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Hawker
Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a fighter design from the 1930s
which was used extensively by the Royal Air Force during
the Battle of Britain.
By some measures the design was outdated when introduced.
Following traditional Hawker construction techniques
closely, it used a large measure of wood and fabric for
the wings and fuselage, with the engine and cockpit area
being aluminum-covered steel tubing. In contrast, the
contemporary Supermarine Spitfire used monocoque
construction and was thus both lighter and stronger.
But its simple construction was the main reason why it
was ordered into production in 1936. At the time it was
unclear if the much more advanced Spitfire would be able
to enter production smoothly, whereas the Hurricane was a
well understood problem. This was true for service
squadrons as well, who were well experienced in working
on and fixing wooden/metal planes like the Hurricane.
As expected the first Mk.I production machines were ready
fairly quickly, and deliveries started in October 1937.
They mounted the 1,030hp Rolls Royce Merlin Mk.II or III
engine and were armed with eight .303-in Browning machine
guns. These early planes were rather simple, with
fabric-covered wings, a wooden fixed-pitch propeller, and
without armour or self-sealing tanks.
These issues were addressed in 1939. The new Mk.I
included a deHaviland or Rotol constant-speed metal
propeller, ejector exhaust stacks for added thrust,
metal-covered wings, armour and other changes. At the
start of the war the RAF had taken on about 500 of this
later design, and it formed the backbone of the fighter
squadrons during the Battle of France and into the Battle
of Britain.
Although it may have been an older design, the Hurricane
was still a worthy fighter on its own and a reasonable
match for the Messerschmitt Bf 109 it faced. Much of this
was the result of the use of the very impressive Rolls
Royce Merlin engine, which also powered the Spitfire. The
Merlin was a much better engine in general terms than the
Daimler-Benz DB 601 used in the Bf 109.
During the Battle of Britain the Hurricane accounted for
the majority of the planes shot down by the RAF, but
their day was already over. By the close of the Battle of
Britain in late 1940, production of the Spitfire had
ramped up to the point where all squadrons could be
supplied with new machines. Deliveries of the Spitfire
were now outpacing the Hurricane, as it turned out that
its all metal construction allowed it to be produced even
faster than the mixed-construction Hurricane.
Overseas Service and Close Air Support
Upgrades continued in the form of the 1940 Mk.II with the
more powerful Merlin XX, and in 1943 Mk.IV with the
Merlin 21 or 22 and a host of other changes.
By this time, the Hurricane was no longer equipping
frontline fighter squadrons in the United Kingdom itself.
However, it still saw extensive service overseas in the
fighter role, playing a prominent role in the Middle East
and Far East. It was also critical to the defence of
Malta, helping to see the island through some of its
darkest days.
In the Middle East, it also paved the way for an entirely
new use for single-seater aircraft; as fighter-bombers
for close air support. Hurriances were fitted with 40mm
cannons and were used against German and Italian ground
formations. They soon earnt the nickname 'tin opener' for
their devastating effect on enemy tanks.
In later years, some production shifted to other groups
like Canada Car and Foundry and Gloster, while Hawker
continued production right up until 1944. In all some
14,000 Hurricanes and Sea Hurricanes were produced.
| WW2
HISTORY DATA |
| Pearl
Harbor Overview |
| Pearl
Harbor Japanese Forces |
| Pearl
Harbor Japanese Aircraft |
| Battle
of the Coral Sea, 7-8
May 1942 |
| Doolitle
Raid on Japan, 18 April 1942 |
| Battle
of Midway, 4-7 June 1942 |
| Guadalcanal
Campaign, August 1942 - February 1943 |
| Guadalcanal-Tulagi
Invasion, 7-9 August 1942 |
| Battle
of the Philippine Sea |
