Fairey Pintail

The Fairey Pintail was a British single-engine floatplane fighter of the 1920s. While it was developed by Fairey as a reconnaissance fighter for the Royal Air Force, the only orders placed were for three for the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Design and development
The Pintail was designed by F. Duncanson of Fairey Aviation to meet the requirements of the RAF Type XXI Specification, which was issued in 1919 for an amphibian reconnaissance fighter, competing with the Parnall Puffin. The Pintail was a two-bay biplane, fitted with twin floats, and with the upper wing in line with the pilot's eye line. In order to give a clear upwards field of view for the crew, the Pintail was fitted with an unusual tail unit, with the tailplane lying across the top of the rear fuselage and the rudder below the tailplane.

The first prototype, the Pintail Mark I, flew on 7 July 1920. The second prototype, the Pintail Mark II had a lengthened fuselage, while the third prototype, the Pintail Mark III had non-retractable wheels within the floats. While the Pintail was more capable as a fighter than the Possum, offering an excellent upwards field of view for the crew, it had poor downwards view for the pilot during landing.

Operational history
While the Pintail was not adopted by the RAF, three examples, similar to the Mark III, were sold to the Imperial Japanese Navy. These aircraft, known as the Pintail IV had an increased wing gap so the upper wing was situated above the fuselage, improving the downwards view for the pilot. The first Pintail IV flew on 20 August 1924.

Variants

 * Pintail I
 * First prototype.


 * Pintail II
 * Second prototype with lengthened fuselage.


 * Pintail III
 * Third prototype with non-retractable wheels within the floats.


 * Pintail IV
 * Short series with increased wing gap and the upper wing above the fuselage, 3 built.

Operators

 * Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
 * Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service