accuracy and effectiveness.
After numerous battles between Chinese warlords
, all of the aircraft fell into the hands of the Fengtian clique, forming its First Heavy Bomber Group. These bombers were in the process of being phased out at the time of the Mukden Incident
and therefore were subsequently captured by the Japanese, who soon disposed of them.
In 1969, an airworthy Vimy replica (registered G-AWAU) was built by the Vintage Aircraft Flying Association at Brooklands (this aircraft was first flown by D G 'Dizzy' Addicott and Peter Hoare but was badly damaged by fire that Summer and is now displayed at the RAF Museum
, Hendon, London).
A second flyable Vimy replica, NX71MY, was built in 1994 by an Australian/American team led by Lang Kidby and Peter McMillan, and this aircraft successfully recreated the three great pioneering Vimy flights: England to Australia flown by Lang Kidby and Peter McMillan (in 1994), England to South Africa flown by Mark Rebholz and John LaNoue (1999) and in 2005, Alcock and Brown's 1919 Atlantic crossing was recreated, flown by Steve Fossett
and Mark Rebholz. The aircraft was donated to Brooklands Museum
in 2006 and was kept airworthy in order to commemorate the 90th anniversaries of the Transatlantic and Australian flights until retired in late 2009. Its final flight was made by John Dodd, Clive Edwards and Peter McMillan from Dunsfold to Brooklands on 15 November 2009 and four days later, in just 18 hours, the aircraft was dismantled, transported the short distance to the Museum and reassembled inside the main hangar by a dedicated volunteer team. Two days later a special Brooklands Vimy Exhibition was officially opened by Peter McMillan, and this unique aircraft is now on public display there.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
heavy bomber
Heavy bomber
A heavy bomber is a bomber aircraft of the largest size and load carrying capacity, and usually the longest range.In New START, the term "heavy bomber" is used for two types of bombers:*one with a range greater than 8,000 kilometers...
aircraft of the First World War
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...
and post-First World War era. It achieved success as both a military and civil aircraft, setting several notable records in long-distance flights in the interwar period
Interwar period
Interwar period can refer to any period between two wars. The Interbellum is understood to be the period between the end of the Great War or First World War and the beginning of the Second World War in Europe....
, the most celebrated of which was the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
by Alcock and Brown
Alcock and Brown
British aviators Alcock and Brown made the first non-stop transatlantic flight in June 1919. They flew a modified World War I Vickers Vimy bomber from St. John's, Newfoundland, to Clifden, Connemara, County Galway, Ireland...
in June 1919.
Design and development
Reginald Kirshaw "Rex" Pierson, chief designer of Vickers Limited (Aviation Department)Vickers Limited
Vickers Limited was a famous British engineering conglomerate that merged into Vickers-Armstrongs in 1927.-Early history:Vickers was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by the miller Edward Vickers and his father-in-law George Naylor in 1828. Naylor was a partner in the foundry Naylor &...
in Leighton Buzzard
Leighton Buzzard
-Lower schools:*Beaudesert Lower School - Apennine Way*Clipstone Brook Lower School - Brooklands Drive*Greenleas Lower School - Derwent Road*Dovery Down Lower School - Heath Road*Heathwood Lower School - Heath Road*Leedon Lower School - Highfield Road...
, designed a twin-engine biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
, the Vickers F.B.27 to meet a requirement for a night bomber capable of attacking targets in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, a contract being placed for three prototypes on 14 August 1917. Design and production of the prototypes was extremely rapid, with the first flying on 30 November 1917, powered by two 200 hp (150 kW) Hispano Suiza engines. It was named after the Battle of Vimy Ridge
Battle of Vimy Ridge
The Battle of Vimy Ridge was a military engagement fought primarily as part of the Battle of Arras, in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the Canadian Corps, of four divisions, against three divisions of the German Sixth Army...
.
