Aeronef Frigates R.A.S. Baja, R.A.S. Sonora (1887)

Shown is R.A.S. Sonora, up until 1895 she and her sister ship Baja were identical. The Sonora looked the same after her refit in 1895

The first true Aeronefs purchased for the nascent Republican Aerial Service were two French Negative Gravity Screw designs originally intended for the Ottoman Navy. Renamed the Baja and the Sonora these vessels were very influential within the Air Service, serving as training and experimental vessels.

Arriving during the Second war with Mexico the Baja and Sonora sortied to protect the fortresses and mines of the R-Matter producing regions of Sonora from Mexican Bomber 'Digs. The Sonorans were unable to carry the fight to the enemy due to the lack of retaliatory ordnance in the form of bombs.

Frigate R.A.S. Sonora (1895 refit)

Aeroplane Tender R.A.S. Baja (1895 refit)

The R.A.S. Baja can carry 2 squadrons of fighters or bombers

The Baja and Sonora served well througout the Second Mexican war and were generally well received, but the limitations of the Negative Gravity Screw are well known. In 1893 funds were apropriated to refit the Baja and Sonora with R-Matter engines in hopes of improving performance and lengthening their service life. One of the more radical proposals, to turn one of the vessels into a carrier for fixed wing scouting and attack aeroplanes was accepted. The other bid was more conventional and entailed essentially a simple conversion of the powerplant, lifters and motivators and redesigning the space freed up by the radical size difference in machinery. The refits were finished by 1895 and both vessels returned to service to fight the Mexicans along the Sinaloa Border. The locally made Hawk fighters and Owl Bombers served with distinction as scouts and air superiority fighters. The Sonora was broken up in 1912. The Baja was scrapped in 1910. Astute students of Aeronaval design and construction will note similarities to the French Les Arc Carrier  (miniature souvenir replicas of which can be purchased at: http://www.brigade-models.co.uk). 

Sonoran Aeroplanes

Not particularly revolutionary, Sonoran Aerodynes were largely adaptaions of German or French fixed wing craft.

• The Hawk fighters were merely Lilienthal fighters produced under license mounting 8mm Republican Machine Guns (themselves locally made versions of the famed Maxim gun).
• The Owl Bomber was a conventional French design developed late in the war of 1889-91.
• The Eagle fighter was the first locally designed and produced fixed wing craft produced by the Sonorans. With a robust airframe the Eagle was very popular with its crews. The Eagle's only drawback is that the aeoplane's increased payload and survivability resulted in a loss of maneuverability. Also noteworthy for its use of rockets in a ground support role, the Eagle was heavily exported to Russia.
• The Horned Owl was an effort  to give the nearly defenseless Owl Bomber some protection in the form of extra crew and guns. Unable to outrun the fastest Aeronef gunboats the Horned Owl proved a dismal failure. Many were sold to smaller nations or converted for use as civilian transports and mailplanes.
• 1898 brought the Vulture bomber onto the scene. A shrewd compromise in survivability and power, the Vulture was to become a mainstay of the Republican Arsenal into the early part of the 20th century.

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This page was last modified on: 26 May 2001 08:48:11 Pacific Daylight Time