The Short S.27 and its derivative, the Short Improved S.27, were a series of early British aircraft built by Short Brothers. They were used by the Admiralty and Naval Wing of the Royal Flying Corps for training the Royal Navy's first pilots as well as for early naval aviation experiments. An Improved S.27 was used by C.R. Samson to make the first successful take-off from a moving ship on 9 May 1912.
Short S.27
An Improved S.27 series aeroplane with extended upper wing.
An Improved S.27 with nacelle for the pilot and passenger.
Commander Samson's historic take-off from HMS Hibernia. The three streamlined air bags used for flotation are clearly visible.
Short Brothers plc, usually referred to as Shorts or Short, is an aerospace company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Shorts was founded in 1908 in London, and was the first company in the world to make production aeroplanes. It was particularly notable for its flying boat designs manufactured into the 1950s.
left-to-right: Oswald (1883-1969), Horace (1872-1917), and Eustace Short (1875-1932) at Mussell Manor 1909.
Mussell Manor, the Royal Aero Club clubhouse
Commander C. R. Samson making the first take-off from a moving ship, May 1912
Short Brothers Statue at the site of their aero club (Musswell Manor, Isle of Sheppey)