The Supermarine Stranraer was the last biplane flying-boat developed for the Royal Air Force. The Supermarine's Type 227 was originally known as the Southampton V and was designed by J.R. Mitchell of Spitfire fame in 1935 to meet Air Ministry specification R.24/31 for a coastal reconnaissance flying-boat, it
entered RAF service in April 1937 as the Supermarine Stranraer I. The Supermarine Stranraer had fabric covered wings and a duralumin skinned fuselage and all but one of the 64 built were still in service at the outbreak of WWII, they flew anti-submarine and escort patrols with the RAF for the first three years of the war until replaced by the longer range Catalina and Canso, some still served operationally in anti-submarine and escort roles until 1945 with the RCAF. The Supermarine Stranraer was often referred to as the "Stranny" or the "The Whistling Bird Cage" and had the misfortune to gain a later, less appealing nick-name of the "whistling shithouse", this was a result of a slipstream whistle which enimated from the toilet pan if used whilst in flight. The Supermarine Stranraer pictured above, CF-BXO, was sold after the war to Siple Aviation Ltd who up-rated it's engines to 1,000 hp Wright GR-1820-G202GA Cyclones and called the resultant aircraft a "Super Stranraer".
Supermarine Stranraer I Specifications: Crew: pilot, navigator, radio operator and either two or three gunners Length: 54 ft 9 in (16.7 m) Wingspan: 85 ft 0 in (25.9 m) Height: 21 ft 9 in (6.6 m) Maximum weight: 19,000 lb (8,620 kg) Engines: Twin 920 hp (685 kW) Bristol Pegasus X radials Maximum speed: 165 mph (265 km/h) at 6,000 ft (1,830 m) Range: 1,000 mi (1,610 km) Service ceiling: 18,500 ft (5,640 m)
Armament: Three 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis guns 1,000 lb (454 kg) of underwing munisions such as bombs or depth charges
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