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Batch 20: aircraft page

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{{Aircraft infobox
| name = Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
| image = RAF SE5a F904 (G-EBIA) (6736738219).jpg
| caption = Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5. Photo: Alan Wilson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via [[commons:File:RAF SE5a F904 (G-EBIA) (6736738219).jpg|Wikimedia Commons]]
| make = Royal Aircraft Factory
| type = Single-seat fighter
| first_flight = 22 November 1916
| number_built = 5,205
| faa_registered = 19 (FAA register, October 30, 2026)
| seats = One
| engine = Hispano-Suiza 8 or Wolseley Viper, 150 hp
| range = 300 mi (S.E.5a)
| ceiling = 17,000 ft (S.E.5a)
| gross_weight = 1,988 lb (S.E.5a)
| category = Historic aircraft
}}

The '''Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5''' is a British World War I biplane fighter, designed by Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Goodden at the Royal Aircraft Factory.<ref name="wp"/> It was one of the fastest airplanes of the war and was stable and fairly maneuverable; one aviation author called it "the Spitfire of World War One".<ref name="wp"/> In all, 5,205 were built. In the U.S. there are 19 with a valid registration, including replicas.<ref name="wp"/><ref name="faa"/>

== History ==
The S.E.5 first flew on November 22, 1916, and entered service in March 1917.<ref name="wp"/> In most ways it outperformed the [[Sopwith Camel]], though it answered the controls less quickly.<ref name="wp"/> Problems with its Hispano-Suiza engine caused a chronic shortage until well into 1918, so fewer squadrons flew it than the Camel.<ref name="wp"/>

With the Camel, the S.E.5 helped win back Allied air superiority in mid-1917, after the heavy Royal Flying Corps losses of "Bloody April".<ref name="wp"/> It stayed in RAF service for a while after the war, and some went to overseas air forces and civilian owners.<ref name="wp"/>

== Registered in the United States ==
The FAA register lists '''19''' of these airplanes with a valid U.S. registration. Here they are by the model name the FAA uses.<ref name="faa"/>
<div class="aw-wide">
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! FAA model name !! Registered
|-
| SE5A || 11
|-
| SE5A REPLICA || 4
|-
| SE 5-A || 1
|-
| SE5 || 1
|-
| S.E. 5A || 1
|-
| SE5A (REPLICA) || 1
|}
</div>

== Specifications (S.E.5a) ==
<div class="aw-wide">
{| class="wikitable"
! Item !! S.E.5a
|-
| Crew || One
|-
| Length || 20 ft 11 in
|-
| Height || 9 ft 6 in
|-
| Wing area || 244 sq ft
|-
| Empty weight || 1,410 lb
|-
| Maximum takeoff weight || 1,988 lb
|-
| Engine || Hispano-Suiza 8 or Wolseley Viper, 150 hp (water cooled V8 engine)
|-
| Propeller || fixed pitch wooden propeller
|-
| Maximum speed || 138 mph
|-
| Range || 300 mi
|-
| Service ceiling || 17,000 ft
|}
</div>
Figures as given in the Wikipedia article and its sources.<ref name="wp"/>

{{Owner notes}}

== Photos ==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="170">
File:Royal Aircraft Factory SE5a.jpg|IWM Caption: Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5As of No. Photo: David McLellan, Public domain
File:Royal Aircraft Factory SE5 - Frame01.jpg|Wood frame construction of the SE5, en:South African National Museum of Military History. Photo: NJR ZA, Public domain
File:Shuttleworth SE5a01.jpg|Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5. Photo: TSRL, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:Shuttleworth SE5A02.jpg|Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5. Photo: TSRL, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:RAF SE5A REplica EI-ARA A4850 Baldonnel 29.07.67 edited-2.jpg|Full scale replica Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a built by Miles Engineering in 1965 for film work. Photo: RuthAS, CC BY 3.0
File:S.E.5 at Old Warden, 2014.jpg|Royal Aiircraft Factory S.E.5A F-904 at Old Warden, June 2014. Photo: TSRL, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:The Royal Flying Corps on the Western Front, 1914-1918 Q12066.jpg|The Royal Flying Corps on the Western Front, 1914-1918 The Pilot of an S.E.5a of No. Photo: McLellan, David (Second Lieutenant) (Photographer), Public domain
File:Training slide of Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a cockpit (17428430695).jpg|From the Robert McKenzie fonds, PR1991.0305/24. Photo: Provincial Archives of Alberta, No restrictions
</gallery>
All photos are from [[commons:Main Page|Wikimedia Commons]]; click a photo for its full credit and license.

== Buying a Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 ==
{{For sale soon}}

== Sources ==
<references>
<ref name="wp">Wikipedia, "[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Aircraft_Factory_S.E.5 Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5]", read November 1, 2026. Airplane Wiki's text is written in its own words; facts are checked against this article and its sources.</ref>
<ref name="faa">Federal Aviation Administration, [https://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/aircraft_certification/aircraft_registry/releasable_aircraft_download Releasable Aircraft Database], file dated October 30, 2026. Valid registrations of fixed-wing airplanes whose FAA maker and model names belong to this family. Airplane Wiki uses only counts from this file, never owner names or addresses.</ref>
</references>

Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 - Revision history

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