Owing to engine supply difficulties, the prototype Vimys were tested with a number of different engine types, including Sunbeam Maoris, Salmson 9Zm
Salmson 9 (water cooled engine)
The Salmson 9 series of 9-cylinder water-cooled radial engines were produced in large numbers during the First World War.-History:The origins of the Salmson- 9 series date from 1909, when Georges Canton and Pierre Unné, who had patented an engine design, offered it to the Salmson company...
water cooled radial
Radial engine
The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel...
s, and Fiat A.12
Fiat A.12
-References:* Gunston, Bill. . World Encyclopaedia of Aero Engines. Patrick Stephens: Wellingborough. p. 62...
bis engines, before production orders were placed for aircraft powered by the 230 hp (170 kW) BHP Puma, 400 hp (300 kW) Fiat, 400 hp (300 kW) Liberty L-12
Liberty L-12
The Liberty L-12 was a 27 litre water-cooled 45° V-12 aircraft engine of 400 horsepower designed both for a high power-to-weight ratio and for ease of mass production.-History:...
and the 360 hp (270 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII engines, with a total of 776 ordered before the end of the First World War. Of these, only aircraft powered by the Eagle engine, known as the Vimy IV, were delivered to the RAF.
RAF service
By October 1918, only three aircraft had been delivered to the Royal Air ForceRoyal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, one of which had been deployed to France for use by the Independent Air Force
Independent Air Force
The Independent Air Force , also known as the Independent Force or the Independent Bombing Force and later known as the Inter-Allied Independent Air Force, was a World War I strategic bombing force which was part of the British Royal Air Force and used to strike against German railways, aerodromes...
. The war ended, however, before it could be used on operations. The Vimy only reached full service status in July 1919 when it entered service with 58 Squadron
No. 58 Squadron RAF
No. 58 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force.- History :No. 58 Squadron was first formed at Cramlington, Northumberland, on 8 June 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps....
in Egypt. The aircraft formed the main heavy bomber force of the RAF for much of the 1920s. The Vimy served as a front line bomber in the Middle East and in the United Kingdom from 1919 until 1925, when it was replaced by the Vickers Virginia
Vickers Virginia
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Andrews, C.F. and E.B. Morgan. Vickers Aircraft since 1908. London: Putnam, 1989. ISBN 0-85177-851-1....
, but continued to equip a Special Reserve bomber squadron, 502 Squadron
No. 502 Squadron RAF
No. 502 Squadron was a Royal Auxiliary Air Force squadron that saw service in World War II.-Formation and early years:No. 502 squadron was originally formed on 15 May 1925 as No. 502 Squadron, a Special Reserve squadron at RAF Aldergrove, and it was composed of a mixture of regular and reserve...
at Aldergrove in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
until 1929. The Vimy continued in use as a training aircraft, many being re-engined with Bristol Jupiter
Bristol Jupiter
The Bristol Jupiter was a British nine-cylinder single-row piston radial engine built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. Originally designed late in World War I and known as the Cosmos Jupiter, a lengthy series of upgrades and developments turned it into one of the finest engines of its era.The...
or Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar radial engine
Radial engine
The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel...
s. The final Vimys, used as Target aircraft for searchlight
Searchlight
A searchlight is an apparatus that combines a bright light source with some form of curved reflector or other optics to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a particular direction, usually constructed so that it can be swiveled about.-Military use:The Royal Navy used...
crews remained in use until 1938.
Long-distance flights
The Vimy was used in many pioneering flights.- The most significant was the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic OceanAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
by Alcock and BrownAlcock and BrownBritish aviators Alcock and Brown made the first non-stop transatlantic flight in June 1919. They flew a modified World War I Vickers Vimy bomber from St. John's, Newfoundland, to Clifden, Connemara, County Galway, Ireland...
in June 1919 (their aircraft is preserved in the London Science Museum); - In 1919, the Australian government offered £10,000 for the first All-Australian crew to fly an aeroplane from England to AustraliaEngland to Australia flightIn 1919 the Australian government offered a prize of £A10,000 for the first Australians in a British aircraft to fly from Great Britain to Australia. Of the six entries that started the race, the winners were two brothers and their two crew in a Vickers Vimy....
. Keith Macpherson SmithKeith Macpherson SmithSir Keith Macpherson Smith KBE, was an Australian aviator, who, along with his brother, Sir Ross Macpherson Smith and two other men, became the first people to fly from England to Australia....
