AIRCRAFT COLOURS AND MARKINGS OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR ERA

Felixstowe F2A/F3 & Curtiss H-16


The Felixstowe F2A and its American-built cousin the Curtiss H-16 was probably the most famous of the wartime flying boats and it was the end result of a series of boats built by Curtiss and improved upon by Porte. To make a very convoluted story short the Curtiss H12 wing was mated to a British hull and the F2A/H-16 was the result. Originally built with a greenhouse canopy for the pilots, this was later removed and an open cockpit with better visibility fitted. These boats were formidable foes with two Scarff mountings as well as sliding panels in the side of the hull behind the wing for a beam mounted Lewis. A few boats experimented with an upperwing gun platform.
Some Curtiss H.12s were given the hull and tail surfaces of the Felixstowe as seen by 8661 below.
The first F2As had dark green - possibly PC10 -uppersurfaces with a dark brown waterproof finish to the lower hull, light coloured ply on the forward upper hull and CDL fabric on the rear hull and turtledeck. In the summer of 1918, the crews at Felixstowe and Great Yarmouth began to paint their aircraft in 'dazzle' patterns using various geometric shapes in red, white, blue and black. The idea was not concealment, but rather to allow the crews to recognize each other in flight and also to make the boats more visible should they have to alight upon the water.
To date the best references on the Felixstowe are in Cross and Cockade International 21/4 and Datafile No.82: Felixstowe F.2A. TD Hallam flew them over the North Sea and wrote "The Spider Web" which is useful for describing their operations.

 


Curtiss H-16 N4072
-
Dundee NAS
September 1918
Source: LA Rogers photo


Curtiss H-16
-
Dundee NAS
September 1918
Source: LA Rogers photo

 


Curtiss H12 Convert 8661
-
Early 1918
Source: Datafile No.82

Felixstowe F2A
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4


Felixstowe F2A N4490
-
Felixstowe NAS
December 1918
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4
updated 2013



Felixstowe F3 N4258
-
Felixstowe NAS
Autumn 1918
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4


Felixstowe F2A N4545
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4


Curtiss H-16 N4060
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4


Felixstowe F.2A N4099
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4
updated 2013


Felixstowe F3 N4251
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4
Source: C&C(GB) 15/3


Felixstowe F2A
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4
updated 2013

 


Felixstowe F2A N4297
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4

Felixstowe F2A N4087 ?
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4


Felixstowe F2A N4296
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4

 


Felixstowe F2A
-
Felixstowe NAS
-
Source: C&C(Int) 21/4
updated 2013


Felixstowe F2A N4283
Robert Leckie
Great Yarmouth NAS
September 1918
Source: LA Rogers photo
updated 2013


Felixstowe F.2A

Great Yarmouth NAS

Source: Schiffer British Book


Felixstowe F.2A N4512

Great Yarmouth NAS

Source: Schiffer British Book

 


Felixstowe F.2A
Robert Leckie
Great Yarmouth NAS

Source: Schiffer British Book


Felixstowe F.2A N4287

Killingholme NAS
Spring 1918
Source: Datafile No.82

 


Felixstowe F.2A N4465

Killingholme NAS
Summer 1918
Source: Datafile No.82

Felixstowe F.2A N4082
USN
Killingholme NAS
1918
Source: Datafile No.82

Chilean F.2A

USN H-16/F.2A