The Felixstowe Porte Baby, also known as the Porte F.B.2, was a British three‑engine reconnaissance flying boat developed during the First World War. Designed by Lieutenant‑Commander John Cyril Porte of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) at the Seaplane Experimental Station in Felixstowe, the aircraft first flew on 20 November 1915 and entered service in 1916. Only eleven examples were built: one prototype at Felixstowe and ten production aircraft constructed by the ship‑building firm May, Harden and May of Southampton.
Design and development
The Porte Baby was a large, unequal‑span, three‑bay biplane of wood‑and‑fabric construction. Its hull was mounted beneath the lower wing and featured a stepped design suitable for water operations. Power was supplied by three inline Rolls‑Royce Eagle V12 engines, each delivering 345 hp; the outer engines were mounted in a tractor configuration, while the central engine was mounted as a pusher. The aircraft carried a crew of five: two pilots in an enclosed cockpit and three gunners in open stations equipped with Lewis machine guns.
A distinctive feature of the Porte Baby was its use as a “composite” or “parasite” aircraft platform. On 17 May 1916 it successfully carried a Bristol Scout fighter on its upper wing and released it in flight, demonstrating the concept of launching a lighter aircraft from a larger carrier flying boat.
Operational history
Production Porte Babies were employed by the RNAS (and later the Royal Air Force after the 1918 merger) for long‑range patrols over the North Sea. They operated from several bases, including RNAS Felixstowe, RNAS Killingholme, Houton Bay in the Orkneys, and Catfirth in the Shetlands. Their large size and slow speed made them vulnerable to enemy fighters; after a near‑loss incident involving German aircraft, the type was restricted to patrol areas where fighter opposition was unlikely. The last Porte Babies remained in service until the autumn of 1918.
Operators
- United Kingdom – Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and, from April 1918, the Royal Air Force (RAF).
Specifications (Porte Baby)
| General characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Crew | 5 |
| Length | 63 ft 0 in (19.21 m) |
| Wingspan | 124 ft 0 in (37.8 m) |
| Height | 25 ft 0 in (7.62 m) |
| Wing area | 2,364 sq ft (219.7 m²) |
| Empty weight | 14,700 lb (6,682 kg) |
| Gross weight | 18,600 lb (8,455 kg) |
| Powerplant | 3 × Rolls‑Royce Eagle VII V12, 345 hp (257 kW) each |
| Performance | |
|---|---|
| Maximum speed | 87.5 mph (141 km/h, 76 kn) at 2,000 ft (610 m) |
| Service ceiling | 8,000 ft (2,440 m) |
| Time to altitude | 25 min 5 s to 6,500 ft (1,980 m) |
| Armament | |
|---|---|
| Guns | 3 × Lewis machine guns (one nose, two amidships) |
Legacy
The Felixstowe Porte Baby was the largest flying boat built in the United Kingdom during its production period and contributed to the development of larger seaplanes, notably the later Felixstowe F.2A and the massive five‑engine Felixstowe Fury (also known as the Porte Super‑Baby). Its role in demonstrating airborne launch of a parasite aircraft foreshadowed later experiments with composite aircraft concepts.