Fighting back against the Zeppelins

Enormous Zeppelin airships bombing mainland Britain added a new and terrifying dimension to the way wars were fought.  For the first time, a conflict was brought to the very doorsteps of the civilian population.   Aircraft and weaponry were developed to counter the threat and the Sopwith Baby, a small and agile floatplane fighter that performed well in the air, is an example of this.  It often had difficulty in taking off from the rough North Sea and resolving this problem was a factor in the Royal Navy developing the ability to launch aircraft from the decks of ships.

The Fleet Air Arm Museum’s part-original, part-replica Sopwith Baby will be on display from Easter 2016. Complete with representations of the Le Prieur rockets that were used against the Zeppelins, the aircraft will help tell the story of the fight back against this gigantic enemy in the sky.