| Battle
of Iwo Jima
Battle
of Okinawa |
| Japan
Capitulates |
| Battleship
Bismarck |
| Battleships
Tirpitz, Scharnhorst |
| WW2
Luftwaffe Planes - List
of Aircraft |
| U-Boats
Types 1, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D |
| Kriegsmarine
Submarines Types U-Flak, 7A, 7B,
7C, 7C/41, 7C/42, 7D, 7F |
Kriegsmarine
Submarines: U-Boats
Type 9A, 9B, 9C, 9C/40, 9D, 14 |
| Kriegsmarine
Submarines: Type XXI , Type XXIII |
| Grand
Admiral Karl Donitz, Erich Raeder |
HMS
Prince of Wales
Battleship, HMS Repulse,
HMS
Ark Royal,
HMS Hood Battlecruisers |
| Battle
of the Atlantic |
| Normandy
Invasion, June 1944 |
| Normandy
Invasion ,Crossing the English Channel on
D-Day, 6 June 1944 |
| Normandy
Invasion- The D-Day Landings, 6 June 1944 |
| USN
WW2 Admirals |
| Imperial
Japan Navy Admirals |
| Japan
WW2 Fighters- Mitsubishi Zero |
| USN
Battleships - Indiana Class,
Kearsarge Class, Illinois Class, Maine
Class, Virginia Class, Connecticut Class,
Mississippi Class, South Carolina Class,
Delaware Class, Florida Class, Wyoming
Class, New York Class, Nevada Class,
Pennsylvania Class, New Mexico Class,
Tennessee Class, Colorado Class, South
Dakota Class, Lexington Class, North
Carolina Class, South Dakota Class, Iowa
Class, Montana Class |
| USN
WW2 Torpedo Bomber -
Douglas TBD-1 Devastator |
| USN
WW2 Fighters: Brewster
F2A Buffalo, Curtiss F9C
Sparrowhawk |
| Grumman
F3F, Grumman F4F Wildcat, General Motors
FM-2 Wildcat |
| LOCKHEED
P-38 LIGHTNING |
| REPUBLIC
P-47 THUNDERBOLT |
| NORTH
AMERICAN P-51 MUSTANG |
| NORTH
AMERICAN F-82 TWIN MUSTANG |
| Boeing
B-17 Flying Fortress, Boeing
B-29 Superfortress |
| Consolidated
B-24 D Liberator |
| North
American B-25 Mitchell, Martin
B-26 Marauder |
| Junkers
Ju 87 Stuka |
| Dornier
Do 17, Dornier
Do 335 Pfeil |
| Messerschmitt
Bf 109 |
|
| MODERN USN
NAVY DATA |
| USN
Aircraft Carriers USS
Kitty Hawk, Enterprise, John F. Kennedy,
Nimitz, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Carl
Vinson, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham
Lincoln, George Washington, John C.
Stennis, Harry S. Truman, Ronald Reagan,
George H.W. Bush |
| USN
Cruisers 1 - USS
Ticonderoga, Vincennes, Valley Forge,
Thomas S. Gates, Bunker Hill, Mobile Bay,
Antietam, Leyte Gulf, San Jacinto, Lake
Champlain, Philippine Sea, Princeton,
Normandy, Monterey |
| USN
Cruisers 2 - USS
Chancellorsville, Cowpens, Gettysburg,
Chosin, Hue City, Shiloh, Anzio,
Vicksburg, Lake Erie, Cape St. George,
Vella Gulf, Port Royal |
| USN
Destroyers |
| Amphibious
Assault Ships - LHA/LHD/LHA(R) USS
Wasp, USS Essex, USS Kearsarge, USS
Boxer, USS Bataan, USS Bonhomme Richard,
USS Iwo Jima, USS Makin Island, USS
Tarawa, USS Saipan, USS Belleau Wood, USS
Nassau, USS Peleliu |
| SSN
Attack Sumbarines 1
USS
Seawolf, Connecticut, Jimmy Carter,
Virginia, Texax, Hawaii, North Carolina,
Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Memphis,
Bremerton, Jacksonville, Dallas, La
Jolla, City of Corpus Christi,
Albuquerque, Portsmouth, Minneapolis-St.
Paul, Hyman G. Rickover, Augusta, San
Francisco, Houston, Norfolk, Buffalo,
Salt Lake City, Olympia, Honolulu,
Providence |
| SSN
Attack Sumbarines 2
USS
Pittsburgh, Chicago, Key West, Oklahoma
City, Louisville, Helena, Newport News,
San Juan, Pasadena, Albany, Topeka,
Miami, Scranton, Alexandria, Asheville,
Jefferson City, Annapolis, Springfield,
Columbus, Santa Fe, Boise, Montpelier,
Charlotte, Hampton, Hartford, Toledo,
Tucson, Columbia, Greeneville, Cheyenne |
| SSBN
Fleet Balistic Missile Sumbarines
USS
Georgia, USS Henry M. Jackson, USS
Alabama, USS Alaska,USS Nevada, USS
Pennsylvania, USS Kentucky, USS
Tennessee, USS West Virginia, USS
Maryland, USS Nebraska, USS Rhode Island,
USS Maine, USS Wyoming, USS Louisiana,
USS Ohio |
| USN
Frigates |
| USN
Patrol Ships |
| Anti-submarine
aircraft - P-3C
Orion S-3B
Viking |
| USN
FIGHTERS F-14 Tomcat F-18
Hornet |
| CH-46
Sea Knight, CH-53
Sea Stallion |
| H-3
Sea King MH-53
Sea Dragon |
| SH-60
Seahawk HH/UH-1N
Iroquois |
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