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BRITISH AIRCRAFT |
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Hawker
Hurricane |
Design of the Hurricane had begun in 1934,
and its first flight had been made, from Hawker's establishment within
the confines of the historic Brooklands motor racing circuit at Weybridge
in Surrey, on November 6, 1935. Sydney Camm's design team at nearby Kingston
upon Thames already had long experience of fighter design for the RAF,
and drew heavily upon this experience to produce what was at first seen
as a "Monoplane Fury" -- the Fury being the elegant biplane that still
epitomized the equipment of Fighter Command upon its formation within the
RAF in, July 1936, Such advanced features as an enclosed cockpit
and retractable undercarriage were combined
with traditional methods of construction using a tubular metal structure
and fabric covering, that meant that the Hurricane could be easily and
rapidly produced in existing facilities -- an advantage not enjoyed by
the Spitfire with its advanced stressed-skin construction and complex shapes.
In February 1936, the prototype Hurricane (as yet unnamed), powered by an early Merlin C producing 900hp and driving
a Watts fixed-pitch two-bladed wooden propeller, was tested at the Aircraft
and Armament Experimental Establishment (A & AEE) at Martlesham Heath,
giving Service pilots their first opportunity to experience the improvements
in performance and handling that were to become available.
At a weight of 5,6721b (2,572kg), the prototype
demonstrated a speed of 315mph (506km/h) at the Merlin's rated altitude
of 16,200ft (4, 937m)with 61b/sq in boost, After taking off into a 5mph
(8km/h) wind with a run of 795ft (242m) to reach the 81mph (180km/h) lift-off
speed, the Hurricane climbed to 15,000ft (4,570m) in 5.7 minutes and to
20,000ft (6,100m) in 8.4 min. Service ceiling was 34,500ft (10,515m) and
the estimated absolute ceiling was 35,400ft (10,800m).
Convinced that the RAF would buy the new
fighter in the prevailing mood of rearmament, the Hawker company decided,
in March 1936, to proceed with the production drawings and to make plans
for large scale production. Three months later in July, that action was
vindicated when the Air Ministry confirmed that 600 Hurricanes were to
be included in its expansion Plan F (which also provided for 300 Spitfires).
By the time the Battle of Britain began, every single fighter in the hands
of the RAF counted, and the early launch of Hurricane production had helped
to ensure that just enough machines were in fact available to Fighter Command.
Even so! meeting the RAF's rapidly expanding
needs proved to be no simple matter and the Plan F target of 600 Hurricanes
to be delivered bv March 1939 was missed by some six months. There had
been a succession of relatively minor but time consuming problems with
prototype development, especially related to the Merlin, and the early
intention to fit the Merlin F (Mk I) in the production Hurricane was changed
to make use of the improved Merlin G; (Mk II)- which required a redesign
of the installation and the front fuselage profile before production could
begin. The cockpit canopy also produced its share of problems, with five
failures recorded on the prototype before a satisfactory design was evolved.
The first production Hurricane I flew at
Brooklands on October 12th 1937, fitted with an early example of the Rolls
Royce Merlin II that was rated at 1.030 hp at 16,250 feet (4,955m). This
power unit drove a fixed pitch two bladed propeller and at a weight of
5,459lb (2,476kg) the aircraft attained a maximum speed of 318 mph (512
kph) at 17,400 feet (5,305m).
In January 1939, the Merlin II gave way
to the Merlin III and with the fitting of a constant speed three bladed
propeller and it was this amended specifications that was adopted and all
Hurricane Mark I's were constructed using this configuration. Other alterations/additions
being the armament which was four Browning .303 machine guns mounted in
the wings, metal stressed- skin covered the wings instead of fabric which
also covered the fuselage.
By the 27th September 1939, Hawker had
delivered 497 Hurricanes to the RAF against the initial order of 3,500
and was enough to equip 18 Fighter Command squadrons. But despite the need
to bring Britain's fighter strength to its potential, quite a number of
Hurricanes were exported to other countries. 15 went to Turkey, another
15 went to Finland, 12 went to Romania while 1 went to Poland.
