Blackburn R.1 Blackburn

For a description of the format and data included in Production Tables, see here.

R.1 Blackburn Mk.I
Three-seat biplane naval spotter/reconnaissance aircraft to meet the requirements of Specification 3/21. A new fuselage was mated to the wing and tail surfaces from the Blackburn Dart. The pilot sat in an open cockpit above the engine, a navigator sat inside the fuselage and a gun position was located at the rear of the fuselage cabin. The aircraft's two-bay wings could fold for stowage aboard aircraft carriers, with the upper wing attached directly to the fuselage, which filled the interplane gap. Armament was a single forward-firing Vickers machine gun mounted externally to the left of the pilot, with a Lewis gun on a Scarff ring for the gunner. One 450 h.p. Napier Lion IIB powerplant. Further production to Specification 11/23.

R.1 Blackburn Mk.II
Development of the Mk.I to meet the requirements of Specification 10/24, featuring a raised upper wing and cleaned up structure. One 465 h.p. Napier Lion V powerplant. The final 5 aircraft were to meet Specification 17/26.

R.1 Blackburn Mk.I Specification
Span	Length	Height	Wing Area	Empty Wt	Max AUW	Cruise Speed	Maximum Speed	Endurance	Service Ceiling
45 ft 6 in	36 ft 2 in	12 ft 6 in	650 sq ft	3929 lb	5962 lb		122 mph/ 106 kn	4.25 hrs	12950 ft
13.87 m	11.02 m	3.81 m	60.39 m2	1782 kg	2704 kg		196 km/h		3947 m

Serial Range	C/n	Type	Batch Qty	Conv.	Canc'd	Notes
3 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, under Contract 130133/21 to Spec. 3/21. Delivered in August 1922.
N150 - N152		Mk.I	3			N150 converted to the prototype MkII.
12 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, under Contract 405109/23 to Spec. 11/23. Delivered in 1923.
N9579 - N9590		Mk.I	12			N9580, N9586, N9588 converted to Mk.II. N9589, see note 3.
6 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, to Contract 446452/23. Delivered in 1924.
N9681 - N9686		Mk.I	6			N9686 converted to Mk.II.
12 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, to Contracts 509845/24 and 509593/24. Delivered in 1924.
N9824 - N9835		Mk.I	12			N9824 - N9826, N9828, N9829, N9831, N9833, N9835 converted to Mk.II. N9833, see note 4.
12 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, to Contract 542927/24. Delivered between April and July 1925.
N9978 - N9989		Mk.II	12			N9982, N9989 see note 3.
12 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, to Contract 609533/25. Delivered 1925/1926.
S1046 - S1057		Mk.II	12
5 aircraft ordered from The Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co. Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire, to Contract 709174/26. Delivered 1928?.
S1153 - S1157		Mk.II	5
	Total Production		62

Blackburn used a series of Works Order Numbers rather than Constructors Numbers to identify individual airframes, but referred to here as C/n's for consistency.
All aircraft were built at the Olympia Works, Leeds, but erected and flown from Brough Aerodrome, East Yorkshire.
One Mk.I (N9589) and two Mk.II (N9982, N9989) fitted experimentally with dual control under Contract 457718/23; unofficially designated Bull.
One Mk.I (N9833) fitted experimentally with twin floats to Specification 8/23. Featured specially strengthened oleo struts for deck landing.

Blackburn Aircraft Since 1909, A.J. Jackson (Putnam, 1968 and 1989)
Fleet Air Arm Aircraft, Units and Ships, 1920 to 1939, Ray Sturtivant with Dick Cronin (Air Britain Publications, 1998)

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