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HAWKER HURRICANE

Hawker Hurricane Mk. IV with Tropical Filter

Type: single-seat fighter, fighter-bomber, tank buster, ship-borne fighter.
Origin: Hawker
Models: Mk. I to XII, Sea Hurricane IA to XIIA
First Flight:
    Prototype: November 6, 1935
    Production Mk. I October 12, 1937
    Production Mk. II June 11, 1940
    Canadian Mk. X January 1940
Service Delivery: February 1936
Final Delivery: September 1944
Number Produced: 12,780 in Britain, 1,451 in Canada

Powerplant:
Mark I
  Model: Rolls-Royce Merlin II
  Type: 12-Cylinder liquid cooled Vee
  Number: One    Horsepower: 1,030 hp

Mark II
  Model: Rolls-Royce Merlin XX
  Type: 12-Cylinder liquid cooled Vee
  Number: One    Horsepower: 1,280 hp

Dimensions:
Wing span: 40 ft. (12.19m)
Length:
  Prototype: 31 ft. 6in.
  Typical: 32 ft. (9.75m)
  Mk. II: 31 ft. 5 in.
  Sea Hurricanes: 32 ft. 3 in.
Height: 13 ft. 1 in. (4m)
Wing Surface Area: N/A

Weights:
Empty:
  Mk. I: 4,670 lb. (2118 kg)
  Mk. IIA: 5,150 lb. (2335 kg)
  Mk. IIC: 5,640 lb. (2558 kg)
  Mk. IID: 5,800 lb. (2631 kg)
  Mk. IV: 5,550 lb. (2515 kg)
  Sea Hurricane Mk. IIC: 5,788 lb. (2625 kg)
Loaded:
  Mk. I: 6,600 lb. (2994 kg)
  Mk. IIA: 8,050 lb. (3650 kg)
  Mk. IIC: 8,250 lb. (3742 kg)
  Mk. IID: 8,200 lb. (3719 kg)
  Mk. IV: 8,450 lb. (3832 kg)
  Sea Hurricane Mk. IIC: 8,100 lb. (3674 kg)

Performance:
Maximum Speed:
  Mk. I: 318 mph (511 km/h)
  Mk. IIA, B, C: 335-345 mph (540-560 km/h)
  Mk. IID: 286 mph (460 km/h)
  Mk. IV: 330 mph (531 km/h)
  Sea Hurricane Mk. IIC: 342 mph (550 km/h)
Initial Climb:
  Mk. I: 2,520 ft/min (770 m/min)
  Mk. IIA: 3,150 ft/min (960 m/min)
  Later Models, Typical: 2,700 ft/min (825 m/min)
Service Ceiling:
  Mk. I: 36,000 ft. (10,973m)
  Mk. IIA: 41,000 ft. (12,500m)
  Later Models, Typical: 34,000 ft. (10,365m)
Range (All, Typical):
  Internal Fuel: 460 miles (740 km)
  With Two 44 Imp. Gal. Tanks: 950 miles (1530 km)

Armament:
Mk. I:
Eight .303 in. Browning machine guns.
  Ammunition: 333 rounds per gun.

Mk. IIA:
Eight .303 in. Browning machine guns*
Two 250 lb. Bombs.
*Can be fitted with twelve guns

Mk. IIB:
Twelve .303 in. Browning machine guns.
Two 250 lb. or 500 lb. Bombs.

Mk. IIC:
Four 20mm Hispano Cannon.
Two 250 lb. or 500 lb. Bombs.

Mk. IID:
Two 40mm Vickers S guns.
Two .303 in. Browning machine guns.

Mk. IV: Universal Wing
Two 40mm Vickers S guns.
Two .303 in. Browning machine guns.
Two 500 lb. Bombs, eight rockets, smoke installation or other stores.

4-View Illustration

Comments:
The Spitfire is often associated with the Battle of Britain but it was far from alone, serving alongside it was the Hurricane. This durable fighter bore the brunt of combat in the earlier stages of World War II and was the primary British fighter stationed in France. While being able to out turn nearly any other fighter in the European theater in most other aspects it was outclassed by the Bf 109E. During the Battle Of Britain the Hurricane squadrons focused their attention on the bomber streams, freeing up Spitfire squadrons to engage the Luftwaffe fighter elements. The Hurricane proved to be an extremely capable bomber killer, providing a stable gunnery platform and a devastating cone of fire.

Hurricane Prototype.

    The Hurricane's suitability as a gun platform led to the development of a tank buster variant mounting 40mm Vickers S guns. This variant served well in North Africa and other ground attack versions were built. Sea Hurricanes served on carriers and higher time Sea Hurricanes were launched from merchant ships by catapults. This desperate measure provided convoy defense from Luftwaffe long range bombers and observation aircraft until the Escort Carrier concept was introduced later in the war. The pilot would launch for a mission and then bail out or ditch the aircraft when out of fuel.
    Originally concieved as a biplane fighter, the Hurricane was altered on the drawing board to include the new PV.12 (Merlin) engine and a new monoplane style wing. The original eight gun battery was unprecedented for the time period. The Air Ministry was sufficiently impressed with the design that they wrote specification F.36/34 around the design and ordered a prototype built. The prototypes performance was sufficiently impressive to the Air Ministry that they ordered 600 aircraft in June of 1936. This number was fantastic by pre-war standards but in hindsight seems almost insignificant. At the start of WWII the Hurricane was the most numerous combat aircraft in the RAF's arsenal. By August 7, 1940 no fewer than 2,309 Hurricanes had been delivered equiping 32 squadrons, compared to 1,383 Spitfire equipping 18.5 Squadrons.
    As the war progressed more and more Hurricanes were deployed in the Far East. In addition, countless aircraft were delivered to Allied air forces including 2,952 delivered to the Soviets.

Sources:
Gunston, Bill - The Encyclodepia of the Worlds Combat aircraft, 1976, Chartwell Books, Inc., New York
Green, William - War Planes Of The Second World War - Fighters - Vol. 2, 1961, Hanover House, New York

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