Where did the F.K.26 pilot sit?

Short answer

The pilot of the BAT F.K.26 did not travel with the passengers: he sat in an open cockpit located above and behind the enclosed cabin occupied by the four travelers. It was a British single-engine transport biplane produced by the British Aerial Transport Company Limited of London at the end of the First World War.

Published: November 4, 2026 · Updated: November 4, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

Caudron G 4

A British biplane from the end of the Great War

The F.K.26 was a British single-engine transport biplane with room for four passengers. It was produced by the British Aerial Transport Company Limited of London at the end of the First World War. It was a wood-and-fabric civil transport. The prototype, registered K-102, first flew in April 1919.

The pilot, above and behind

The four passengers had an enclosed cabin, and the pilot sat above and behind that cabin, in an open cockpit.

Four aircraft and the flights to Paris

The fourth example, registered G-EAPK and built in November 1919, was the last aircraft produced by the British Aerial Transport Company. The G-EAPK was sold to Instone Air Line and was based at Croydon Airport, from where it carried out charter work and scheduled services to Paris. When the company closed, Koolhoven returned to the Netherlands. He later bought the prototype and displayed it at the 1937 Netherlands Aero Show.