Reluctant Poster
Tech Sergeant
- 1,673
- Dec 6, 2006
The Beverly was designed and the prototype built by General Aircraft before their merger with Blackburn..
The Firebrand and other rubbish from Blackburn
- Thread starter Admiral Beez
- Start date
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- Thread starter
- #42
Admiral Beez
Major
I think the only Blackburn fighter plane I like the look of is the Turcock and Lincock of 1926.
Here are some odd and failed Blackburn designs....
Blackburn F.3 fighter, flown 1934.
Blackburn B-20, flown 1940.
Here are some odd and failed Blackburn designs....
Blackburn F.3 fighter, flown 1934.
Blackburn B-20, flown 1940.
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Blackburn certainly dropped the ball with George Petty as designer and unfortunately the firm's product catalogue under his designership doesn't do its past justice. Between the wars, the RAF FAA's first torpedoplane was the Dart, which was a single-seat aircraft built with knowledge acquired from constructing the Sopwith T.1 Cuckoo, having built the largest number under series production and developed its torpedo release mechanism and it was Robert Blackburn's express wish to become the primary supplier of naval aircraft to the British armed forces. Ripons and Baffins followed the Dart, developed from the nearly identical Swift, culminating in the Shark, which was, to all intents and purposes a better Fairey Swordfish. For want of an explanation, Fairey began overtaking Blackburn in this time as well, with aircraft such as the IIID/IIIF and Seal family of jacks-of-all-trades aboard British carriers. The choice of the Skua was a big deal for Blackburn however.
The firm building aircraft under licence dates back to the Great War and it was contracted to build the Sopwith Baby, then the T.1 Cuckoo. Unfortunately however, the claim of good quality isn't quite as accurate as we'd like to believe, as Swordfish built by Blackburn suffered in the reliability department.
The firm building aircraft under licence dates back to the Great War and it was contracted to build the Sopwith Baby, then the T.1 Cuckoo. Unfortunately however, the claim of good quality isn't quite as accurate as we'd like to believe, as Swordfish built by Blackburn suffered in the reliability department.
Kevin J
Banned
Also, its not their own money that they're spending. Luckily us Brits have handed the mantle of Global Superpower over to the Americans, so we don't have that problem any more.
- Thread starter
- #45
Admiral Beez
Major
As they say, what do you call the guy who finished dead last in medical school? Doctor.
It's too bad someone like Petter wasn't made designer. Then we might have seen a streamlined Skua and perhaps a derivative naval fighter. Westland Whirlwind to Canberra to Lightning to Gnat.... not bad for a nearly forgotten designer.
swampyankee
Chief Master Sergeant
- 4,031
- Jun 25, 2013
Also, its not their own money that they're spending. Luckily us Brits have handed the mantle of Global Superpower over to the Americans, so we don't have that problem any more.
It's no longer their lives, either. At least in medieval era, the people who decided to go to war were on the front lines. Chickenhawks didn't remain in charge long.
- Thread starter
- #47
Admiral Beez
Major
I suppose we can argue that the front line came to Hitler and Stalin, but to their credit they didn't flee to safer places, King George VI and family wouldn't have fled Britain had Sealion occurred, but I appreciate that's not the same as Cromwell leading at Hastings. But hey heel spurs are a real thing, and here in Canada I don't think we've ever had a former soldier serve as PM (edit).
But sticking to aircraft, are there cases of the manufacturer's design chief losing his life or being injured crashing his own design? Akin to the RN's captain Coles perishing when his deeply flawed design HMS Captain sank. For example, here is the Blackburn Pellet, self destructing on its takeoff run for the 1923 Schneider race.
As for the underpowered and flawed Botha, could have it have been useful if sent to Malaya to bolster the Blenheims and Hudsons? Wikipedia lists the many flaws of the Botha, but it was torpedo-capable, something that only the two squadrons of suicidally-obsolete Vilderbeests provided for the entirely of Malaya's coastal defence.
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swampyankee
Chief Master Sergeant
- 4,031
- Jun 25, 2013
In addition to its poor performance, I believe the Botha had pretty bad flight characteristics. Nothing like an aircraft that you can't trust to be maneuvered to take into combat.
While some of Blackburn's designs, like the B-20, where definitely bleading-edge, some were just bad to the point of wondering if the corporate executives wanted the UK to lose.
While some of Blackburn's designs, like the B-20, where definitely bleading-edge, some were just bad to the point of wondering if the corporate executives wanted the UK to lose.
wuzak
Captain
Two of Geoffrey de Havilland's sons died flying de Havilland aircraft.
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fastmongrel
1st Sergeant
Eh erm what
Oliver Cromwell wasnt born till 1599 he would have been minus 533 in 1066- Thread starter
- #52
Admiral Beez
Major
Bloody hell, lol..... I was just watching a timeline of European leaders and for some reason Cromwell stuck in my head. Make that 1066, William the Conquerer. I can only blame this Covid19 home isolation and the wine. Check out the vid above, I really enjoyed it.Eh erm what
Now that must have been difficult to explain to their mother. According to Wikipedia their mother "Louise suffered a nervous breakdown following these deaths and died in 1949."
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Hi
Avro's chief designer Roy Chadwick (Lancaster etc) died in the prototype Tudor 2 airliner along with test pilot S A 'Bill' Thorn on 23rd August, 1947 when it crashed on take off at Woodford. This was due to the incorrect assembly of the aileron circuit.
Mike
- Thread starter
- #55
Admiral Beez
Major
That's Murphy's Law for certain. You don't design the aileron circuit so it can be put in backwards.
And a simple pre-flight control surface check that we see every pilot doing would have caught that. Didn't they do in the 1940s what is commonly checked today?
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Geoffrey de Havilland was in aviation from the start and produced some fantastic aircraft and also engines etc. Is that worth two sons and your wife, life is tough.
They didn't do it in 1940 because they had 2 minutes to get airborne.
Looks like quite the tight fit with that giant helmet he has. No doubt he has to duck to get the canopy closed over that thing!
Cheers,
Biff
I'm assuming they did things similar then as they do now, which is hot cock the jet for alert. Engines get run, all equipment to include the flight controls gets checked, then the plane gets shut down with the applicable switches already in the correct position.
In the Eagle we wanted to be rolling within 5 minutes of the horn under most circumstances. You were a—holes and elbows making that happen. When sitting with another flight lead we would often let the first guy to taxi take the lead. Gave extra impetus to get it done and start rolling...
Cheers,
Biff
- Thread starter
- #60
Admiral Beez
Major
Chadwick died in 1947 in the prototype Tudor 2 airliner. Surely a peacetime civilian aircraft can undergo the necessary preflight checks?
