Typhoon

• Photographs
• Design
• Development
• Production
• Service History
• Drawings
• Data
• Surviving Typhoons
• References for Information on the Typhoon

Back to top

Photographs

The above photographs were published in AIRCRAFT RECOGNITION Journal, the left one in March 1944 and the right one in July 1944, which shows MN524, a late Mark Ib with four blade propeller and bubble canopy.

Back to top

Design

The Typhoon was designed as type 'N' to the same specification as the Tornado, F.18/37. The Typhoon was a low wing single seat monoplane fighter powered by a H-configuration, 24 cylinder liquid cooled Napier Sabre driving a three blade constant speed propeller.

It had all metal wings with a thickness to chord ratio of 19% at the root tapering to 13% at the tip. The fuselage consisted of metal tube construction covered by non stressed metal from the engine to the rear of the cockpit and behind that all metal stressed skin construction apart from the rudder which was fabric covered. The Typhoon had retractable mains wheels and tail wheel.

Back to top

Developmdent

During a development test flight there was a partial failure of the joint between the tubular steel forward fuselage and the stressed skin metal rear fuselage. The Hawker test pilot, Philip G. Lucas, managed to land the aircraft for which he was awarded the George Medal. The citation in the London Gazette dated 6 May 1941,follows:
"Philip Gadesden Lucas, Test Pilot, Hawker Aircraft Limited.
Test Pilot Lucas displayed great courage and presence of mind during a test flight and, by his skill and coolness, saved an aircraft from destruction."
Because of this, the fault could be determined and rectified.

Soon after entry into RAF service many Typhoons crashed in mysterious circumstances and cause was eventually found to be due to the tail section breaking off. Strengthening strips were added round the rear fuselage fuselage. The cause of the defect was found to be fatigue failure of the elevator mass balance support and the resulting imbalance causing elevator flutter resulting in the detachment of the entire tail section. With strengthened mass balance brackets fitted the flutter problem was reduced and the strengthening strips were not deleted. The problem was never completely cured and the tail was known to have detached from 26 Typhoons, killing 24 pilots the last on 18 July 1945.

Throughout its service life, the Sabre engine was prone to catch fire on being started and this caused the loss of many aircraft.

Early Typhoons had a multipanel cockpit canopy and a cockpit side door, a mast aerial with a wire to the fin and a three bladed propeller, as shown in the following photograph of R7881. This aircraft was later fitted with AI Mark IV radar mounted on the port wing to become the only Typhoon Mark NFIb.

Later production Typhoons had a single piece perspex canopy, no side door, a dipole type aerial, a four bladed propeller and larger tailplanes and elevators.

The first Typhoons were Marks Ia with twelve 0.303 inch Browning machine guns, and some of these initially equipped number 56 squadron, it re-equipped with the Mark Ib, with four 20 mm cannon and this was the only Mark to see action.

Soon after Typhoon entered service, it was found that there was a problem with carbon monoxide from the exhaust plume entering the cockpit. In an attempt to cure this problem, the exhaust stubs were lengthened in November 1941 and the cockpit side door sealed shut. The problem was never finally solved and it became standard procedure for the pilots to breath through their oxygen masks while the engine was running.

Throughout its service life the Typhoon suffered a high frequency vibration of the airframe while in flight. The vibration while not being dangerous was uncomfortable and a shock absorbing seat was designed and fitted. This vibration was reduced with the introduction of the four-bladed propeller.

About 60 Typhoons were converted for fighter reconnaissance use as the Mark FRIb, with a reduced armament of two 20 mm cannon. A 5 inch focal length camera was fitted in each wing in place of one of the 20 mm cannon. The Mark was used operationally by number 4 squadron between October 1944 and February 1945 and by number 268 squadron between July 1944 and April 1945.

Back to top

Production

The first 15 Typhoons were manufactured by Hawker Aircraft Limited and the rest by Gloster Aircraft Company. The production batches were as follows:

Contract Number	Number of Aircraft	Serial Numbers	First Produced	Last Produced
1 Hawker 2 Gloster 3 Gloster 4 Gloster 5 Gloster 6 Gloster 7 Gloster	15 500 700 698 800 255 300	R R DN, EJ & EK JP & JR MM, MN & MP RB SW	1941 27 May 1941 20 September 1942 5 April 1943 8 December 1943 6 March 1944 5 January 1945	- - - - - - 13 November 1945

Mark	Mark Ia	Mark Ib	Mark FRIb
First Flight Dates: First Prototype First production Last production Total produced	24 February 1940 27 May 1941 - 110	3 May 1941 TBA 13 November 1945 3,098	- - - 60

Back to top

Service History

The above graph shows the number of Typhoon squadrons from the first, number 56 equipped in September 1941 to the last, numbers 181 and 182 which disbanded on 30 September 1945. The number of squadrons reached a peak of 24 in February and April 1944.

