Second World War Aircraft
Allied and Axis aircraft in service during World War II.
Consolidated B-24 Liberator
Used extensively throughout the Second World War, at approximately 18,500 units the Liberator holds the record for being the most produced heavy bomber in history.
This illustration of the Consolidated B-24 Liberator accompanied an article recounting the personal memories of aircrew, so the cutaway portions were designed to emphasise the men, rather than the machine.
Bristol Blenheim Mk IV
When it was introduced in 1937, the Blenheim was faster than any of the RAF’s biplane fighters, but proved to be vulnerable to modern enemy fighters during daytime bombing missions.
The long nose, introduced in the Mk III, gave more room for the bomb-aimer, but had to be “scooped out” in front of the pilot for visibility in take-off and landing.
The Mk IV shown here was more heavily armed, with a .303 machine gun in the port wing, two more in a powered dorsal turret, and another pair under the nose, remotely-controlled and firing to the rear.
Curtis P-40 Warhawk
The P-40 was used by most of the Allied powers in World War II and was the third most produced American fighter after the P-51 Mustang and the P-47 Thunderbolt.
The design has been considered mediocre, suitable only for close air support, but more recent research has indicated that the P-40 performed surprisingly well as an air superiority fighter, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy.
De Havilland Mosquito PR XVI
The Mosquito is the last wooden aircraft to see service in the RAF, and was to perform outstanding exploits as a light bomber, fighter-bomber, night-fighter, pathfinder, maritime strike aircraft and, as shown here, photo-reconnaissance aircraft.
RAF design philosophy favoured well-armed heavy bombers, so the concept of an unarmed, aerodynamically, clean light bomber was not well-received. For a long time, the mosquito was developed as a private venture funded personally by Geoffrey de Havilland and eventually the Air Ministry was persuaded to authorise a prototype and in trials, the new aircraft proved to be faster than a Spitfire.
Douglas SBD Dauntless
The Dauntless is an American scout/dive bomber flown by the United States Navy and the Marine Corps and operated both from land and aircraft carriers. It is most well known for the attacks on Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway in June 1942.
The aircraft possessed a long range, good handling and maneuverability, a generous bomb load, and good dive performance thanks to the perforated dive brakes.
Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-8
Along with the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the Fw-190 formed the backbone of the Luftwaffe Jagdwaffe. Its twin-row BMW 801 radial engine enabled it to carry heavier loads than the Messerschmitt and it served as a day fighter, fighter-bomber and ground attack aircraft.
The A-8 series featured Erhöhte Notleistung (direct gasoline injection) which gave an emergency power boost lasting for ten minutes. It could be used three times during the course of a mission, with a ten minute cool down in normal power mode between boosts. The A8/R4 used nitrous oxide injection to produce a similar boost.
Gloster E28/39
From the Science Museum’s “Flight” gallery.
This was the first British turbojet-engined aircraft and was built to test the novel jet propulsion designs that Frank Whittle had been developing during the 1930s at his company Power Jets. Various layouts were considered, but a fairly conventional low-wing configuration was selected with the jet intake in the nose and a rudder and tailplane above and slightly in front of the exhaust.
The Power Jets W.1 engine gave the fuselage a rather stout appearance to accommodate both it and the ducting that carried intake air around the cockpit. The Air Ministry’s specification included machine guns, but these were never fitted, nor was a radio, a pressurised cockpit or cabin heating. It was intended to use electrically heated flying suits, but limited battery power made this impossible.
Two prototypes were built, the second crashed due to an aileron failure, and it was found that the wrong lubricant had been used causing the aileron to stick. This was a simple maintenance error and the pilot fortunately survived bailing out at 33,000 feet, though he did suffer frostbite.
Experience with the E.28/39 led to Britain’s first operational jet fighter, the Gloster Meteor which would be powered by two Rolls-Royce RB.23 Welland engines, Frank Whittle’s second engine design.
Hawker Hurricane Mk Ia
From the Science Museum’s “Flight” gallery.
The Hurricane has been unfairly overshadowed by it’s (admittedly) prettier sister, the Spitfire, but the Hurricane scored 60% of the kills in the Battle of Britain and fought in all the major theatres of World War II.
