AP 118 · No. 10 Section II · Aircraft 1916

Aircraft hub · 1916 · First World War

Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8

‘Harry Tate’ — the army’s workhorse eye in the sky, gallant and slow. The gazetteer currently lists it at 2 UK museums.

1916
First flight
4,077
Built
103 mph
Top speed
2
Museums
Side profile of the R.E.8, painted as F3556, a Daimler-built R.E.8 of 1918 that reached France in its packing case on Armistice Day, as restored by the Imperial War Museum and displayed at Duxford: PC10 khaki-brown fuselage, fin and upper surfaces, clear-doped linen undersides, a bare aluminium cowling with ‘A Paddy Bird from Ceylon’ on the port side, the R.A.F. 4a V-12 with its tall twin exhaust stacks and air scoop, roundels on the fuselage sides and under the lower wings, white ‘F3556’ on the rear fuselage, a blue, white and red striped rudder with the serial in black, a grey four-blade propeller and a Lewis gun on the observer’s ring
Plate 27 · The Hangar

Last verified 2026-10-11 against the gazetteer Compendium. Airframes move — confirm on museum pages before travel.

On charge

Where to see the Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 in the UK

The gazetteer records 2 Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 airframes (including cockpit sections and replicas where noted) across 2 UK collections, in 2 regions: London & Around, East of England.

MuseumCityRegionAirframes recorded
IWM DuxfordChecked 2026-10-08 Cambridge East of England Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 F3556
Royal Air Force Museum LondonChecked 2026-10-08 London London & Around Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 Replica 'A3930' Replica

3D model

The R.E.8 in 3D

A procedural model built in Blender from the type’s published dimensions, painted as F3556, a Daimler-built R.E.8 of 1918 that reached France in its packing case on Armistice Day, as restored by the Imperial War Museum and displayed at Duxford: PC10 khaki-brown fuselage, fin and upper surfaces, clear-doped linen undersides, a bare aluminium cowling with ‘A Paddy Bird from Ceylon’ on the port side, the R.A.F. 4a V-12 with its tall twin exhaust stacks and air scoop, roundels on the fuselage sides and under the lower wings, white ‘F3556’ on the rear fuselage, a blue, white and red striped rudder with the serial in black, a grey four-blade propeller and a Lewis gun on the observer’s ring. Drag to orbit, scroll or pinch to zoom · all 215 models · download .glb (1.1 MB) · Plate 27 in The Hangar

Computed from the survey

Collection context

Types you’ll see alongside

Airco DH.9 / DH.9A, Airspeed Oxford, Avro Anson, Avro Lancaster, Avro Vulcan.

Where the type is thickest

East of England has 1 collection recording the type.

Marks and variants recorded

Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 Replica.

Type notes

The Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 in brief

TypeRoyal Aircraft Factory R.E.8
UK museums holding one2
Airframes recorded in this survey2

Serials are the gazetteer's survey snapshot of what each collection records on charge — restorations move between workshops and reserve hangars, so check the museum page for opening times and current display status before travelling. Every type across 119 museums is indexed in the Compendium.

Aircraft questions

Frequently asked

How many Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 airframes are left in the UK?

The Aviation Gazetteer records 2 Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 airframes in UK collections.

Which museum has the most Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 airframes?

IWM Duxford has the most in this survey, with 1 recorded airframe.