Austin A.F.T.3 Osprey, спроектированный и построенный частным образом как конкурент Sopwith Snipe, представлял собой триплан странного вида и оснащался ротативным поршневым двигателем Bentley В. R.2 мощностью 230 л.с. Прототип Osprey, взлетевший в феврале 1918 года, показал несколько худшие характеристики, чем Snipe, поэтому постройка других прототипов была прекращена.
The Austin A.F.T.3 Osprey triplane was a private venture single-seat fighter designed by C. H. Brooks in 1918. Powered by a 230 h.p. Bentley B.R.2 rotary engine, the triplane layout was chosen in an attempt to combine high performance and manoeuvrability with a good fighting view. The picture shows the sole example, X15, shortly after completion.
Osprey имел простую конструкцию, что облегчало его ремонт. В компоновке самолета многое было заимствовано от Sopwith Triplane.
The picture, sent in by Mr D. H. Boulcott of Renfrew, Scotland, shows the sole example, X15, later in life, with a more conventional, shorter, tail skid.
A head-on shot of the newly-completed Osprey. The large-diameter propeller demanded a tall undercarriage, which consequently gave the aircraft a considerable ground angle. Armament comprised two fixed synchronised 0-303in Vickers machine guns and a single movable 0-303in Lewis gun mounted on the rear spar of the centresection framework of the middle wing. The latter weapon is not fitted in the photographs on these pages, and its field of fire would have been very limited. First flights were made at Castle Bromwich in February 1918, and it was tested at Martlesham in March.
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