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Vickers Valiant

1955 COLD WAR SUEZ CRISIS

History of Vickers Valiant

At a time when military satellites, ballistic missiles, nuclear submarines and drones had not yet dominated the battlefield, the "Cold War" saw the West take on the Soviet Union through fairly tried and true conventional means. For the UK, its proximity to potential enemies and engagement around the world requires large aircraft with considerable range and the ability to carry nuclear munitions.

As a nuclear deterrent, the solution was to develop three jet high-flying strategic nuclear bombers collectively known as "V-Bombers" as they were named Vickers Valliant, Handley Page Victory and Avro Vulcan (Vulcan became the most famous of the three) . Valliant became the first in a famous lineup to measure the smaller of the three while being a powerful flying system in its own right - laying the groundwork for many of the systems in the other two designs, including Vulcan's blue steel spacer atoms Base. including bombs).

The original requirements were established as early as 1944 (during World War II) and entered into force in 1947 through Specification B. 35/46. The platform needs to provide the necessary range and delivery system (via traditional free fall) for the nuclear bomb.

The final Vickers proposal featured a utilitarian cylindrical fuselage consistent with British aircraft design of the time, with a forward flight deck, an elevated cantilevered swept wing assembly attached to the engines, and a traditional rudder placement with wings and a high surface. The landing gear is fully retractable as a tricycle unit and includes a pair of main legs attached to the nose gear legs. The bomb bay is located in the center of the belly, and interestingly, the aircraft is not equipped with defensive weapons - its speed and altitude are probably sufficient for all defense requirements.

The cockpit is pressurized for high altitude performance and includes provisions for five crew members.

In October 1956, the Valiant dropped the first atomic bomb on Australia, which had an even more notable impact on the history of British military aviation. This was followed by another drop (hydrogen bomb) on Christmas Island in May 1957, and testing continued until 1958. On 9 July 1959, a hero of No.

214 Squadron is credited with making the first direct flight from the British Isles to Cape Town, South Africa. To compensate for the limited internal fuel load, the aircraft underwent two in-flight refueling. In March 1960, another Valiant No.

214 flew 8,500 miles, the longest nonstop flight by an RAF aircraft at the time. In May 1960, another Brave 214 flew direct from the UK to Singapore.

By 1963, after the Soviet anti-aircraft missile technology decided to carry out high-altitude bombing, the heroic force was withdrawn from the high-altitude nuclear strategic bombing role and turned to the low-altitude tactical-level bombing role.

B(PR) was then added to the original B. Mk I bomber stabilization. Photo reconnaissance platform Mk I with special cameras and appropriate mission equipment. Some of the aircraft were subsequently converted to multi-role form to carry out bombing, reconnaissance missions and aerial refueling for other RAF aircraft in distant theaters.

Multipurpose bomber/tanker platforms also exist as B(K). The Mk I. B. Mk II series (based on the third prototype) is a high-speed low-altitude armor-piercing projectile based on the existing Mk. I don't think this one-off development goes beyond the prototype stage.

The last Valiant production was completed in August 1957.

The last Valiant aircraft were completely phased out in 1965, mainly because their fuselage exhibited fatigue stresses (mainly on the spars). The last gallant flight was recorded in December 1964. Dropping the shipment proved to be more cost-effective than disposing of it through an expensive repair program. Overall, the bombers formed the strength of the 7th, 18th, 49th, 90th, 138th, 148th, 199th, 207th, 214th and 543rd Squadrons, with the 49th Squadron serving as the nuclear test division.

The 138th became the first official heroic operator while serving as a training group at the 232nd OCU (Operational Conversion Unit) in Gaydon until its disbandment in February 1965.

Total production of Valiant aircraft exceeds 107. A total of 39 B.Mk 1 bombers were produced, followed by 8 B(PR). Mk 1 Bomber/Photo Recon Edition. Thirteen B(PR)K 1 bomber/reconnaissance aircraft were followed by as many as 44 B(K)Mk 1 tankers.

Adding these three prototypes completes the Valiant's production story.