Vickers Warwick

History of Vickers Warwick

Vickers Warwick became an evolution of the Type 271 design, designed to meet the earlier B. 9/32 specification. The new aircraft was classified under the 1935 B. 1/35 specification as a heavy bomber, although it relied on a twin-engine configuration (heavy aircraft of the period typically had four or more engines).

To this end, Vickers developed the Type 284 and installed Bristol Hercules radial piston engines on the design, with a nacelle installed on each wing of the main aircraft. The main aircraft, mounted deep in the middle of the fuselage, featured a stepped cockpit layout with some glass in the nose to allow bombardiers to see them.

The fuselage tapers at the stern and is attached with a vertical tail with a low horizontal plane. The tail tow landing gear will be used for ground operations and can be retracted into the aircraft.

The

Type 284 was one of eight aircraft designs submitted to the Air Force for review, and was the first to be ordered as a prototype - two were eventually completed. In 1936 and 1937, requirements were formally revised to identify delays and other issues with the scheduled engine (now the Rolls-Royce "Condor" in-line), including Vickers' commitment to other war plans.

The maiden flight finally took place on 13 August 1939, and a second prototype followed with a Bristol Centaurus engine - later changed to the Pratt & Whitney R2800 "Twin Wasp" series due to limited availability of Centaurus. Like other large Vickers aircraft of the era, the Warwick's structure used a geodesic "basket-weave" substructure - adding some manufacturing complexity while benefiting the design through strength and weight savings.

The initial order for the Royal Air Force (RAF) was an example of 150 Pratt & Whitney bombers and a subsequent batch of 100 Centaurs. As such, these were produced in Warwick Mk I and Warwick Mk II production forms and first delivered to RAF stockpiles in July 1942.

But, no matter how much work the Warwick has done to date, air combat has brought so much advancement to bomber technology and performance that the Warwick has been surpassed in its specific role. Therefore, the number of true bomber forms is indeed limited - only 16. The rest serve in a variety of key roles such as search and rescue (SAR) platforms, anti-submarine warfare (ASW) maritime reconnaissance aircraft and general transport.

A total of 842 aircraft were produced.

There are five main brands in total - Mk I, II, III, V and VI - and several sub-variants. The Mk I had 150 bomber variants marked on the order, and the inventory saw sub-variants take on the roles of bomber, transport, search and rescue and passenger aviation services. The Mk II is used for anti-submarine warfare and reconnaissance.

The Mk III followed as a transport version, and the Mk V became another ASW entry (Bristol Centaur engine). The Mk VI was based on the PW Twin Wasp engine and served as the final Warwick form of the SAR role - these entered service in the final months of the war (1945).

The bomber model (Mk I) was armed with up to 8 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns arranged in three turrets (two in the nose, two in the inverted position, and four in the stern). Performance includes a top speed of 225 mph, a range of up to 2,300 miles, and a service ceiling of 21,500 feet. Power comes from 2 x Pratt & Whitney R-2800 "Double Wasp" radials, each rated at 1,850 hp.

There are six operators.

In addition to serving with more than 20 RAF squadrons, this model is also used by the Polish Government in Exile and the 17th and 27th Squadrons of the South African Air Force (SAAF).

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes