World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Seal carrier-borne aircraft were developed from the venerable III design by the same designer/manufacturer, Fairey Aviation; in fact the prototype Seal aircraft was a converted IIIF Mk. IIIB. The first Seal aircraft took flight in 1930, and they entered service with the British Fleet Air Arm in 1933. A total of 91 aircraft were built during the design's production life, most of which remained in Britain, but a few were sold to forces abroad. The FAA Seal aircraft began to be replaced by the Swordfish biplane in 1936, and by 1938 they were removed from all FAA front line units. When the United Kingdom entered WW2 in 1939, 4 Seal aircraft remained in active service with the FAA, serving in reconnaissance roles. The British Royal Air Force also operated them; 12 Seal aircraft served as target tugs in Britain and 4 served as coastal patrol aircraft in Ceylon until May 1942. Officially, all Seal aircraft were retired from RAF service in May 1942 and FAA service in 1943.

ww2dbaseLatvia ordered four Seal aircraft in 1934. These examples were captured by the Soviets in 1940, but they were not pressed into Soviet service. They were all destroyed on Kisezers lake during a German attack.

Seal Timeline

SPECIFICATIONS

Seal

Machinery	One Armstrong Siddley Panther IIA radial piston engine rated at 525hp
Armament	1x7.7mm forward Vickers machine gun, 1x7.7mm rear Lewis Gun, 230kg of bombs
Crew	3
Span	13.95 m
Length	10.26 m
Height	3.89 m
Wing Area	41.20 m²
Weight, Maximum	2,727 kg
Speed, Maximum	222 km/h
Service Ceiling	5,180 m

Photographs