Pemberton-Billing P.B.25 Scout

Known officially as the Scout, the P.B.25 was a development of the P.B.23. The most obvious differences were in the design of the nacelle, which was fabric covered, and in the wing cellule, the mainplanes featuring 11° of sweepback and inversely-tapered ailerons. Twenty P.B.25s were ordered by the Admiralty, all but one of these being powered by the 100hp Gnome Monosoupape, the exception having a 110hp Clerget rotary. Armament comprised a single 7.7mm machine gun mounted on the nacelle. The last P.B.25 was delivered to the RNAS in February 1917, by which time this type had acquired an unenviable reputation, the take-off and landing characteristics being particularly hazardous. Apart from poor flying qualities, its performance was inadequate and, being viewed as something of an anachronism, the Scout was quickly discarded.