The Airco DH.2

The DH.2 project began with the need for a project to keep some of the habitual builders occupied after the completion of our Indy-Flyer.  By May of 2010, the initial plan had been developed; build five full size replicas of the Airco DH.2 using modern materials.

The intrepid builders are Bruce Rose, Gary McCormick, Paul Sieber, Mike Pongracz, and Ernie Moreno!

The Airco DH.2 was a single-seat biplane "pusher" aircraft which operated as a fighter during the First World War. It was the second pusher design by Geoffrey de Havilland for Airco, based on his earlier DH.1 two-seater. The DH.2 was the first effectively armed British single-seat fighter and enabled Royal Flying Corps (RFC) pilots to counter the "Fokker Scourge" that had given the Germans the advantage in the air in late 1915. Until the British developed an interrupter gear to match the German system, pushers such as the DH.2 and the F.E.2b carried the burden of fighting and escort duties.

General characteristics

Crew: 1

Length: 25 ft 2½ in

Wingspan: 28 ft 3 in

Height: 9 ft 6½ in

Wing area: 249 ft²

Empty weight: 942 lb

Max takeoff weight: 1,441 lb

Powerplant: 1× Gnome Monosoupape rotary engine, 100 hp

Performance

Maximum speed: 93 mph at sea level

Range: 250 mi

Service ceiling: 14,000 ft

Rate of climb: 545 ft/min

Wing loading: 5.79 lb/ft²

Power/mass: 0.069 hp/lb

Endurance 2¾ hours

Climb to 5,000 ft 24 minutes 45 seconds

Armament

1 × .303 in Lewis gun using 47-round drum magazines