The first prototype of the Bristol Scout series was first flown on February 23, 1914. After its first public appearance, by May 1914 what would later become known as the "Bristol Scout A" It was fitted with the 80 hp Gnôme Lambda rotary engine. The British military first evaluated the Scout A aircraft on May 14, 1914, at Farnborough when the aircraft showed a fast-for-1914 airspeed of 97.5 mph [157 km/h].
Two Scout B aircraft, fitted with the 80 hp Le Rhone rotary for power,saw evaluational service as of September 20, 1914.
The Scout C aircraft, very similar to the previous Scout B, was first ordered by the British government on November 5, 1914.
The last, and most numerous production version, the Scout D, gradually came about as a series of further improvements to the Scout C design. The most important was the fitting of the powerful nine cylinder 100 hp Gnôme Monosoupape rotary engine to improve its peformance. Some 210 examples of the Scout D version were produced.
Thirteen Scout C's and D's served with 1 Sqn and 6 Sqn AFC.
General characteristics
Performance
Length: 20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)
Wingspan: 24 ft 7 in (7.49 m)
Height: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Wing area: 198.00 ft² (18.40 m²)
Empty weight: 789 lb (358 kg)
Loaded weight: 1,195 lb (542 kg)
Powerplant: 80 hp Le Rhône 9C / 100 hp Gnôme Monosoupape
Rate of climb: 21 min 20 sec to 10,000 ft
Power/mass: 0.067 hp/lb (0.11 kW/kg)