Fairey Battle Mk 1 (R3950) [@ Koninklijk Leger Museum, Brussels]
The Rolls Royce Merlin powered Fairey Battle light bomber, one of the first
types chosen for large-scale production, was designed to Specification P.23/35,
and issued in 1933 to find a modern replacement for the ageing
Hawker Hart and
Hawker Hind biplane day bombers then in
RAF service. The first prototype Battle Prototype (K4303)
took to the air on the 10th March 1936 but with a number of design
changes including the addition of a third crew member reduced its performance.
The first production aircraft were completed at Hayes, Middlesex, in June 1937
and were powered by the Rolls Royce Merlin I engines. Later variants were
powered by Merlin II, III and V engines. In fact subsequent variants took
their Mark numbers from the type of engine used i.e. an Mk II was powered
by a Merlin II. First deliveries entered RAF service with 63 Squadron
based at RAF Upwood,
Cambridgeshire,
in May 1937 and by the time war was declared there were about 1000 Battles in
RAF service.
Similar to the Bristol Blenheim the type had a three man crew (pilot, navigator and gunner) and a 1,000 lbs bomb-load and two machine guns. A single forward-firing Browning 0.303 machine gun in the starboard wing and with a trainable Vickers K mounted in the rear cockpit. The type had the appearance of a large fighter rather than a bomber. The standard payload of four 110 kg bombs was carried in cells inside the wings and an additional 230 kg of bombs could be carried on under-wing racks. Bomb aiming was achieved using the Mk. VII Course Setting Bomb Sight. The bomb aimer's position was under the rear portion of the wing and the sighting was done through a sliding panel in the floor of the fuselage. Most importantly the type lacked an armoured cockpit and self-sealing fuel tank. This placed the Battle at risk when attacked by Luftwaffe fighters and anti-aircraft guns.
Fairey Battle Mk 1 (R3950) [@ Koninklijk Leger Museum, Brussels]
On the 2nd
September 1939 ten Battle squadrons of the Advanced Air Striking Force (AASF)
were deployed to northern France mainly in an armed reconnaissance role. Sgt.
F. Letchard, a gunner, on patrol with 88 Squadron on the 20th September
near Aachen managed to shoot down the first German aircraft (a
Bf 109) of the RAF's war,
however, the success was not to last as the Battles became easy prey for the
German fighters, typically being almost 100 mph slower than a
Bf 109. Five unescorted Battles of 150 Squadron were shot down by
Me109s on the 30th
September whilst on patrol.
With the Germans pushing through the Low Countries in May 1940 the Battles were employed in the Bomber role and in the same month they suffered appalling losses in desperate attempts to bomb enemy columns and bridges over the Meuse. For example, in the first of two sorties carried out by Battles on the 10th May 1940 three out of eight aircraft were lost and in the second sortie a further ten out of twenty four were shot down, giving a total of 13 lost in that day's attacks with the remainder suffering damage. Not surprisingly the first VCs of the war was awarded in this month when Flying Officer DE Garland and his observer Sergeant T Gray of 12 Squadron in P2204 were posthumously honoured after a courageous attack on the vital bridges crossing the Albert Canal near Maastricht. Strangely the third crew member, rear gunner Leading Aircraftsman Lawrence Reynolds, did not share the award. On the 11th May nine Battles of the Belgian Air Force attacked bridges over the Albert Canal on the River Meuse losing six aircraft. Thirty five Battles from 12, 103, 105, 150 and 218 Squadrons (plus eight Blenheims) were lost to enemy fighters and mobile anti-aircraft batteries on the 14th May attacking German bridgehead and pontoon bridges at Sedan.
Due to its inability to defend itself the type was withdrawn from France to England by the 15th June 1940 and assigned to second-line duties. In six weeks almost 200 Battles had been lost, with ninety nine lost between the 10th and 16th of May. Although in the autumn of 1940 the Battles of 1 Group carried out many night attacks on the concentrations of invasion barges needed for Operation Sealion in the German-occupied Channel ports. Replaced by the Vickers Wellington, Battles did operate into 1941 by 88 and 226 Squadrons in Northern Ireland and 98 Squadron in Iceland for coastal patrol work. The last combat operations carried out by Fairey Battles were during the Italian and German invasion of Greece from the end of 1940 until April 1941. In fact the type remained active in secondary roles within the RAF until 1949.
Fairey Battle Mk 1 (R3950) [@ Koninklijk Leger Museum, Brussels]
After May 1940 a number of Battle Mk Is, IIs and Vs were converted into the Battle T (duel control) training variant and others were converted into the Battle IT, a training variant with a turret installed in the rear. Also a number were converted into target tug aircraft as the Battle TT variant. In fact the Battle TT.Mk I was the last production variant to be built. In total 2,185 Battles were built (1,156 by Fairey and 1,029 by the Austin Motor Company at Longbridge) before the final Battle had left the Fairey Heaton Chapel factory at Stockport in October 1940. A further eighteen were built under licence by Avions Fairey at Goselies, Belgium, for service with the Royal Belgian Air Force.
Built in 1939 as a Mk 1 in the Austin Motors shadow factory at Longbridge, R3950
was delivered to the Royal Canadian Air Force on the 7th April 1941.
Converted on the 1st July 1941 to Battle TT standard R3950 was
Struck off Charge on the 16th February 1945 and sold on the private
market. Purchased by a farmer from
Alberta R3950 was sold on in 1970 with the intention to be restored to a flying
condition. However, R3950 was bought
in 1972 by Sir William Roberts for the Strathallan Aircraft Collection,
Auchterader, Scotland and so R3950 returned to the UK.
Purchased from the Strathallan Collection in 1987 R3950 was loaned to the
Imperial War Museum at RAF Duxford.
Painted as HA-L in 1988 and then sold to the Historic Aircraft Collection.
Exchanged for a Spitfire XIV (RN201) with the Musee Royal de l'Armee, Brussels,
R3950 was finally transported by a Belgian Air Force C130 H Hercules to the
museum on the 3rd May 1990.
