Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Aircraft and Vehicles => Topic started by: Biggles on March 30, 2010, 05:14:51 PM
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One of the most maligned aircraft of the war, yet one of the most stoic. We need it! :rock
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One of the most maligned aircraft of the war, yet one of the most stoic. We need it! :rock
The Wellington would be a far better addition. It was the backbone of RAF Bomber command early in the war and more Wellingtons were built than any other British bomber. Further, it has characteristics that would make it an excellent fit in early war scenarios.
1) It is slow enough for early war Axis fighters to actually catch, unlike the existing Boston Mk III.
2) It carries a useful war load of 4,400lbs, unlike the existing Boston Mk III or proposed Blenheim Mk I.
3) It carries an adequate defensive armament for an early war scenario bomber, two .303s in the nose turret, four .303s in the tail turret and one .303 in each beam as compared to two .303s in a dorsal turret for the Boston and Blenheim.
4) It was an extremely rugged bomber able to absorb substantial damage, unlike the Blenheim and significantly more robust than the Boston.
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One of the most maligned aircraft of the war, yet one of the most stoic. We need it! :rock
The Blenheim crews who had to take them into combat didn't want them much after a mission or two.
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The Blenheim crews who had to take them into combat didn't want them much after a mission or two.
So, they rebelled? Or continued flying, mm?
Blenheims were still flying combat sorties in Finnish Air Force in 1945, by the way.
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So, they rebelled? Or continued flying, mm?
Blenheims were still flying combat sorties in Finnish Air Force in 1945, by the way.
Continued flying it naturally. My point is in reference to the OP saying "we need it!"
Having read a bit about the early Blenheim ops, it's clear those guys faced some incredible odds. Performance wise it just couldn't do the job
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I stand by my position that anybody advocating for an early war British bomber should be asking for the Wellington B.Mk III.
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A Wellington B.Mk.I, Ic or II would be earlier-war then the B.Mk.III.
;)
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A Wellington B.Mk.I, Ic or II would be earlier-war then the B.Mk.III.
;)
Would be earlier, but not as useful overall. I think the Mk III gives the best bang for the buck.
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"Having read a bit about the early Blenheim ops, it's clear those guys faced some incredible odds."
They did indeed, none more so than Flying Officer Arthur Stewart King 'Pongo' Scarf of 62 Squadron RAF in Malaya, who took off from Butterworth as a bombing attack by the IJAAF destroyed all the other Blenheims about to join him. He flew Blenheim Mk.I L1134 PT-F low-level to Singora, his gunner fighting off several fighter attacks on the way, and carried out an accurate bomb-run there despite more attacks by Japanese fighters which mortally wounded him and left the Blenheim in such a state that the fighters considered their job done and the bomber was going down into the jungle. It didn't turn out that way. With his navigator supporting him in his seat, Scarf somehow held on and managed to make a wheels-up landing near the service hospital at Alor Star airfield, where medical staff that included his wife Elizabeth 'Sally' Scarf lifted him from what was left of the cockpit. He died on the operating table a few minutes later, after he'd squeezed her hand and told her 'Keep smiling, Sal'.
All at Alor Star were taken prisoner by the Japanese shortly afterwards and the story of Scarf's last sortie didn't reach the RAF authorities until 1946. His Victoria Cross was presented to Sally at an investiture on 30 July that year.
What a player. :salute
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I met this Blenheim Pilot (600 sqn BoB veteran) at Duxford in the year 2000. I managed to get an excellent photograph of him, which I later showed to a friend who flew Spitfires in WWII. He looked at the picture and said something like "A Blenheim Pilot? And he's alive!"
Anyway, if this was a wishlist, I go with Karnak. The Wellington would do it. Might need some gunnery/damage modelling, since cannon shells would only explode on some parts, - which was a part of it's ruggedness ;)
The Stirling would though IMHO do even more, but that's another story.
BTW, did some Wellingtons carry torps?
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yes the wellington did carry torpedos but that was on in the coastal command variant
Coastal Command variants
Type 429 Wellington GR Mark VIII
Mark IC conversion for Coastal Command service. Roles included reconnaissance, anti-submarine and anti-shipping attack. A Coastal Command Wimpy was the first aircraft to be fitted with the anti-submarine Leigh light. 307 built built at Weybridge, 58 fitted with the Leigh Light.
Type 458 Wellington GR Mark XI
Maritime version of B Mark X with an ordinary nose turret and mast radar ASV Mark II instead of chin radome, no waist guns, 180 built at Weybridge and Blackpool.
Type 455 Wellington GR Mark XII
Maritime version of B Mark X armed with torpedoes and with a chin radome housing the ASV Mark III radar, single nose machine gun, 58 built at Weybridge and Chester.
Type 466 Wellington GR Mark XIII
Maritime version of B Mark X with an ordinary nose turret and mast radar ASV Mark II instead of chin radome, no waist guns, 844 built Weybridge and Blackpool.
Type 467 Wellington GR Mark XIV
Maritime version of B Mark X with a chin radome housing the ASV Mark III radar and added RP-3 explosive rocket rails to the wings, 841 built at Weybridge, Chester and Blackpool.
the blenheim though was an excellent training platorm used for bombing, gunnery, navigation and radio operator trainer, and it was a target tug in the BCATP
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TorpedOES means more than one. interesting.
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add the wellington and/or the beaufort... :aok
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"Having read a bit about the early Blenheim ops, it's clear those guys faced some incredible odds."
They did indeed, none more so than Flying Officer Arthur Stewart King 'Pongo' Scarf of 62 Squadron RAF in Malaya, who took off from Butterworth as a bombing attack by the IJAAF destroyed all the other Blenheims about to join him. He flew Blenheim Mk.I L1134 PT-F low-level to Singora, his gunner fighting off several fighter attacks on the way, and carried out an accurate bomb-run there despite more attacks by Japanese fighters which mortally wounded him and left the Blenheim in such a state that the fighters considered their job done and the bomber was going down into the jungle. It didn't turn out that way. With his navigator supporting him in his seat, Scarf somehow held on and managed to make a wheels-up landing near the service hospital at Alor Star airfield, where medical staff that included his wife Elizabeth 'Sally' Scarf lifted him from what was left of the cockpit. He died on the operating table a few minutes later, after he'd squeezed her hand and told her 'Keep smiling, Sal'.
All at Alor Star were taken prisoner by the Japanese shortly afterwards and the story of Scarf's last sortie didn't reach the RAF authorities until 1946. His Victoria Cross was presented to Sally at an investiture on 30 July that year.
What a player. :salute
great story, :salute FO Scarf
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what a guy :salute
+1 to ANY British aircraft ;)