The British Carrier Strike Fleet. David Hobbs
and is continuing to watch the aircraft’s arrival from his position aft of his wind-break. (Author’s collection)
The Mosquito’s designers, de Havilland, had also produced a later twin-engined design from 1943 which was wisely produced in both land and carrier-based versions as a single-seat strike fighter. Both had two Merlin engines of 2030hp with propellers that rotated in opposite directions so that there was no yaw on take-off but the problem of asymmetric recovery after a single engine failure remained.24 The naval version was modified to meet specification N.5/44 from the basic design by Heston Aircraft and the first prototype, PX 212, flew for the first time in April 1945 with deck-landing trials on the new light fleet carrier Ocean following in August. The naval variant was given the name Sea Hornet and the RN eventually procured three versions; the F 20 long-range strike-fighter, the NF 21 night fighter and the PR 22 reconnaissance aircraft. The NF 21 was the heaviest version, equipped with ASH radar and a second crew member to operate it. It had a maximum all-up weight of 19,530lbs and, like all versions, a wingspan of 45ft which meant that it could be operated from Indefatigable, Implacable, the modernised Indomitable, Eagle and even, in limited numbers, from a modernised light fleet carrier. With a maximum speed of 406 knots the Sea Hornet F 20 was the fastest piston-engined fighter ever to serve with the RN and it had a radius of action of 600nm with internal fuel which could be extended to 800nm with drop tanks fitted under the wings. The F 20 and NF 21 had four 20mm cannon in the nose with 180 rounds per gun25 and both versions had wing hardpoints, each capable of carrying a single drop tank, 1000lb bomb or mine. Alternatively, rails for up to eight 3in rockets with 60lb warheads could be fitted under the wings. Surprisingly, the addition of radar and the extra crew member in the NF 21 only reduced its maximum speed by 4 knots. The PR 22 was a strategic reconnaissance version which lacked the guns but could still be fitted with underwing drop tanks. It was fitted with two F52 vertically-mounted cameras for day reconnaissance or a single K19B for night work.26 Later F 20s were fitted to take oblique photographs from cameras fitted in the rear fuselage and designated FR 20s. Only one front-line unit embarked with Sea Hornet F 20s and PR 22s, 801 NAS, which re-commissioned with the types on 1 June 1947 although 806 NAS was partially equipped with Sea Hornets together with Sea Vampire jets and Sea Furies for a demonstration tour of the USA in 1948. Although it had a greater radius of action than any other fighter, the F 20 was withdrawn from front-line service in 1951 so that the fighter force could be standardised on a single type, the Sea Fury. The PR 22 was withdrawn at the same time although both variants continued to serve with second-line units until 1957. The NF 21 equipped 809 NAS on 20 January 1949 and continued in service until 1954 when it was replaced by Sea Venom jets. A total of 178 Sea Hornets was built, comprising seventy-seven F 20s, seventy-eight NF 21s and twenty-three PR 22s.27
The other new type was the Hawker Sea Fury which flew for the first time in February 1945 and carried out deck landing trials on Victorious during 1946. Development then proceeded at a slow pace because of the run-down of Hawker’s production facilities after 1946 and the RN’s large stock of legacy Seafire fighters which did not need immediate replacement. The first version was the F 10,28 intended for use as an interceptor fighter for fleet air-defence duties, and it equipped 807 NAS at RNAS Eglinton in August 1947.29 Development work continued, however, towards what would become the outstanding piston-engined fighter of its generation, the Sea Fury FB 11. This had a 2480hp Bristol Centaurus engine driving a five-bladed propeller. The four 20mm cannon fitted in the wings had 580 rounds per gun, making the Sea Fury a persistent ground-attack aircraft as well as an effective fighter for the period and hardpoints under each wing were capable of carrying a single 1000lb or 500lb bomb, or 90- or 45-gallon drop tanks in addition to a maximum of twelve 3in rockets with 60lb warheads on underwing rails.30 With a maximum all-up weight of 14,555lbs and a wingspan of only 38ft 4in spread, the Sea Fury could operate from any British carrier and its usefulness as a strike fighter operating from the light fleet carriers that formed the backbone of the RN and Commonwealth carrier strike forces by 1950 was obvious. It had a radius of action of 300nm on internal fuel which could be doubled if 90-gallon tanks were fitted, although they limited its manoeuvrability as a fighter. The first FB 11-equipped unit, 802 NAS, re-commissioned at RNAS Eglinton in May 1948 and the type eventually replaced the Seafire and equipped eight front-line fighter squadrons in the RN plus another eight RNVR fighter squadrons and twelve second-line units. Logically the Commonwealth navies that bought light fleet carriers bought Sea Furies to operate from them and squadrons were formed by the RAN and RCN. The Dutch Navy also operated the type from its light fleet carrier and land-based versions were exported to Burma, Cuba and Germany. Eventually 665 Sea Furies were built for the RN with the last batch of thirty ordered in October 1951. The early jet fighters were only marginally faster than the Sea Fury and were unable to out-turn it, so it remained a viable fighter into the mid-1950s and was not finally withdrawn until 1957.
