Category Archives: Trainer

Trainer

Fighter, Fighterbomber, Trainer

Fairey Firefly T.Mk I, (Pavla Models)

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TYPE: Trainer, fighter, fighter-bomber

ACCOMMODATION: Pilot and trainer

POWER PLANT: One Rolls-Royce Griffon IIB liquid-cooled engine, rated at 1,735 hp

PERFORMANCE:  367mph at 14,000 ft

COMMENT: The Fairey Firefly was a Second World War-era carrier-born fighter aircraft and anti-submarine aircraft that was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) oft he Royal Navy. It was developed and built by the British aircraft manufacturer Fairey Aviation Company.
Development of the Firefly can be traced back to a pair of specifications issued by the British Air Ministry in 1938, calling for new naval fighter designs. Designed to the contemporary FAA concept of a two-seat fleet reconnaissance/fighter, the pilot and observer were positioned at separate stations. In flight, the Firefly was superior in terms of both performance and firepower to its predecessor, the Fairey Fulmar. Due to a protracted development, the type only entered operational service towards the end of the conflict, at which point it was no longer competitive as a fighter. The limitations of a single engine in a relatively heavy airframe reduced its performance, but the Firefly proved to be a fairly sturdy, long-ranged, and docile aircraft during carrier operations.
The Firefly was designed by a design team at Fairey Aviation which reportedly used the Fulmar as a starting point. During June 1940, the Admiralty placed an initial order for 200 aircraft “off the drawing board”, the first three of which were to function as prototypes. On December 1941, the first prototype of the Firefly performed its maiden flight. Although the aircraft was 4,000 lb heavier than the preceding Fulmar (largely due to the adoption of the heavier Griffon engine and the armament of two 0,79 in Hispano cannons in each wing), the Firefly was 40 mph faster due to improved aerodynamics, as well as the increased power of the Griffon IIB engine, being capable of generating a maximum of 1,735 hp.
The Firefly was a low-wing cantilever monoplane, featuring an oval-section metal semi-monocoque fuselage and a conventional tail unit with forward-placed tailplane It was powered by a Rolls-Royce Griffon liquid-cooled piston engine, which drove a four-blade Rotol-built propeller. A large chin-mounted radiator was present to provide cooling for the engine. The Firefly had retractable main undercarriage and tail wheel, the hydraulically-actuated main landing gear retracting inwards into the underside of the wing centre-section. This undercarriage was widely-set, a highly useful feature for carrier landings. The aircraft was also fitted with a retractable arrester hook mounted underneath the rear fuselage. The pilot’s cockpit was located above the leading edge of the wing while the observer/radio-operator/navigator was positioned aft of the wing’s trailing edge.
Several versions of the Firefly were built. Main changes came with the engine power and rate. The Mk I was split between the first batches of 429 “fighter” “Firefly F Mk I”s, built by Fairey and General Aircraft Ltd, having the prototype engine, the Griffon IIB engine rated at 1,735 hp and 376 “fighter/reconnaissance” Firefly “FR Mk I”s  having the better 1,765 hp Griffon XII engine.
Just after the end of WW II designs works on the Firefly T.Mk I trainer begun. The maiden flight of the prototype bearing civil registration G-AHYA took part in July 1946. It was converted from Firelfy F.Mk I. The rear fuselage decking was rised to accommodate a second seat for  the trainer. Also dual controls and instrumentation were provided in the rear cockpit.
The batch production was ordered in virtue of succesful flights trails performed in flying schools in Great Brittain, France and Holland. Two versions were produced, unarmed version designated T.Mk I (30 produced) and version T.Mk II (54 produced) equipped with two cannons. Several other aircraft were modified in Holland and Canada (Ref.: 24).

