Armstrong Whitworth Siskin V
|FIGHTER||Virtual Aircraft Museum / United Kingdom / Armstrong Whitworth|
The Siskin V actually preceded the Siskin IIIA and was essentially a progressive development of the Siskin II, retaining the shorter span upper wing, broader chord lower wing and parallel struts of the original model, coupling these features with redesigned vertical tail surfaces, a forward fuselage with rounded sides, and a 385hp Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar III. Armament comprised two 7.7mm machine guns, and the Siskin V was the recipient of an order for 70 examples from the Romanian government. Production was initiated early in 1925, but in March of that year one of the Romanian Siskin Vs was destroyed in a crash while being flown in the UK by a Romanian test pilot, and the order was cancelled. At this time an indeterminate number (at least 10) had been completed, but no deliveries had been made. Two Siskin Vs were subsequently flown with civil registrations. The Siskin IV, the sole example of which was built for the 1925 King's Cup Race, was similar.