Sopwith 2FR.2 Bulldog

A fighter-reconnaissance two-seater, the Bulldog was a compact aircraft which, in its initial form as first flown late 1917, was a single-bay staggered biplane with a 200hp Clerget llEb 11-cylinder rotary engine and an armament of two synchronised and two pillar-mounted 7.7mm machine guns. The Bulldog proved heavier than projected and difficult to control, and in an attempt to improve handling qualities it was fitted with two-bay wings with balanced ailerons, flight test being resumed in March 1918. With the balanced ailerons replaced by plain surfaces, the Bulldog was submitted to Martlesham Heath for official trials on 22 April 1918. There it was found to handle well, but to possess disappointing performance. It was eventually to be reengined with a Bentley B.R.2. The second prototype was completed with an A.B.C. Dragonfly nine-cylinder radial of 320hp, being delivered to the RAE at Farnborough on 25 June 1918 as the Bulldog Mk II and serving as an engine test bed. Work began on a third prototype, but the Bulldog's failure to win official approval led to discontinuation of the programme before this aircraft could be completed.