Sword Models

[jcf]

From Shorts Aircraft since 1900:
"Another trouble was bad breakdown of flow at the fin/tailplane junction, which was alleviated
by an inverted slat below the tailplane leading edge on either side of the fin; in production this
was replaced by leading-edge vents through the root fillets, exhausting into the elevator nose-gaps.".

[kitbasher]

I don't ever recall seeing a pic of a Seamew in RAF colours.  How were they finished?

[Mossie]

I don't ever recall seeing a pic of a Seamew in RAF colours.  How were they finished?

Standard coastal command camo, DSG over white, very high demarcation. The fin flash is the giveaway in any photos.
https://www.aviastar.org/air/england/short_seamew.php

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[The Wooksta!]

IIRC, the Contrail instructions suggested overall Extra Dark Sea Grey for the Coastal one.

[Mossie]

Looks like at least one of them was painted that way.
https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/short-seamew-question.16869/

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[Mossie]

Digging a bit deeper, the first pic I mentioned was XA209 which was the first aircraft built and it appeared in both FAA and RAF liveries. XE175 was the first RAF MR.2 and in the production batch so may be more indicative of an in service scheme.

[jcf]

The overall EDSG is Seamew S.C.2 XE175 which was used as a sales demonstrator after the RAF order was cancelled. S.C.2 was the designation of the Coastal Command version which had larger wheels with low-pressure tyres, manual wing-folding and no deck-landing gear. XE175 was used for a 5,000 mile sales demonstration tour in 1956: Italy in March, Yugoslavia in April and Germany in May. It is also the aircraft that crashed during a display at Sydenham 9 June 1956 killing Shorts test-pilot Wally Runciman: " ... 'g-stalled' off a fast roll, lost height while inverted, hit the ground during recovery and was killed.". Runciman was the only pilot to ever tame the beast. 
It's very possible (likely?) that XE175 was the only Seamew ever finished in overall EDSG.

[PR19_Kit]

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Those wheels don't look all that much larger than the FAA ones, and neither do the tyres look low-pressure either. Perhaps they reverted to the FAA fit later on?

[Mossie]

Several of the MR.2s were converted to AS.1s when the RAF abandoned the project. Googling about, I believe XE175 wasn't though, it became a demonstration aircraft to potential customers.

[jcf]

Several of the MR.2s were converted to AS.1s when the RAF abandoned the project. Googling about, I believe XE175 wasn't though, it became a demonstration aircraft to potential customers.

Both versions were to be built at the same time on the same line, there was only one block of serials that covered both services, so no "conversion" was required, the canceled RAF aircraft would have been completed on the line with the RN equipment.

[Wardukw]

I do wonder if the pilot's ever thought of what they had done wrong or pissed off to get stuck flying that ugly bucket 🪣 🤔

[kitbasher]

Thanks chaps.

[Rick Lowe]

Runciman was the only pilot to ever tame the beast

Only temporarily, it seems...

Ref the pic on the carrier; I wonder if they're pushing it backwards to wind up the clockwork spring, much like the 'pull-back' car toys? 

[Wardukw]

The pilot looks like he's looking down from the cockpit wonder if he can jump for it and the guys standing on the wing look like their wondering if the guy on the left should even bother getting into the thing ,,he's got his hand on his hoip too ..so maybe he's trying to fake a waist injury and can't fly 

[PR19_Kit]

This whole thread is turning into a Seamew sub-thread.