Entering service in April 1917, over three thousand of the heavily armed F.2b fighter bomber were produced.
The introduction of the aircraft did not go well however, as the inexperienced pilots had been mistakenly warned to avoid violent maneuvers during combat. This resulted in many F.2bs being shot down, and the type was almost withdrawn from service immediately.
As the F.2b pilots became more experienced on the type, it was found to be a highly maneuverable and successful fighter.
Sir Keith Park, a New Zealander (famous for his command of Number 11 Fighter Group in south-east England during the Battle of Britain), flew Bristol Fighters with the Royal Flying Corps from July 1917. By the end of the war he had accumulated a score of twenty victories, and had been shot down once by anti-aircraft fire, and once by German aircraft.
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