, Ross Macpherson SmithRoss Macpherson SmithSir Ross Macpherson Smith KBE, MC & Bar, DFC & Two Bars, AFC was an Australian aviator, who, along with his brother, Sir Keith Macpherson Smith, became the first pilots to fly from England to Australia, ....
and two other men completed the journey from Hounslow Heath AerodromeHounslow Heath AerodromeHounslow Heath Aerodrome was a grass airfield, operational 1914-1920. It was situated in the London borough of Hounslow, and in 1919 was the location from which the first scheduled daily international commercial air services took place.-1909-1914:...
to DarwinDarwin, Northern TerritoryDarwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
on 10 December 1919 (their aircraft G-EAOUAircraft registrationAn aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
is preserved in a museum in Smith's hometown AdelaideAdelaideAdelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, Australia); - In 1920, Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Pierre van RyneveldPierre van RyneveldGeneral Sir Hesperus Andrias van Ryneveld, KBE, CB, DSO, MC was a South African military commander.He began his military career in World War I, in which he served in the Royal Flying Corps , where he distinguished himself as a fighter ace.After the war, van Ryneveld was called back to South Africa...
and Major Quintin Brand attempted to make the first England to South Africa flight. They left BrooklandsBrooklandsBrooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields...
on 4 February 1920 in the Vimy G-UABA named Silver Queen. They landed safely at HeliopolisHeliopolis (Cairo Suburb)Modern Heliopolis is a district in Cairo, Egypt. The city was established in 1905 by the Heliopolis Oasis Company, headed by the Belgian industrialist Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Empain, as well as Boghos Nubar, son of the Egyptian Prime Minister Nubar Pasha.-History:The Baron Empain, a well known...
, but as they continued the flight to Wadi HalfaWadi HalfaWadi Halfa is a city in the state of Northern, in northern Sudan, on the shores of Lake Nubia . It is the terminus of a rail line from Khartoum and the point where goods are transferred from rail to ferries going down the Lake Nasser...
they were forced to land due to engine overheating with 80 miles (128.7 km) still to go. A second Vimy was lent to the pair by the RAF at Heliopolis (and named Silver Queen II). This second aircraft continued to BulawayoBulawayoBulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
in Southern RhodesiaSouthern RhodesiaSouthern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
where it was badly damaged when it failed to take off. Rynevald and Brand then borrowed a Airco DH.9Airco DH.9The Airco DH.9 - also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 - was a British bomber used in the First World War...
to continue the journey to Cape Town. They were disqualified as winners but nevertheless the South African government awarded them £5,000 each.
Vimy Commercial
The Vimy Commercial was a civilian version with a larger diameter fuselage (largely of spruceSpruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
plywood), which was developed at and first flew from the Joyce Green airfield in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
on 13 April 1919. Initially, it bore the interim civil registration K-107, later being re-registered as G-EAAV.
The prototype entered the 1920 race to Cape Town; it left Brooklands
Brooklands
Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields...
on 24 January 1920 but crashed at Tabora
Tabora
Tabora is the capital city of Tanzania's Tabora Region with a population of 127,880 . Tabora region is one of the largest geographical regions of Tanzania.- History :...
, Tanganyika
Tanganyika
Tanganyika , later formally the Republic of Tanganyika, was a sovereign state in East Africa from 1961 to 1964. It was situated between the Indian Ocean and the African Great Lakes of Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika...
on 27 February.
A Chinese order for 100 is particularly noteworthy, although a failure to pay interest from April 1922 probably led to the order not being completed. Forty of the 43 built were delivered to China, but most remained in their crates unused, with only seven of these being put into civilian use.
Fifty-five military transport versions of the Vimy Commercial were built for the RAF as the Vickers Vernon
Vickers Vernon
-See also:...
.
Role in the Second Zhili-Fengtian War
After the First Zhili-Fengtian WarFirst Zhili-Fengtian War
The First Zhili–Fengtian War was a 1922 conflict in the Republic of China's Warlord Era between the Zhili and Fengtian cliques for control of Beijing. The war led to the defeat of the Fengtian clique and the fall of its leader, Zhang Zuolin, from the coalition Zhili-Fengtian government in Beijing...
, 20 aircraft were secretly converted into bombers under the order of the Zhili clique warlord Cao Kun
Cao Kun
|-...