During late 1939 and early 1940, 1,924
Hurricanes had been constructed by the Hawker works while Gloster Aircraft
who also took on construction built 1,850. Hawker also put out tenders
for the construction of the Hurricane overseas. One of these successful
tenderer's was the Canadian Car and Foundry Works (CCF) and a licence was
issued for the construction of both the Hurricane and the Sea Hurricane.
A total of 1,451 machines were built and of these, 60 were flying by 10th
January 1940. The Canadian company built the Hurricane in a number of different
versions. The original accepted design of the Mark I, the Mark X which
were powered by the Merlin 28 engine and built by the Packard Car Co, the
Mark XI which was built with Canadian equipment and the Mark XII's that
now incorporated the Merlin 29 engine and 12 Browning guns. (8 guns in
the Mark XIIA).
Because
of the weather conditions in Canada and especially Nova Scotia where many
of them were based, the normal retractable undercarriage was dispensed
with and fixed ski's were used in there place. This allowed the aircraft
to take off and land on snow and ice.
During 1939 and 1940, 24 Hurricane Mark
I's were delivered to Yugoslavia, and Belgium was also granted a licence
to build the fighter although 20 had been acquired from Britain only 15
of these had been delivered.
Hurricane Mark
II through to Mark V
June 11th 1940 a Hurricane Mark I was
fitted with a two stage supercharged Rolls Royce Merlin XX engine that
at sea level was rated at 1,300hp rising to 1,460hp at 6,250 feet. After
numerous tests the aircraft was given the designation of Mark II, the improved
power plant being the only difference from the Mark I. This first model
of the MkII was known as the Series I. Further modifications took place
as designers tried to make improvements to the Hurricane. The next model
was given the title of Mark II Series 2. The fuselage was given added strengthening
which was needed to accommodate the redesigned wings that incorporated
attachment points for external stores. A bay was also introduced into the
fuselage that also increased the length by a additional 7 inches (7.7mm).
In November 1940, the Mark II Series 2
was given additional firepower by the inclusion of 12 .303 machine guns
mounted in the wings. This version was known as the Hurricane IIB. The
Hurricane IIC followed by having four 20mm Hispano cannons also mounted
in the wings.
Many of these versions flew during the Battle of Britain with a number of Mark II's being fitted with drop-tanks, some being fitted with light to medium bombs while other had increased stores such as additional room for bullets for the machine guns. After the Battle of Britain, the Hurricane
was further developed, mostly up to and including 1942 even though it was
relieved as a front line attack aircraft in the air to air war, and was
used mainly as a ground attack aircraft. The Mark IIC served until June
1942 when the Hurricane IID appeared which was basically a IIC but with
two 40mm cannons and two .303 machine guns.
The Hurricane II gave way to the Hurricane
III with a Packard Merlin power plant, then came the Hurricane IV, the
first prototype flying on 14th March 1943 which had been previously known
as the Hurricane IIE, but after the designation change was fitted with
reinforced under wing attachments to carry bombs and rockets and was given
the new Merlin 24 engines that put out 1,620hp. A further alteration saw
the Mk V which was a Mk IV but given even more power by the fitting of
the 1,700hp Merlin 32 engines and having four bladed propellers.
In all, 8,406 Hurricane II's were produced,
with 3,000 going to the Soviet Union. In all, only 794 Hurricane IV's were
made.
A Hawker Hurricane Mark I of 111 Squadron Northolt In conclusion, the Hurricane was a fighting
plane that pilots agreed would be having a great future. At the time when
the first prototype took to the skies, it had performance not yet seen
in combat aircraft. Many were, even in the mid-thirties, were looking towards
the Spitfire which was already in prototype stages and being based on earlier
designs that had won the Schnieder Trophy race and it looked as if it was
a race to see what aircraft would be first in production.
But the Spitfire was taking longer to produce
in the early stages, and it was the Hurricane that entered service first.
In the hands of a skilled pilot, the Hurricane could achieve great success. In fact during the Battle of Britain between July and October 1940, 1.720 of them took part and had the honour of claiming 80% of enemy aircraft shot down by Fighter Command. The Hurricane's performance
was increasing all the time. It was believed that if the Battle of Britain
had continued longer, the performance difference between the Mk IIA and
the Bf109 was constantly being reduced. Had the Mk II's been powered by
the Merlin 32's during the Battle of Britain, then many feel sure that
it would have been a certain match for the Bf109.
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