Supermarine Seamew

The Supermarine Seamew was a British twin-engined amphibious aircraft built by Supermarine at Woolston, Southampton, intended as a small shipborne reconnaissance aircraft. R. J. Mitchell designed it between 1925 and 1927 to meet Air Ministry specification 29/24, and it was the first aeroplane Supermarine built to incorporate metal in its construction. Two machines were built and Mitchell planned a civilian version carrying up to six passengers. Higher priority projects meant little was done until October 1926, and it first flew on 9 January 1928. Tests showed it was nose-heavy and that its hand-starter gear was faulty, its propellers were badly placed and were damaged by sea spray, and some fittings were made from an unsuitable material. Both aircraft were scrapped in 1930.