, and later participated in the Second Zhili-Fengtian War
Second Zhili-Fengtian War
The Second Zhili–Fengtian War of 1924 was a conflict between the Japanese-backed Fengtian clique based in Manchuria, and the more liberal Zhili clique controlling Beijing and backed by Anglo-American business interests...
.
During the Second Zhili-Fengtian War, these bomber versions of the Vimy Commercial were initially highly successful due to the low-level bombing tactics used, with the air force chief-of-staff of the Zhili clique, General Zhao Buli (趙步壢) personally flying many of the missions. However, on 17 September, returning from a successful bombing mission outside Shanhai Pass
Shanhai Pass
Shanhai Pass , or Shanhaiguan, along with Jiayu Pass and Juyong Pass, is one of the major passes of the Great Wall of China It is located in Shanhaiguan District, Qinhuangdao, Hebei. In 1961, Shanhaiguan became a site of China First Class National Cultural Site.It is a popular tourist destination,...
, General Zhao's bomber was hit by ground fire from the Fengtian clique
Fengtian clique
The Fengtian Clique was one of several mutually hostile cliques or factions that split from the Beiyang Clique in the Republic of China's warlord era. It was named for Fengtian Province and led by Zhang Zuolin...
in the region of Nine Gates (Jiumenkou, 九門口) and had to make a forced landing. Although General Zhao was able to make a successful escape back to his base, the bombers subsequently flew at much higher altitude to avoid ground fire, which greatly reduced their bombing accuracy and effectiveness.
After numerous battles between Chinese warlords
Warlord era
The Chinese Warlord Era was the period in the history of the Republic of China, from 1916 to 1928, when the country was divided among military cliques, a division that continued until the fall of the Nationalist government in the mainland China regions of Sichuan, Shanxi, Qinghai, Ningxia,...
, all of the aircraft fell into the hands of the Fengtian clique, forming its First Heavy Bomber Group. These bombers were in the process of being phased out at the time of the Mukden Incident
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, also known as the Manchurian Incident, was a staged event that was engineered by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for invading the northern part of China known as Manchuria in 1931....
and therefore were subsequently captured by the Japanese, who soon disposed of them.
Vimy replicas
Apart from a replica transatlantic Vimy cockpit section built by Vickers for the London Science Museum in the early 1920s, three full-size replicas have also been built. The first was a taxiable replica commissioned by British Lion Films from Shawcroft Models Ltd of Iver Heath, Bucks; unfortunately the planned film about Alcock & Brown's transatlantic flight was never made, but the model was completed and paid for. Its fate remains a mystery (see 'Aeroplane' magazine, May 2010) although it appeared on static display at the Battle of Britain air display at RAF Biggin Hill in 1955 and may have been subsequently stored dismantled in East London until at least the late 1980s.In 1969, an airworthy Vimy replica (registered G-AWAU) was built by the Vintage Aircraft Flying Association at Brooklands (this aircraft was first flown by D G 'Dizzy' Addicott and Peter Hoare but was badly damaged by fire that Summer and is now displayed at the RAF Museum
RAF Museum
The Royal Air Force Museum London, commonly known as the RAF Museum, is a museum located on the former Hendon Aerodrome, dedicated to the history of aviation and the British Royal Air Force. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and a registered charity...
, Hendon, London).
A second flyable Vimy replica, NX71MY, was built in 1994 by an Australian/American team led by Lang Kidby and Peter McMillan, and this aircraft successfully recreated the three great pioneering Vimy flights: England to Australia flown by Lang Kidby and Peter McMillan (in 1994), England to South Africa flown by Mark Rebholz and John LaNoue (1999) and in 2005, Alcock and Brown's 1919 Atlantic crossing was recreated, flown by Steve Fossett
Steve Fossett
James Stephen Fossett was an American commodities trader, businessman, and adventurer. Fossett is the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon...
and Mark Rebholz. The aircraft was donated to Brooklands Museum
Brooklands Museum
Brooklands Museum is an independent charitable trust, established in 1987, whose aim is to conserve, protect and interpret the unique heritage of the Brooklands site. It is located south of Weybridge, Surrey and was first opened regularly in 1991 on of the original 1907 motor-racing circuit...
in 2006 and was kept airworthy in order to commemorate the 90th anniversaries of the Transatlantic and Australian flights until retired in late 2009. Its final flight was made by John Dodd, Clive Edwards and Peter McMillan from Dunsfold to Brooklands on 15 November 2009 and four days later, in just 18 hours, the aircraft was dismantled, transported the short distance to the Museum and reassembled inside the main hangar by a dedicated volunteer team. Two days later a special Brooklands Vimy Exhibition was officially opened by Peter McMillan, and this unique aircraft is now on public display there.
