The Supermarine Nanok was a British three engined biplane flying boat built by Supermarine.
Built to meet a Royal Danish Navy requirement, the single prototype was rebuilt as a private air yacht and renamed the Supermarine Solent.
The Nanok was a three engined development of Supermarine’s successful Southampton flying boat, designed to meet a Danish requirement for a torpedo carrying flying boat.
A prototype was ordered on 17 June 1926, and the aircraft first flew on 21 June 1927.
Testing was disappointing, and despite modifications the aircraft could not meet the specified performance and was rejected by the Danes.
In 1928 the aircraft was renamed the Supermarine Solent, and offered for sale as a torpedo bomber, but failed to sell.
It was therefore converted to a civilian 9 seater air yacht for the brewing magnate Ernest Guinness.
This was registered as G-AAAB in August 1928.
The Solent was de-registered and scrapped in 1934.
The name ‘Supermarine Solent’ was also applied to a separate aircraft design, using the Supermarine Southampton hull with the Nanok’s larger wings, as a 14-seat civil transport.
This design also failed to sell.
The Solent was certified as airworthy on 5 September 1928 and was used to fly frequently between England and the owner’s home near Lough Corrib in County Galway, Ireland.
It remained in use until it was scrapped in 1934.
Specifications
Crew
5
Length
50 ft 6 in (15.39 m)
Wingspan
75 ft 0 in (22.86 m)
Height
19 ft 6 in (5.94 m)
Wing area
1,572 sq ft (146.0 m2)
Empty weight
10,619 lb (4,817 kg)
Gross weight
16,311 lb (7,399 kg)
Powerplant
3 × Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar IV,
14 cylinder air cooled radial piston engines,
430 hp (320 kW) each
Propellers
2 bladed wooden fixed pitch propellers,
10 ft 0 in (3.05 m) diameter
Performance
Maximum speed
113.5 mph (182.7 km/h, 98.6 kn) at sea level
101.2 mph (88 kn; 163 km/h) at 10,000 ft (3,048 m)
Stall speed
64 mph (103 km/h, 56 kn)
Range
640 mi (1,030 km, 560 nmi) for reconnaissance missions
