The Saro A17 Cutty Sark was a British amphibious aircraft from the period between World War I and World War II, built by the British firm Saunders-Roe (also known as SARO). The aircraft was named after the ship Cutty Sark, rather than the garment or the fictional witch. The Cutty Sark was a shoulder-winged four-seat amphibian monoplane with an all-metal hull and plywood covered wings. The above-wing pylon-mounted engines could easily be changed, and a variety of different engines were used to power the type, including 104 hp Cirrus Hermes Mk 1s and 120 hp de Havilland Gipsy IIs. The Saro A19 Cloud was derived from the Cutty Sark. Only 12 Cutty Sarks were built, and none lasted long in service, but the type nevertheless saw service with many users in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, China, Japan and the Dominican Republic. In 1928, Sir Alliot Verdon Roe sold Avro. He bought an interest in S. E. Saunders, flying boat manufacturers based at Cowes, Isle of Wight, southern England; the company was renamed Saunders-Roe. The rebranded company’s first new project to reach quantity production was the A17 Cutty Sark. It was a four-seat twin-engined commercial flying boat. While primarily intended for landing and taking off from the water, the Cutty Sark could also make occasional use of land-based facilities, for which purpose the manufacturer could supply an amphibian gear that would attach to various fixing points that were present upon on the structure. In terms of propulsion, the Cutty Sark could be equipped with numerous engine arrangements that would develop a total power output of around 200 hp. Typically, it would be powered by a pair of engines mounted in a tractor configuration within separate nacelles positioned above the wing; this location was readily accessibility while afloat. Seeking to avoid excessive inefficiency and ensure a sufficient safety margin in the event of a forced landing, it was specified that the flying boat’s loading ought not to exceed 106 lb. per hp. The engines could be started from the pilot’s seated position on the flight deck by means of a compressed air-based ignition system, which comprised a compact engine-drive compressor, a reservoir, fuel vaporizers, distributors and remote controls. The lubrication system was entirely contained within the engine, the sump had a capacity of two gallons while a gauge on the side of the crank case displayed the quantity of oil present. Fuel was primarily stored within the wings; the wing tanks supplied fuel to the engines via a pair of gravity tanks, which could contain sufficient fuel for half an hour of flight time, that were located directly behind the engines. The fuel cocks installed upon the gravity tanks could be actuated remotely by the pilot. The gravity tanks were protected by a fireproof baffle. Both the piping and tanks were relatively isolated from most sources of ignition to lower the risk posed by fire, particularly to the hull and the occupants therein; it was for this reason that no fuel pipes were permitted within the hull. Faith in these fire prevention measures were such that smoking was permitted within the cabin. The lubrication system is contained wholly in the engine. A gauge on the side of the crank case shows the quantity of oil in the sump which has a capacity for two gallons. For more details of the construction of the aircraft, and the history of each of the twelve units built, click here. The only single engined version Cutty Sark.