Manufacture of the Hurricane was significantly faster and cheaper than the Spitfire, which required a lot of hand forming, but the form of construction resembled that of earlier biplanes consisting of a metal box girder truss under a secondary structure of wood covered with doped linen.
Although somewhat outdated this construction meant that an enemy cannon shell might pass through the fuselage without exploding and such damage could easily be repaired in the field by squadron mechanics while Spitfires often required specialist repair facilities.
The relatively thick wing could accommodate fuel tanks in addition to the fuel tanks located in the fuselage behind the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, and also allowed the eight .303 Browning machine guns, their ammunition boxes and feed trays to be grouped together, concentrating the firepower. Later Hurricanes carried up to twelve machine guns and later still, four 20 mm Hispano cannon.
This Hurricane is believed to be the only one that still has the original fabric-covered wings. This was an interim measure while Hawker developed an all-metal stressed skin wing and most Mk 1s were retrofitted with the new wing when it became available, since the changeover only took about three hours.
Messerschmitt Bf 110 C4
The Me 110 is a German twin-engined, heavy fighter, fighter-bomber and night fighter of the Second World War.
The C4 was the first major production series and can be distinguished from earlier models by the large “mouth” radiators under the engine nacelles.
Four 7.92 mm MG 17 machine guns are fitted in the upper part of the nose, with two 20 mm Mauser MG 151 cannon below. The rear gunner had a single 7.92 mm MG 15 machine gun.
Messerschmitt 163 B
From the Science Museum’s “Flight” gallery.
This German interceptor remains the only operational rocket-powered fighter in the world and the first aircraft to exceed 1,000 kph (620 mph) in level flight.
The aircraft was deployed to intercept allied bombers, but could only manage a maximum of seven and half minutes of powered flight, considerably limiting its range and potential. The Komet may have scored between 9 and 18 kills, but at the loss of 10 Komets. As well as combat losses many had been lost in training and testing due, in part, to the fuel which was volatile, corrosive and hazardous to humans.
For takeoff, a pair of wheels were mounted onto a dolly under the fuselage which was released shortly after takeoff. A retractable skid was used for landings.
Its high speed and climb rate meant that the Komet could reach its target (and pass it) in seconds. Although a stable gun platform it required considerable marksmanship to score a hit. The pair of 30 mm Mk 108 cannon had a fairly low muzzle velocity and was only accurate at short range.
Much time, effort and money were expended in attempts to overcome the aircraft’s shortcomings, but proved to be a failure. Me 163 operations ceased in May 1945.
Mitsubishi A6M Zero
This was the long-range carrier based fighter operated from Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carriers during the Second World War.
In early combat operations the Zero achieved an admirable kill ratio of 12 to 1, but by the middle of 1942 better equipment and tactics enabled Allied fighters to engage on more even terms.
As the war progressed, a lack of resources meant that the Japanese were unable to develop improved models and the aircraft were largely outdated by 1944. During the final phase of the conflict, the Zero was adapted for kamikaze operations.
North American AT-6D Texan
The AT-6 was the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) and United States Army Air Force (USAAF) designation for this trainer aircraft. The United States Navy knew it as SNJ, and the British Commonwealth forces called it the Harvard.
The Texan continues to be a popular warbird and, suitably modified and painted, has stood in for the Mitsubishi Zero in such films as “Tora, Tora, Tora” and “Pearl Harbor”.
It also doubled for a razorback P-47 Thunderbolt in “A Bridge Too Far”, and played a starring role in the music video for Pat Benatar’s “Shadows of the Night”.
North American P51D Mustang
The Mustang was a long-range fighter and fighter-bomber that served during World War II and the Korean War.
The early models used the Allison V-1710 naturally-aspirated engine which limited its high-altitude performance. In 1942, RAF Mustangs replaced this engine with the Rolls-Royce Merlin 65 supercharged unit, dramatically improving performance.
North American then developed the definitive Mustang, the P-51D shown here, with Merlin engines built under license by Packard, and armed with six .50 calibre AN/M2 Browning heavy machine guns.
Petlyakov Pe-2
This Soviet dive bomber was an outstanding tactical attack aircraft and was also successful in the heavy fighter, night-fighter and reconnaissance roles.
