Editing Sopwith 1½ Strutter (section)

==Operational history==

===In British service===
The prototype two seater flew in December 1915 and production deliveries started to reach the RNAS in February 1916.<ref name="Bruce I p544"/> By the end of April, No. 5 Wing RNAS had a flight equipped with the new aircraft. The Sopwiths were used to escort the wing's [[Caudron G.4]] and [[Breguet Bre.4]] bombers and for bombing.<ref name="Bruce I p545">Bruce 28 September 1956, p. 545.</ref><ref name="Thetford Navyp292">Thetford 1978, p. 292.</ref> The [[War Office]] had ordered the type for the RFC in March but because Sopwith's production capacity was contracted to the navy, the RFC orders had to be placed with Ruston Proctor and [[Vickers]].<ref name="Bruce RFC p500">Bruce 1982, p. 500.</ref> Sub-contract production from these manufacturers did not get into its stride until August. Since the [[Battle of the Somme]] was planned for the end of June and with the RFC having a shortage of modern aircraft, it was agreed that a number of Sopwiths would be transferred from one service to the other, allowing [[No. 70 Squadron RAF|70 Squadron]] to reach the front by early July 1916 with Sopwith-built {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters, originally intended for the Navy.<ref name="bruce RFC, p501,503">Bruce 1982, pp. 501, 503.</ref>

[[File:Sopwith 1 2-1 Strutter-2006.jpg|thumb|A replica Sopwith {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter in 1916 RNAS livery, flying at a 2006 air show]]
At first, 70 Squadron did very well with their new aircraft. The period of German [[Air superiority|ascendency]] known as the [[Fokker scourge]] was over and the {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter's long range and excellent armament enabled offensive patrolling deep into German-held territory.<ref name="Bruce II p587">Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 587.</ref> By the time [[No. 45 Squadron RAF|45 Squadron]] reached the front in October, the new [[Albatros D.I|Albatros]] fighters were arriving at the {{lang|de|[[Jagdstaffel]]n}}. By January 1917, when [[No. 43 Squadron RAF|43 Squadron]] arrived in France, the {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter was outclassed as a fighter; a more powerful {{cvt|130|hp|kW}} Clerget 9B improved performance slightly but too late to reverse the situation.<ref name="Bruce RFC p504">Bruce 1982, p. 504.</ref> It was still a useful long-range reconnaissance aircraft when it could be provided with adequate fighter escort but was one of the types to suffer severely during "[[Bloody April]]", 43 squadron alone suffering 35 casualties, from an officer establishment of 32.<ref name="BruceII p588"/><ref>Herris and Pearson 2010, p. 51.</ref>

Like other early Sopwith types, the {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter was very lightly built and its structure did not stand up very well to arduous war service. It was far too stable to make a good [[dogfighting|dogfighter]] and the distance between the pilot and the observer's cockpits impeded their communication. The last operational {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters in the RFC were replaced by [[Sopwith Camel]]s in late October 1917.<ref name="BruceII p588">Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 588.</ref>

The type's long range and stability were good qualities for a home defence fighter and it served with [[No. 37 Squadron RAF|37]], [[No. 44 Squadron RAF|44]] and [[No. 78 Squadron RAF|78]] squadrons. Most of the {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters supplied to home defence units had been built as two-seaters but many were converted locally to single-seaters to improve performance. Some of these single-seaters were similar to the bomber variant but others were of a different type, known (like similarly adapted Sopwith Camels) as the '''Sopwith Comic'''. The cockpit was moved back behind the wings and one or two Lewis guns, either mounted on [[Foster mounting]]s or fixed to fire upwards, outside the arc of the propeller, replaced the synchronised Vickers.