Nightfighter, Trainer, Projects

Martin-Baker M.B.6 “Sky Ferret” T.Mk. I (AZ-Models)

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TYPE: Projected trainer for MB 5

ACCOMMODATION: Pilot and Student

POWER PLANT: One Rolls-Royce Griffon 83 liquid-cooled engine, rates at 2,340 hp, driving three-bladed contra-rotating propeller

PERFORMANCE: 460 mph at 20,000 ft (estimated)

COMMENT: There are some speculations concerning the existence of a further development of the British Martin-Baker MB 5. This latter was the ultimate development of a series of prototype fighter aircraft built during the WW II. But neither the MB 5 nor its predecessor Martin-Baker MB 3 ever entered production, despite what test pilots described as excellent performance.
The Martin-Baker MB 6 was designed as a two-seat variant of the MB 5 to be used as night fighter or as a trainer version for the MB 5. All dimensions as well as engine, two three-bladed contra-rotating propellers were similar to the original prototype. A second seat for the instructor was positioned behind the student’s seat and an elongated canopy covered the cockpit.
However, it is uncertain whether the Martin-Baker MB 6 really was designed nor whether the aircraft was named Sky- or Night Ferret.
Although the Martin-Baker MB 5 was considered as a superlative piston-engined fighter, better in many ways than the British Supermarine Spitfire or the US North-American Mustang, no orders for serial production were placed. Possibly, Martin-Baker may have lacked both facilities and sufficient government support to engage in large production numbers. The company’s slow progress with the machine could have been due to a lack of facilities. Instead, the RAF directed their attention towards the incoming turbojet-powered fighters and in fact, some postwar informations hypothesise the existence of a Martin-Baker MB 6 project of a tailless, deltawing configurated and  turbojet-powerded aircraft. No further details are known (Ref.: 24).

Helicopter, Trainer, Observation

Avro 671 Rota Mk. I, 529 Sqn RAF (RS Models)

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TYPE: Autogyro

ACCOMMODATION: Pilot and passenger/observer

POWER PLANT: One Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major IA radial engine, rated at 140 hp

PERFORMANCE: 110 mph

COMMENT: The Avro 671 Rota Mk. I autogyro based on the Cierva C.30 designed by Juan de la Cierva in Spain and built under licence in England by A V Roe & Co Ltd.
Avro obtained the licence in 1934 and subsequently built 78 examples under their model designation, fitted with an Armstrong Siddely Genet Major IA (known in the RAF as the Civet 1) 7-cylinder radial engine producing 140 hp . The first production aircraft was delivered in July 1934.
The first production design in the series was the C.30A, a radial-engined autogyro with a three-blade, 37 ft rotor mounted on an aft-leaning tripod, the control column extending into the rear of the two cockpits. The engine was the five-cylinder, 105 hp Armstrong Siddely Genet Major I. The fabric-covered fuselage carried an unbraced tail plane, without elevators but with turned-up tips. The port side of the tail plane had an inverted aerofoil section to counter roll-axis torque produced by the propeller. As with most autogyros, a high vertical tail was precluded by the sagging resting rotor, so the dorsal fin was long and low, extending well aft of the tail plane like a fixed rudder and augmented by a ventral fin. The wide-track undercarriage had a pair of single, wire-braced legs and a small tail wheel was fitted. This model flew in April 1933. It was followed by four improved machines designated C.30P (P here for pre-production) which differed in having a four-legged pyramid rotor mounting and a reinforced undercarriage with three struts per side. The rotor could be folded rearwards for transport. The C.30P used the more powerful140 hp Armstrong Siddely Genet Major IA radial engine.
Twelve C.30A’s built by Avro for the Royal Air Force (RAF) entered service as the Avro 671 Rota Mk.I. The twelve were delivered between 1934 and 1935. They equipped the School of Army Co-operation at RAF Old Sarum near Salisbury. At least one RAF C.30A was on floats as a “Sea Rota” in January 1935
Many of the surviving civil aircraft were also taken into RAF service between 1939 and 1940. In 1940 they equipped 1448 Flt at RAF Duxford. Later they equipped 529 Sqn at RAF Halton on radar calibration work, disbanded in October 1945, the twelve survivors were sold on to civilian owners (Ref.: 24).