Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Aircraft and Vehicles => Topic started by: bozon on February 25, 2015, 02:27:38 PM
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https://www.scribd.com/doc/165400655/Beaufighter
Just finished reading this free download on scribd. Very good read on this forgotten hero of WWII. This plane did it all before the Mossie, but the two could not have been more different - while the mossie is the revolutionary race car with the sexiest looks, the Beau was hastily made out of older Blenheim and Beaufort parts, Dr. Frankenstein style, and had the grace of a farm tracktor.
Nevertheless, it was highly successful and served from 1940 till the end of the war in numerous roles and in all theatres of operations. It pioneered airborne radar interceptions and held the line against the Luftwaffe nightly raids on London till the arrival of the Mosquito night fighters. Provided long range air cover to allied shipping, till the arrival of the Mosquito. Lead the coastal command anti-shipping raids... till the arrival of the Mosquito and then soldiered on along side it. Was a prime ground attack plane, till the arrival of the Mosquito fighter-bombers, and kept this role in the far east where conditions were too harsh, wet and muddy for a fine princess like the Mossie. Served in multiple airforces, including the USAAF and the Israeli airforce during its war of independence (even bagged a kill on a Hawker Fury... :lol).
It may not have been the hottest RAF ride, or the sexiest of planes, but it was a mean brute, tough and reliable that made an enormous contribution and got non of the glory.
I highly recommend this read if you don't know much about the Beau. Good overview of its many roles combined with pilot action stories.
and to the HTC crew I say:
GIVE US A DAMN BEAUFIGHTER!
(http://i57.tinypic.com/2rn8z9e.png)
I would sure not want to be on that ship... :eek:
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I bet with a low fuel load out, it will handle like a twin engine Jug in a furball...... :O
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I would sure not want to be on that ship...
Good lord, I wouldn't have wanted to be in that airspace!
- oldman
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Good lord, I wouldn't have wanted to be in that airspace!
- oldman
It does seem awfully crowded with maneuvering aircraft.
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It does seem awfully crowded with maneuvering aircraft.
Not to mention the odd bomb floating around.
- oldman
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Been begging for the Beau for a long time. One of the biggest oversights in the game considering it's length of service, the number of places it served and it's versatility.
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Been begging for the Beau for a long time. One of the biggest oversights in the game considering it's length of service, the number of places it served and it's versatility.
indeed. Numbero Uno in my book for what this game needs.
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I made this a few years back now for the day the Beau gets here and we can for a group similar to SAPP for the Beaufighter fans :)
Beaufighter Operators Support Services
(http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s199/guppy35/BOSSPatch.jpg)
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The Beau was a Beast against enemy shipping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVLV67xILI4 The video shows what a great view the Beau's pilot had of its enemy and how The Battle of the Bismark Sea was such a slaughter of an enemy who showed no quarter and for sure wasnt going to get any.
It really was a Historic airplane. Just the right plane at the right time. I'd like to find a book about Beau operations.
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Not to mention the odd bomb floating around.
- oldman
The thing on the left is not a bomb. It is a balloon being towed by one of the ships, or so I think.
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https://www.scribd.com/doc/165400655/Beaufighter
(http://i57.tinypic.com/2rn8z9e.png)
I would sure not want to be on that ship... :eek:
25 August, 1944, off the Friesian Islands. The ship is a minesweeper, M347, and she was sunk, more details at:
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P05831.013/
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25 August, 1944, off the Friesian Islands. The ship is a minesweeper, M347, and she was sunk, more details at:
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P05831.013/
Cool, thanks!
Lots more interesting beau related pics on that website.
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Look at this poor bugger during his encounter with a Beau.
(http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/rr149/Rich46yo/beau%20attack_zps4bk6qp1x.jpg)
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I bet with a low fuel load out, it will handle like a twin engine Jug in a furball...... :O
Only it will turn better, steady state (the wing loading is a lot lower than the Jug), assuming the airframe can take the load (given its ordnance carrying capability, I think it likely). The transient response into that turn won't be so great, based on the roll rate (which is pretty mundane), but this thing has a lot of wing for its weight.
I think it'll be a bit of a dangerous mofo down low and slow and in the company of other mofoes. The good news: you can always run.
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Australians sure have a sense of humor. I love Beaufighter 93 sqd. RAAF motto:
(http://static.awm.gov.au/images/collection/items/ACCNUM_SCREEN/P02010.029.JPG)
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Werent there a fair number of aerial aces who flew the Beau?
How about the Mossie? Any aces who flew them? Im guessing not as much cause the Mossie didnt fly as long, in so many theaters, or used by as many air forces.
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Werent there a fair number of aerial aces who flew the Beau?
How about the Mossie? Any aces who flew them? Im guessing not as much cause the Mossie didnt fly as long, in so many theaters, or used by as many air forces.
There were a little over 80 Beau aces and 59 Mosquito aces (i.e. 5 kills with the model) - some of which flew and got kills in both models. The majority of the kills were as night fighters.
Mosquito night fighters did not get as many kills as the Beau because they were better, as odd as it may sound... The Luftwaffe simply stopped its night raids when RAF night fighters opposition got too tough and the LW bombers were unable to achieve satisfactory results against their losses.
