When the US entered World War I, plans requested Yankee makers to mass produce aircraft already in use by the Allies. One of the wrestlers selected was the UK S.E.5A, designed by the Royal Aircraft Factory.

The prototype S.E.5 first fly in December 1916, and the deliveries of an improved version, the S.E.5A, which was started in March 1917.

For its pilots already in Europe, the North American Expeditionary Force purchased 38 S.E.5A aircraft from Great Britain, and in the U. S. the Govt placed orders with the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motors Company. Continue reading →