Showing traces of its Siskin ancestry, the Scimitar had a stepped fuselage which provided for a raised cockpit to afford the pilot excellent forward vision.

The AW 16 G-ACCD at the SBAC Exhibition in June 1933. A year later the aircraft become the prototype AW 35 Scimitar.

ARMSTRONG WHITWORTH SCIMITAR. Built originally as a private venture, the A.W.35 Scimitar was supplied in the mid-thirties to the Royal Norwegian Air Force. A very clean aircraft, the Scimitar had a top speed of 213 m.p.h. at 14,000 ft. when powered by a 640-h.p. Armstrong Siddeley Panther VII radial. As an alternative, the Tiger of 725 h.p. could be mounted. Span was 33 ft., length 25 ft. and all-up weight 4, 100 lb. Armament consisted of two Vickers guns firing through the propeller disc.

The Scimitar was the last of a line of Armstrong Whitworth biplane fighters.

Scimitar G-ACCD at the third SBAC Show, held at Hendon on July 2, 1934, where the new fighter was impressively demonstrated by Charles Turner Hughes in company with the A.W.19, flown by Campbell-Orde.

All the Scimitar's cockpit instruments were readily visible to the pilot. The flying instruments were grouped on the left of the panel, and those for the engine were ranged on the right. The pilot's seat was adjustable for height.