Day dogfights were not very common yet happened, mostly under coastal command - first against long range bombers and fighters (JU88s, FW200, and 110s) in fleet defense patrols, and later against 190s and 109s over Norway as part of the anti-shipping raids. At these dogfights the mossie was considered much better than the Beau. Given the difficult conditions for these fights (after a shipping attack, often after suffering flak damage and starting from a position of a disadvantage) and the fact that most of their pilots were not trained as fighter pilots, both models performed well and gave as much as they got.
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:rofl
The thing on the left is not a bomb. It is a balloon being towed by one of the ships, or so I think.
Yep. We had the same discussion about it in the Beaufighter Wishlist thread. Barrage ballon.
I've built a fairly extensive Beaufighter library and in reading the many accounts the war fought down low by these guys regardless of theater was very dangerous and intense. The MTO, CBI and PTO Beaus did it all. And the Coastal Command runs to Norway and over the Bay of Biscay had to be among the toughest runs of the war.
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The Beau was a Beast against enemy shipping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVLV67xILI4 The video shows what a great view the Beau's pilot had of its enemy and how The Battle of the Bismark Sea was such a slaughter of an enemy who showed no quarter and for sure wasnt going to get any.
It really was a Historic airplane. Just the right plane at the right time. I'd like to find a book about Beau operations.
A little interesting note about the Battle of the Bismark Sea and the Beaufighter. The USAAF 3rd Attack Group, equipped with B-25s and A-20s, were so short of pilots that the majority of the Mitchell's and Havoc's pilots during the battle were from RAAF Beaufighter squadrons.
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And the Coastal Command runs to Norway and over the Bay of Biscay had to be among the toughest runs of the war.
This book about Canadian CC squadrons illustrates how tough it was.
Canadian Squadrons in Coastal Command
Hendrie, Andrew
ISBN 10: 1551250381 / 1-55125-038-1
ISBN 13: 9781551250380
Publisher: Vanwell Publishing Ltd.
Publication Date: 1998
Binding: Hardcover
(http://www.ainsworthbooks.com/shop_image/product/15575.jpg)
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I'd suggest you gents visit the wish list thread. 70 pages of Beaufighter love. Somewhere in there I put a Beau bibliography
http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,255408.120.html
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Australians sure have a sense of humor. I love Beaufighter 93 sqd. RAAF motto:
(http://static.awm.gov.au/images/collection/items/ACCNUM_SCREEN/P02010.029.JPG)
I think this aircraft still survives at a Museum in Melbourne. It has been repainted though from this old photo.
(http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af142/barneybolac/Beaufighter/beaufighter_01_of_33_zpsy07lqo5d.jpg) (http://s1002.photobucket.com/user/barneybolac/media/Beaufighter/beaufighter_01_of_33_zpsy07lqo5d.jpg.html)
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I actually had a list of 72 pilots with 5 kills claimed air-to-air, excluding V-1s, on the Mossie, namely:
Burbridge 20
Miller 18
Williams 17.5
Hall 16
Green 15.5
Allan 14
Scherf 13.5
Kipp 10.5
Smith 10
Johnson 9.5
Benson 9
Braham 9
Owen 9
Bunting 9
Woodman 9
Goodman 9
Mathews 9
Bannock 9
Parker 9
Hedgecoe 9
White 9
Howard 9
Jameson 9
Doleman 8.5
Schultz 8
MacDonald 8
Davison 8
Holland 8
Hampshire 8
Welfare 7
MacFadyen 7
Harrington 7
Somerville 7
Tull 7
Lelong 7
Rabone 6
Thwaites 6
Singleton 6
Collins 6
Turner 6
Cotterill 6
Edinger 6
Hughes 6
Etienne 6
Dacre 6
Foster 6
Maguire 6
Wagner 6
Mitchell 5.5
Stewart 5
Chase 5
Cross 5
Mackenzie 5
Breithaupt 5
Head 5
Taylor 5
Hoare 5
Luma 5
Wright 5
Jones 5
Gloster 5
Kelsey 5
Provan 5
Surman 5
Goucher 5
Thomas 5
Reed 5
Britten 5
Reeves 5
Caine 5
Robinson 5
Pargeter 5
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Thanks to all for the additional info on two airplanes Ive long admired.
And the Battle of the Bismark Sea continues to fascinate. While not strategically important as Midway I think it gave the IJN and IJA the first real taste of what an overwhelming and ruthless Allied air force they were facing. The cream of the IJN's Destroyer force, almost the entire troop contingent heading to Lae, and many experienced zero pilots were just wiped out. Right down to individuals in life rafts.
The complete loss of the ability to resupply their Island/Empire periphery by convoy due to Allied air forces must have shocked the Hell out of them.
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I think this aircraft still survives at a Museum in Melbourne. It has been repainted though from this old photo.
(http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af142/barneybolac/Beaufighter/beaufighter_01_of_33_zpsy07lqo5d.jpg) (http://s1002.photobucket.com/user/barneybolac/media/Beaufighter/beaufighter_01_of_33_zpsy07lqo5d.jpg.html)
It does, at Moorabbin, took a pic of it on the weekend :)
(http://i.imgur.com/WRFg2kC.jpg)