Summary: Sopwith Pup aircraft fitted with an arrester hook, landing with the aid of a weighted arrester rope, presumably as part of trials for the use of this type on aircraft carriers at sea.
Description: Pan showing Sopwith Pup fitted with propeller guard and arrester hook, with a rope with a number of sandbags trailing behind. The aircraft stands on a wooden panelled deck with hangars etc in the background. Title: Landing deck. Arranging fitting & etc [sic]. Man checks height of an arrester rope. Arresting rope being strung up. Title: Landing deck. Front view of machine landing’. Short, incomplete shot of the Pup approaching. Stationary Pup. Painting the arrester rope to make it more visible. Title: ‘Landing deck. Rope gear, & etc [sic] / Bags trailing behind’. Sand bags on rope on deck. Title: ‘Landing deck. Accident to port side wheel after landing’. A Pup, landing right-to-left across frame, catches the rope but port undercarriage leg buckles. Title: ‘Machine in flight’. The Pup passes over the landing deck. Title: ‘Landing on deck. Bag over hook’; medium close-up shows sand bag attached to arrester rope. Title: ‘Leaving deck’. Wide shot swinging the Pup’s propeller and the aircraft taking off out of shot. Title: ‘Rear view of landing’. Pup landing into shot, with sandbags trailing behind. Another shot Pup taking off. Title: ‘Hook falling into position’. Arrester hook dropping from rear fuselage (aircraft serial N9497). Title: ‘View of ropes after landing’; two looking at ropes around the arrester hook from behind the aircraft. Title: ‘Hook gripping ropes after landing’ with close-up. Title: ‘Landing deck. Sopwith Pup leaving deck’; looking at wooden rails and a Sopwith 1½ Ship Strutter (not a Pup) with skids rather than wheels. Strutter with engine running; it moves off along the wooden rails (aircraft serial appears to be A6911). Title: ‘Sopwith Pup leaving deck by means of runners. Showing machine leaving deck, trials and flight’; the wooden rails with men. Strutter on the rails with propeller spinning. [racking changes] The first Pup, with wheeled undercarriage, landing towards camera. Title: ‘Landing deck. Side view of machine landing’; Smooth pan Pup landing and pilot starting to dismount.