The RNAS used most of their {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters as bombers (in the Aegean and Macedonia as well as in France) and as shipboard aircraft, where it was known as the '''Ship's Strutter''' and flew from [[aircraft carrier]]s, other warships of the [[Royal Navy]], and the battlecruiser {{HMAS|Australia|1911|6}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sopwith 1½ Strutter |url=https://seapower.navy.gov.au/history/units/sopwith-1-12-strutter |website=Sea Power Centre, Australia |access-date=15 March 2025}}</ref> It had been planned to use them on the [[Tondern raid]], but Sopwith Camels were used instead. The RNAS and the RFC (and after April 1918 the [[Royal Air Force]] [RAF]) used the type as a trainer after it had been withdrawn from operational service and like the [[Sopwith Pup]], it proved a popular personal aircraft for senior officers.

===In French service===
[[File:Sopwith 1B2 Strutter Right Rear.jpg|thumb|left|French Sopwith 1B.2 Strutter in late war camouflage]]
The largest user of the Sopwith was actually the French {{lang|fr|Aéronautique Militaire}}. By May 1916 it was obvious that the [[Pusher configuration|pusher]] [[Farman Aviation Works|Farman]] and [[Société Anonyme des Ateliers d'Aviation Louis Breguet|Breguet]] bombers and reconnaissance aircraft were obsolete and with the failure of their [[Tractor configuration|tractor]] aircraft replacements, particularly the [[Nieuport 14]], the Sopwith was ordered in large numbers from French manufacturers in three versions, the SOP. 1A.2 (two-seat reconnaissance), SOP. 1B.2 (two-seat bomber) and  SOP. 1B.1 (single-seat bomber).<ref name="Bruce wind2 p10-1">Bruce 2000, pp. 10–11.</ref><ref name="Bruce II p590"/> While in French service, they equipped a large portion of the French bomber and artillery-observation squadrons and carried out many bombing attacks against industrial and military targets, including the German front lines. It was not as successful against fighters, suffering substantial casualties and downing fewer enemy aircraft than either the aircraft used before it or after. With the belated introduction of the [[Breguet 14|Breguet 14 A.2 and B.2]], the last of the Sopwiths were withdrawn from operational service in early 1918 although they would continue in service with training units until after the end of the war.

===In other foreign service===
[[File:Sopwith 1 1.2 Strutter S.85 BRU Msm 14.04.00R edited-2.jpg|thumb|Belgian Air Force Sopwith on display in the Brussels Military Museum]]
Three Belgian squadrons also flew French-built Sopwiths, and surplus French Sopwiths were used by several countries postwar. During the war, several {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters that were interned after landing in the Netherlands were purchased for the Dutch {{lang|nl|Luchvaart Afdeeling}}. Over 100 {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters were also built in Russia by [[Dux Factory|Duks]] and [[Lebed aircraft|Lebedev]],<ref name="Jarrett database p60">Jarrett 2009, p. 60.</ref> supplemented by large numbers delivered directly from Britain and France. The {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter remained in large scale use by both the Soviet forces and [[White movement|White Russians]] during the [[Russian Civil War]] and [[Polish-Soviet war]].<ref name="Jarrett database p66">Jarrett 2009, p. 66.</ref> Three were captured during this war and used by the Poles in 1919–1920.<ref name=kopanski>Kopański 2001, pp. 73–78.</ref> Other captured ones were used by Baltic states.

The American Expeditionary Force purchased 384 two-seat Strutter observation aircraft and 130 single-seat bombers from France in 1917–18.<ref name="Swan military p560">Swanborough and Bowers 1963, p. 560.</ref>  While mainly used for training, they were used operationally by the [[90th Fighter Squadron|90th Aero Squadron]] as an interim measure, due to a shortage of later types.<ref name="Bruce II p590">Bruce 5 October 1956, p. 590.</ref> The [[U.S. Navy]] used a number of the two-seat Sopwiths, along with [[Nieuport 28]]s and [[Hanriot HD.1]]s and [[Hanriot HD.2|2s]] as ships' aircraft in the early postwar years, testing the use of aircraft from platforms mounted on the turrets of battleships. The {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutter also served with the [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Force]] – some examples serving in the Japanese expeditionary force in Siberia during 1918. Around 1,500 {{frac|1|1|2}} Strutters were built for the Royal Flying Corps and the [[Royal Naval Air Service]] and between 4,200 and 4,500 were built in [[France]].