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One of the most outstanding combat aircraft produced during World War I, the DH.4 day bomber was built in large numbers: 1449 aircraft in Britain and 4846 in the USA, where many were powered by the excellent 400hp
Liberty 12 engine. The protoype DH.4 flew in August 1916, and pilots were unanimous in their praise of its fine handling qualities, wide speed range and a perfonnance which made it almost immune from interception. The first DH.4s arrived in France with No 55 Squadron in March 1917 and began operations against German targets in April. In addition to its primary bombing role, the aircraft
was used for photo-reconnaissance, long-range fighter sweeps and antisubmarine patrols. The DH.4 was widely used by the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), and on 15 August 1918 an aircraft from RNAS Great Yarmouth, flown by Major Egbert Cadbury, shot down the Zeppelin L.70. After the war, many DH.4s were used in civilian roles, such as crop-dusting, mail carriage and aerial survey.
 | A three-view drawing (638 x 618) |
| CREW | 2 |
| ENGINE | 1 x 250hp Rolls-Royce Eagle VI inline engine |
| WEIGHTS |
| Take-off weight | 1575 kg | 3472 lb |
| DIMENSIONS |
| Wingspan | 12.92 m | 42 ft 5 in |
| Length | 9.35 m | 30 ft 8 in |
| Height | 3.35 m | 10 ft 12 in |
| PERFORMANCE |
| Max. speed | 230 km/h | 143 mph |
| Ceiling | 6705 m | 22000 ft |
| ARMAMENT | 2 x 7.62mm machine-guns, 209kg of bombs |
Bob Green, bobguk(@)hotmail.co, 28.07.2008
I agree with Pete Arundel, I think this is an American produced DH9a.It has American stars on the upper wing
Tom Fattorini, tpf(@)fattorini.com, 09.03.2008
In my uncle's flying log book 24 Aug 17 his DH4 has engine 200 W.C. "RAF" It would seem to be underpowered compared with the 400hp mentioned?
Pete Arundel, pureteenlard(@)hotmail.com, 21.07.2007
I don't think that the picture is a DH.4. I think it's a DH.9a.
The DH.4 had one perceived flaw - the large distance between the pilot's and gunner's cockpits which made communication difficult. This was remedied in the DH.9 but the 9's inferior engine made it, in all other respects, worse than the 4. The addition of the Liberty engine to the 9 remedied the problem. Anyway, the pic above shows an aircraft with pilot and gunner close together and what appears to be a Liberty engine so I think it's a 9a not a 4.
Could be wrong though.
It has been known . . .
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Do you have any comments concerning this aircraft ?
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