Found this in a book published in America in 1917, showing, what I can only think is a gun which fires through the prop with metal defectors on the prop blade?



Any ideas?

That's a Morane Saulnier N with a Hotchkiss machine gun. Indeed those are deflectors for the bullets. This was before the French and British got a hold of a working interrupter gear.

He (Garros) actually shot down a few planes before crashing behind the German lines too.

Yes, the Morane type L Garros was shot down/had a clogged fuel line in also used the deflector plates. It was that plane Fokker copied as one of the early E designs.

Thanks guys.

I'd not seen a picture of that type of gun arrangement. The bullets must have gone everywhere, and made an interesting sound when they hit the deflector plate! Another in air reloader Ralf.

The Hotchkiss was soon done away with as an air weapon. It jammed a lot and reloading it while fighting was next to impossible!

Hi ArgonV.

OK, but it was a front line fighter for the Royal Flying Corps, in No.4 and No.60 Squadron in 1915. If we want an early career, we might need this odd bus.

Your up to speed on this. Could you list what planes were used as of the outbreak of war? I've read Bleriot IX's were used in the first days, but what else was used in 14/15?

Let me get a list compiled up for you, and I'll post back here. Indeed the Morane N was used on the front, but not many were built (Less than 50 I believe).

To answer my own question, I found this list on the RAF history site.

Aircraft entering military service in 1912

Maurice Farman Longhorn
No.2 (Aeroplane) Company

Avro Type E
Central Flying School

Henry Farman Biplane
No.2 Squadron

Bristol Coanda Monoplane
No.3 Squadron

Cody V Biplane
No.4 Squadron

Aircraft entering military service in 1913

Royal Aircraft Factory BE2a
No.2 Squadron

Short Tractor Biplane
Central Flying School

Henry Farman F20
Central Flying School

Bleriot XI
Royal Flying Corps Military Wing

Bristol TB8
Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) Eastchurch

Dunne D8
Royal Flying Corps Military Wing

Aircraft entering military service in 1914

Royal Aircraft Factory BE2
No.2 Squadron

Maurice Farman Shorthorn
Royal Flying Corps Military Wing

Sopwith Tabloid
No.5 Squadron

Royal Aircraft Factory BE2c
No.4 Squadron

Bristol Scout
No.3 Squadron

Curtiss H4 Small America

Aircraft entering military service in 1915

Norman Thompson NT4

Short 184
HMS Ben-my-Chree

Curtiss JN-3

Morane Type LA
No.3 Squadron

Royal Aircraft Factory FE2b
No.16 Squadron

Martinsyde G100
No.6 Squadron

Royal Aircraft Factory RE7
(Reconnaissance Experimental No. 7)

Aircraft entering military service in 1916

Bristol Scout D

Sopwith 1½ Strutter
No.3 Wing, Royal Naval Air Service

Nieuport 17
No.1 Squadron

Sopwith Pup
No.1 Wing, Royal Naval Air Service

Spad 7
No.19 Squadron

Short Bomber
No.7 (Naval) Squadron

Aircraft entering military service in 1917
Avro 504J
School of Special Flying

Felixstowe F2A

Royal Aircraft Factory SE5A
No.56 Squadron

Sopwith Camel
No.4 (Naval) Squadron, Royal Naval Air Service

Bristol F2b
No.48 Squadron

Handley Page O/100
No.7 (Naval) Squadron

Aircraft entering military service in 1918

Avro 504K
School of Special Flying

Curtiss H16 Large America

Handley Page O/400
No.16 (Naval) Squadron

de Havilland DH9A
No.110 Squadron

Sopwith Cuckoo
Torpedo Aeroplane School

de Havilland DH10
No.104 Squadron

I found this more comprehesive list on another site.

There are a total of 5 WW1 Aircraft of 1914 in the Military Factory.

Albatros B.II

Aviatik B.I

Bristol Scout

Farman MF.11 Shorthorn

Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (Type D/FD)

There are a total of 19 WW1 Aircraft of 1915 in the Military Factory.

Aerowerke Gustav Otto AGO C.II

Airco DH.2

Albatros C.I

Albatros C.III

Aviatik C.I

Breguet Br.M5

Caproni Ca.1

Caudron G.4

Fokker E (Eindecker) Monoplane

Lloyd C.II

Lohner B.VII

LVG C.II

Morane-Saulnier Type N

Nieuport Nie.11 (Bebe)

Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2

Short Type 184

Sikorsky Ilya Mourometz (Series)

Vickers FB.5

Voisin Type 5

There are a total of 20 WW1 Aircraft of 1916 in the Military Factory.
AEG C.IV

AEG G.IV

Aeromarine 39

Albatros C.V

Albatros D.I

Albatros D.II

Avro 523 Pike

DFW C.V

Gotha G.IV

Hanriot HD.1

Hansa-Brandenburg C.I (Type LDD)

Hansa-Brandenburg D.I (Type KD)

Lohner C.I

Nieuport Nie.17

Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.8

Siemens-Schuckert D.I

Sopwith 1-1/2 Strutter

Sopwith Pup

Sopwith Triplane

SPAD S.VII (S.7)

There are a total of 37 WW1 Aircraft of 1917 in the Military Factory.

Airco DH.4

Airco DH.5

Airco DH.9

Albatros C.X

Albatros D.III

Albatros D.V

Albatros D.Va

Albatros J.I

Armstrong Whitworth FK.8

Aviatik D.I (Berg D.I)

Avro 529

Beardmore WB III / SB 3

Breguet Bre.14

Bristol F.2

Caproni Ca.3

Dorand AR

Felixstowe F.5

Fokker Dr.I (Dreidecker) Triplane

Friedrichshafen G.III

Gotha G.V

Hansa-Brandenburg W.12

LVG C.V

Nieuport Nie.27

Nieuport Nie.28

Pfalz D.III

Phonix C.I

Phonix D (Series)

Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5

Siemens-Schuckert D.III

Sopwith Camel

Sopwith Dolphin

Sopwith Snipe

SPAD S.XII (S.12)

SPAD S.XIII (S.13)

Standard J-1

Vought VE-7 Bluebird

Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI

There are a total of 14 WW1 Aircraft of 1918 in the Military Factory.

Aeromarine 40

Ansaldo A 1 Balilla (Hunter)

Blackburn R.T.1 Kangaroo

Caudron R.11

Fokker D.VII

Fokker D.VIII

Halberstadt CL.IV

Handley Page H.P. O/400

Junkers CL.I

LVG C.VI

Martin MB-1 / Glenn Martin Bomber

Martinsyde F.4 Buzzard

Siemens-Schuckert D.IV

Ufag C.I

Either way I have enough models to build for the next 10 years!

That's a pretty decent list there! I don't really have much of significance to add.

What's great, is that there were a number of different loadout configurations on the Maurice Farmans, B.E.2s, Caudrons, Bleriots and Bristol Scouts.