with the RNVR and RNAS Billing returned to the company. As a result of his experience while involved in the organising of the air raid in November 1914 on the Zeppelin sheds at Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance Billing believed that England was defenceless against attacks by Zeppelins. As a result, his return led to the company concentrating on designing the quadruplane P.B.29, which was designed to shoot down zeppelins. In May 1916 the company was awarded by the Air Department of the Admiralty a contract to build the flying surfaces for the AD flying boat and to undertake the detailed design and construction of the AD Navyplane. The AD Flying Boat was initially found to have poor performance in the water, which were eventually resolved. This led to 34 being built, though none saw service. Supermarine Aviation Works In March 1916 Billing was elected as an MP. Once in parliament he was very vocal in his support of air power, constantly accusing the government of neglecting the issue. As he intended to run a campaign against the Royal Aircraft Factory and its products, it became apparent that if the company was to maintain a good relationship with the Air Department and gain any further orders it was necessary for the company to distance itself from Billing. As a result, Billing sold his shares in the company for about £12,500 to Hubert Scott-Paine and the other directors who renamed the company Supermarine Aviation Works Ltd and officially registered it under that name on 27 June 1916. As well as Scott-Paine, the other directors were Alfred Delves de Broughton and solicitor Charles Cecil Dominy. The first product of the new company was the P.B.31E Nighthawk which was a carryover from Billing's time for a quadruplane heavily armed and searchlight-equipped home defence fighter. Fitted with a recoilless Davis gun, it had a separate powerplant to power the searchlight. Only the prototype was built, which was found to have insufficient performance to be of any use against Zeppelins. After completion of the Nighthawk Scott-Paine dropped Billing's fixation with anti-Zeppelin defence fighters, and in the hope of gaining orders for flying boats forged a strong relationship with the RNAS through their local liaison officer James Bird. In early 1916 William Abraham Hargreaves was hired as chief designer. By 1917 realizing that he needed to strengthen the company's technical capability Scott-Paine advertised for a personal assistant.