Although the majority of American types were destroyed soon after VJ-Day, several squadrons retained them for a short period. The four light fleet carriers serving with the BPF in 1945 retained their Corsair squadrons because there was no viable replacement until stocks of the Seafire F 15 arrived in the Far East. The last Corsair unit, 1851 NAS, was not disbanded until August 1946. Sufficient Hellcat NF 2 night fighters, the equivalent of the USN F6F-5N, were retained to re-commission 892 NAS as a night fighter unit in April 1945 for service in the night carrier Ocean which was originally intended to join the BPF. Another night fighter unit, 1792 NAS equipped with Firefly NF 1s, joined Ocean in late 1945 and in the first half of 1946 the ship and her squadrons carried out a trial of night operations in the Mediterranean, based in the Malta area and using RNAS Hal Far as a diversion airfield. The trial was also intended to evaluate the difference in capability between the single-seat Hellcat and the two-seat Firefly and the importance placed on its outcome can be judged from the fact that the Admiralty had to pay, in US dollars, for the retention of the Hellcats and their AN/APS-6 radar mounted in a pod on the wing. The Fireflies were fitted with a pod under the fuselage which contained an American-supplied AN/APS-4 radar which also had to be paid for as there was no British equivalent. It was found that the APS-6 was the better air-intercept radar but that the APS-4 had a useful secondary surface-search capability and both the pod and ‘black boxes’ could be fitted into any Firefly as role equipment to convert it into a night fighter. It was also felt that having an observer to concentrate on the radar while the pilot concentrated on flying the aircraft was a safer option in bad weather at night. The trial ended in April 1946, having concluded that the Firefly was the better night fighter since it was available in large numbers and could also be used in other roles with a minimum of modification by squadron engineers. The contemporary decision to cease observer training is interesting but it was assumed that the new aircrewmen branch would be able to provide a suitable number of radar operators for the radar intercept role. The Hellcats were returned to the USN. During the trial Ocean logged 1100 day and 250 night deck landings without accident.
A Sea Fury photographed from above seconds before landing on Illustrious. (Author’s collection)
The Firefly was one of several legacy types that the RN retained in service after 1945. Eventually 1702 were built with the last examples being used as pilotless target aircraft by 728 NAS at RNAS Hal Far in Malta. The last production Firefly was delivered to this unit in March 1956, nearly fifteen years after the prototype first flew in December 1941. Wartime Fireflies had a single Rolls-Royce Griffon XII engine of 1990hp.31 Post-war development led to the improved FR 4 and FR 5 versions with the more powerful Rolls-Royce Griffon 74 engine developing 2250hp.32 With a maximum all-up weight of 13,480lbs and a wingspan of 41ft 2in the Firefly could operate from any contemporary British aircraft carrier and made an ideal companion to the Sea Fury in the strike-fighter wings embarked in the light fleet carriers. It had four 20mm cannon in the wings with 160 rounds per gun and could carry single 1000lb or 500lb bombs or depth charges on hardpoints under each wing. Up to four 3in rockets with 60lb heads could be mounted on rails under each wing. Fireflies equipped sixteen front-line RN squadrons at various times after 1945, seven RNVR air squadrons and no less than twenty-one second-line squadrons. It operated in the fighter, fighter-reconnaissance, night fighter and anti-submarine roles