Sopwith Camel, Small, 15" Wingspan

A Little Information On The Sopwith Camel

The First World War saw the advent of the airplane as a viable military weapon. In just a few short years since Orville and Wilber Wright had made their first powered air flights, aircraft advanced from rudimentary flying craft to killing machines. During this time, aerial superiority over the front changed hands as often as new designs were introduced. In 1916, the Germans controlled the skies over the trenches, and the English developed three fighters to regain control of the air war. The best and most famous of these three designs was the Sopwith Camel. Small and lightweight, this agile machine represented the state-of the-art in fighter design at the time. The Sopwith aircraft shot down 1,294 enemy aircraft during World War I, more than any other Allied fighter. However, it was so difficult to fly that more men lost their lives while learning to fly it than using it in combat.

On 4 June 1917, Canadian ace Alexander Shook became the first ace to shoot down an enemy aircraft with the Sopwith Camel.

With 54 victories, Canadian Donald MacLaren scored more victories with the Camel than any other ace.

Canadian ace Roy Brown was flying a Camel when he was credited with shooting down Manfred von Richtofen. You can see Richtofen's Tri-Plane here.

If you would like a larger version of the Camel model airplane, please click here.

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In service, the Camel proved to be a huge success, despite its high accident rate. They fought all along the Western Front as well as being employed as night fighters and balloon busters. Some the earliest fighters used by the Royal Navy were these agile Sopwith aircraft which were deployed from cruisers, battleships and even towed platforms. Additionally, they were fitted with eight air-to-air rockets proved to be very effective against German Zeppelins and long-range bombers.

Our model has fantastic detail. You can almost smell the castor oil from the engine. You can imagine yourself patrolling along the front, taking on the Red Baron. "Switches on.... Contact!"