The aircraft was designed by Vladimir Petlyakov, leader of the Heavy Aircraft Brigade at the Tupolev OBK. During Stalin’s Great Purge, Petlyakov was accused of anti-Soviet activities and sent to a special prison where his work continued under NKVD supervision.
Released from prison in 1940, and (ironically) awarded the Stalin Prize, Petlyakov died when his Pe-2 crashed on a flight to Moscow in January, 1942.
Republic P47D Thunderbolt
With eight .50 calibre Browning heavy machine guns, the P-47 was a very effective medium-range escort fighter. It could also delver 5-inch rockets or a bomb load of 2,500 lb (1,100 kg) in the ground-attack role.
The fuselage is fairly deep as the engine exhaust gases passed through pipes running either side of the cockpit to a turbocharger located at the bottom of the fuselage, halfway between the cockpit and the tail.
This is a “razorback” Thunderbolt, which has limited rearward visibility, so Republic experimented with fitting the “bubble” canopy from a Hawker Typhoon which improved all-round visibility considerably. Confusingly, the first production aircraft of this type were not given a new designation and are a continuation of the P-51D line.
Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia
From the Science Museum’s “Flight” gallery.
R.J. Mitchell’s masterpiece, the Spitfire was a British fighter/interceptor used by the RAF and other allied countries before, throughout and after the Second World War.
The distinctive elliptical wing allowed for an exceptionally thin cross-section, achieving a higher top speed than many of its contemporaries. This Mk Ia has a Roll-Royce Merlin engine, but the basic airframe was strong enough to use increasingly powerful engines, culminating in the Griffon-engined Mk 24, although the subtle compound curves made the airframe complex and expensive to build.
The suffix after the Mark number indicated the type of wing fitted. The A wing armament was eight .303 Browning machine guns, with 350 rounds per gun. The guns fired from an open bolt, which prevented the cordite (gunpowder) from “cooking-off” due to overheating, but allowed cold air to flow through the gun barrels resulting in them freezing at high altitudes.
This was resolved by installing ducts that carried hot air from the radiators to the gun bays. Red fabric patches were doped over the gunports after the guns had been cleaned and loaded, partly as a warning to ground crews that the guns were live, but also to protect the guns from cold, dirt and moisture until they were fired.
The slender wing meant that the guns were widely spaced along the wingspan, although they were canted inwards to focus the gunfire at a pre-set range, the bullet dispersal could still be roughly a metre at a range of 100 metres. Consequently the boldest pilots would often prefer to get even closer to the target before opening fire.
Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb
The Spitfire was continually improved during the course of its service and the basic Mk V was a Mk I with a more powerful Merlin 45 engine, a new single-speed single-stage supercharger and an improved carburettor that allowed zero-g manoeuvres without impeding the flow of fuel.
The Mk Vb shown here was the most numerous version. The B wing carried: two 20 mm Hispano Mk II cannon with 60 rounds per gun; and four .303 Browning Mk II machine guns with 350 rounds each.
Some Mk Vs had the C wing, which was fitted with four 20 mm cannon with 120 rounds per gun. There was also an alternate C wing that, like the B wing, had two cannon and four machine guns but the larger 120 round capacity magazine for the cannon.
From the Mk VIII onwards, the majority of Spitfires had C, D or E type wings.
The D wing was for photo-reconnaissance Spitfires and had no guns, the space being occupied by additional fuel tanks.
The E wing came in two varieties. The first had two 20 mm cannon with 120 round each and two .50 calibre Browning heavy machine guns with 250 round each. The second variety carried four 20 mm cannon with 120 rounds per gun.
Yakovlev Yak 3
Small, light, robust and easy to maintain, with a high power-to-weight ratio, the Yak-3 earned its reputation as an excellent dogfighter.
It was well armed, with a 20 mm ShVAK cannon firing through the propellor spinner (the driveshaft being hollow), another cannon in each of the wings, and a pair of 7.62 mm ShVAK synchronised machine guns in cowling mounts.
Grouping all the weapons close to the centre line concentrates the firepower, increases accuracy and leaving the wings unladen.