The following 28 Royal Air Force squadrons flew the Hawker Typhoon at some time:

The Typhoon was the first RAF fighter to exceed 400 mph in level flight as had the Hurricane been the first to exceed 300 mph and the biplane Fury the first to exceed 200 mph.

The Typhoon entered RAF service in September 1941 and by October 56 squadron was fully equipped. Initially Marks 1a were used and later the main Mark 1b and both saw action against the German Luftwaffe. The Mark 1b was the only Mark to also engage the German Wehrmacht.

The Typhoon became operational on 28 May 1942 when a 266 Squadron was scrambled to intercept a target which turned out to be a Spitfire. The first enemy aircraft was not destroyed until August 1942 when a Mark Ia and a Mark Ib also of 266 Squadron shared in the destruction of a Ju 88 over the North Sea.

The Typhoon did not appear in the Aircraft Recognition Journal until May 1943 and more than 10 were shot down by Spitfires who mistook them for the Fw 190. So that the Typhoons could be recognised as friendly, black and white stripes were painted on their wings as shown in the photo at the top of the page. Later at the time of the Normandy Landings and later, these stripes were also painted as a recognition aid on other types of Allied aircraft.

In June 1942, the Luftwaffe started raids on England by single Fw 190 or Me 109 fighters armed with a single bomb. There was also on 31 October 1942 a raid on Canterbury by sixty Fw 190s, dropping 30 bombs, the largest Luftwaffe operation over England since the Battle of Britain and only losing one aircraft. On 20 January there was an even larger Luftwaffe operation as a total of 90 Me 109s and Fw 190s raided London for a loss of 4 or more of their aircraft. The raids were difficult to counter as they came in fast and low and the Fw 190s were faster than the then current Spitfire Mark Vb.

To counter this threat, six squadrons of Typhoons, faster than the Fw 190 and 40 mph faster than the Spitfire Mark Vb, were from September 1942 deployed to cover the the coast. Number 1 Squadron was based at Acklington, 56 squadron at Matlaske, 486 squadron at North Weald, 609 squadron at Biggin Hill, 266 squadron at Warmwell and 257 squadron at Exeter. Later the Typhoons were also based at Manston, Lyme and Tangmere. Up to October 1943 pilots flying the Typhoon had shot down more than 42 Fw 190s and more than 15 Me 109s. Best known for action at low and medium altitudes, the highest altitude for a successful interception was 27,000 feet when on 20 January 1943 Remy Van Lierde, a Belgian flying with 609 squadron, shot down a Fw 190.

From June 1942 Typhoon squadrons were also engaged in offensive sweeps over enemy territory, both in daytime as escorts for Hurricanes or bombers and also operating autonomously. Their own attacks on enemy aircraft and on ground targets, both fixed installations such as airfields and V-1 launch sites and moving ones such as road vehicles and railway trains and on ships. Night time intruder sorties were also flown.

Number 181 was the first Typhoon fighter bomber squadron and was initially armed with two 500 lb bombs. Further fighter bomber squadrons followed and from the summer of 1944 the bomb load was increased to two 1000lb bombs. Later Rocket Projectiles were also used, particularly on armoured vehicles following the D Day Landings. By VE Day Typhoon squadrons had destroyed a total of 246 enemy aircraft.

The above is only an outline of the Typhoon's Service History and detailed information is given in some of the following References.

Back to top

Drawings

The above drawings were published in March 1944 in AIRCRAFT RECOGNITION Journal.

Back to top

Data

Back to top

Surviving Typhoons

Today one airframe is the total surviving example in existence; this is Mark Ib, serial MN235 which is on static exhibition at the Royal Air Force Museum at Hendon, London.

Back to top

References for Information on the Typhoon

Back to top

By Tim Hammond January 2010, Index added August 2010