Supermarine Sea Lion II

The Supermarine Sea Lion II was a British racing flying boat built by the Supermarine Aviation Works, designed by Reginald Mitchell as a modification of the company's Sea King II fighter. It was powered by a 450 hp Napier Lion engine loaned by Napier, which raised power by 50 per cent, and Mitchell hoped it would reach 160 miles per hour. Supermarine entered it in the 1922 Schneider Trophy contest at Naples with private funding from its managing director Hubert Scott-Paine, and test pilot Henry Biard won at an average of 145.7 mph, the first post-war success of a British aeroplane in an international competition. For the 1923 race it was redesigned with a 550 hp Napier Lion and renamed the Sea Lion III.