<p>Regarded as the most famous Allied aircraft of World War I, the Sopwith Camel (known at first as the Sopwith Biplane F.1) had the unique distinction of recording more combat victories (over 2,800 claimed by pilots of the Royal Flying Corps, Royal Naval Air Service and the Royal Air Force) than any other single type of aircraft involved in the war. Basically a development of the Sopwith Pup, which it superseded in service and with which it was generally similar, it differed primarily by having an empty weight some 18 per cent greater but had as standard an engine developing just over 60 per cent more power. The Camel also had its ammunition, fuel, pilot and powerplant concentrated within a compact area of a fuselage that was slightly shorter than that of the Pup. This resulted in superb maneuverability, an attribute which, enhanced by the torque of its large rotary engine, made snap turns to starboard so fast that many experienced pilots found it quicker (and more confusing to the enemy) to make a 270 degree turn to starboard than a 90 degree turn to port.
</p>
<p>The Camel first entered service with the RFC and RNAS in mid-1917, which was about the same time that the first detachment of the AEF reached France. It did not take the AEF long to appreciate the capability of the Camel in British hands, but almost a year elapsed before any of the 143 procured entered service with them. The first units to equip with the Camel were the 17th Aero Squadron (20 June 1918) and the 148th Aero Squadron (1 July 1918). Of greater historical interest was the transfer of the 185th Aero Squadron to the 1st Pursuit Group at Rembercourt, France, as an embryo night fighter squadron (known then as a 'Night Chasse Squadron'). Commanded by 1st Lieutenant Seth Low, the task of the 185th Aero was to 'establish a barrage over our line of searchlights against enemy night bombing machines'. The squadron's first operation was flown on the night of 18/19 October, but with bad weather limiting operations to just eight nights before the 11 November Armistice, only a total of 21 sorties was made. Enemy bomber aircraft were contacted only on the night of 24/25 October, when one pilot made five (apparently unsuccessful) attacks on them.
</p>
<p>With the war over, the Camel did not survive long in either British or US service, apart from a number used for experimental purposes. A machine that had been born during the 'war to end all wars' was not thought to have any useful remaining purpose after the end of that conflict.
<item><hi format=bold>Powerplant:</hi> one 130-hp (97-kW) Clerget rotary piston engine
<item><hi format=bold>Performance:</hi> maximum speed 115 mph (185 km/h) at 6,500 ft (1,980 m); climb to 10,000 ft (3,050 m) in 8 minutes 30 seconds; service ceiling 19,000 ft (5,790 m); endurance 2 hours 30 minutes
<item><hi format=bold>Weights:</hi> empty 929 lb (421 kg); maximum take-off 1,453 lb (659 kg)
<item><hi format=bold>Dimensions:</hi> span 28 ft 0 in (8.53 m); length 18 ft 9 in (5.72 m); height 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m), wing area 231 sq ft (21.46 m<su>2</su>)
<item><hi format=bold>Armament:</hi> two fixed forward-firing synchronized 0.303-in (7.7mm) machine guns, plus up to four 25-lb (11-kg) bombs carried externally
