A small number of Bristol T.B.8s were briefly used as bombers at the start of the World War I by the Royal Naval Air Service.

The conversion was made to meet an order from the British Admiralty, with the Bristol T.B.8 first flying on 12 August 1913.

One Bristol T.B.8 was fitted with a prismatic Bombsight in the front cockpit and a cylindrical bomb carrier in the lower forward fuselage, capable of carrying twelve 10 lb (4.5 kg) bombs, which could be dropped singly or as a salvo as required.

[1] This aircraft was displayed at the Paris Salon de l'Aéronautique and evaluated by the French military before being purchased by the Royal Navy Air Service.

[1] Three Bristol T.B.8s, including the aircraft displayed at the Paris Air Show in December 1913, were sent to France following the outbreak of World War I, serving with a Royal Navy Air Service squadron commanded by Charles Rumney Samson.