Claim: The Short Bomber was powered by a Rolls-Royce Eagle, its armament comprised a rear-facing Lewis Gun but it was unable to carry the required bombload.
Evidence: It was powered by a Rolls-Royce Eagle or a Sunbeam engine mounted in the nose, driving a two-bladed propeller. Armament comprised a rear-facing Lewis Gun as well as provision for one 14 inch Whitehead torpedo or various bombs up to 920 lb. Initial testing with the prototype by Shorts' test pilot, Ronald Kemp, revealed that it was unable to carry the required bombload of six 112-lb (50.8 kg) bombs, so the wingspan was increased by 12 ft.