Variants
- F.B.27 Vimy: Prototypes; four built.
- F.B.27A Vimy II: Twin-engine heavy bomber aircraft for the RAF.
- Vimy Ambulance: Air ambulance version for the RAF.
- Vimy Commercial: Civilian transport version. Powered by two Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII piston engines.
Military operators
- Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(Vimy, Vimy Ambulance & Vernon).- No. 7 Squadron RAFNo. 7 Squadron RAFNo. 7 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Boeing Chinook HC.2 from RAF Odiham, Hampshire.-Formation and early years:No. 7 Squadron was formed at Farnborough Airfield on 1 May 1914 as the last squadron of the RFC to be formed before the First World War, but has been disbanded and reformed...
- No. 9 Squadron RAF
- No. 24 Squadron RAF
- No. 45 Squadron RAFNo. 45 Squadron RAF-First World War:Formed during World War I at Gosport on 1 March 1916 as Number 45 Squadron, the unit was first equipped with Sopwith 1½ Strutters which it was to fly in the Scout role. Deployed to France in October of that year, the Squadron found itself suffering heavy losses due to the quality...
- No. 58 Squadron RAFNo. 58 Squadron RAFNo. 58 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force.- History :No. 58 Squadron was first formed at Cramlington, Northumberland, on 8 June 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps....
- No. 70 Squadron RAF
- No. 99 Squadron RAFNo. 99 Squadron RAFNo. 99 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a bomber squadron in both first and second world war. At present it operates the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III from RAF Brize Norton, the RAF's air transport hub. The squadron was the first RAF unit to receive the Avro Aldershot, Handley Page Hyderabad,...
- No. 100 Squadron RAFNo. 100 Squadron RAFNo. 100 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is based at RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire, UK, and operates the Hawker-Siddeley Hawk.-World War I:No. 100 was established on 23 February 1917 at Hingham in Norfolk as the Royal Flying Corps' first squadron formed specifically as a night bombing unit and...
- No. 216 Squadron RAFNo. 216 Squadron RAFNo. 216 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Lockheed Tristar K1, KC1 and C2 from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.- History :216 Squadron was formed at RAF Manston by re-numbering No. 16 Squadron RNAS when the RAF was established in 1918, hence it is always spoken of as 'two-sixteen Squadron'...
- No. 500 Squadron RAFNo. 500 Squadron RAFNo. 500 Squadron AAF was formed in 1931 as a Special Reserve squadron and in 1936 became part of the Auxiliary Air Force. It served in a number of roles before being disbanded in 1957.-Formation and early years:...
- No. 502 Squadron RAFNo. 502 Squadron RAFNo. 502 Squadron was a Royal Auxiliary Air Force squadron that saw service in World War II.-Formation and early years:No. 502 squadron was originally formed on 15 May 1925 as No. 502 Squadron, a Special Reserve squadron at RAF Aldergrove, and it was composed of a mixture of regular and reserve...
- No. 7 Squadron RAF
Civil operators
- The Government of ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(Vimy Commercial).
- Grands Express AériensGrands Express AériensThe Compagnie des Grands Express Aériens was a pioneering French airline established 20 March 1919 and operating until merged with Compagnie des Messageries Aériennes to form Air Union on 1 January 1923....
(Vimy Commercial).
- The Government of SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(Vimy).
- Imperial AirwaysImperial AirwaysImperial Airways was the early British commercial long range air transport company, operating from 1924 to 1939 and serving parts of Europe but especially the Empire routes to South Africa, India and the Far East...
(Vimy Commercial). - Instone Air LineInstone Air LineInstone Air Line was an early British airline from 1919 to 1924. Along with other private airlines of the time, it was absorbed into Imperial Airways.-History:...
(Vimy Commercial).