Sopwith Atlantic

The Sopwith Atlantic was an experimental long-range biplane of 1919, designed and built to be the first aeroplane to fly the Atlantic non-stop. Thomas Sopwith decided to compete for the Daily Mail prize of 10,000 pounds when it reopened after the Armistice, and George Carter based the design on the single-engined Sopwith B.1 bomber. It was a large two-bay tractor biplane with a Rolls-Royce Eagle engine, a deeper fuselage holding 330 imperial gallons of petrol, jettisonable mainwheels to reduce drag and a boat built into the rear fuselage decking in case of a sea landing. It took off from Newfoundland on 18 May 1919 but ditched during the flight owing to an overheating engine.