Gannet Launches
The steam catapult launch bridle is just falling away under the main wheels of this Gannet (AEW?) that is launching from aboard (I think) HMS Victorious (there's a V on the aircraft's tail, which I assume indicates the ship the aircraft belonged to?).
The Fairey Gannet was built in response to the 1945 Admiralty requirement GR.17/45. Fairey selected an engine based on the Armstrong Siddeley Mamba: the Double Mamba (or "Twin Mamba"), basically two Mambas mounted side-by-side and coupled through a common gearbox to coaxial contra-rotating propellers. Power was transmitted from each engine by a torsion shaft which was engaged through a series of sun, planet, epicyclic and spur gears to give a suitable reduction ratio and correct propeller shaft rotation. The Double Mamba engine could be run with one stopped to conserve fuel and extend endurance for cruise flight. The contra-rotating propellers meant that when only half of the Double Mamba was running there were no thrust asymmetry problems. The Mamba exhausts were situated on each side of the fuselage, at the root of the wing trailing edge. The gas-turbine engine could run on kerosene, "wide-cut" turbine fuel or diesel fuel, allowing the Admiralty to eliminate the dangerous high-octane petroleum spirit required to operate piston-engined aircraft from carriers.
The pilot is seated well forward, conferring a good view over the nose for carrier operations, and sits over the Double Mamba engine, directly behind the gearbox and propellers. The second crewmember, an observer, is seated under a separate canopy directly behind the pilot. After the prototype, a second observer was included, in his own cockpit over the wing trailing edge. This addition disturbed the airflow over the horizontal stabiliser, requiring small finlets on either side.
The Gannet has a large internal weapons bay in the fuselage and a retractable radome under the rear fuselage. The Gannet's wing folds in two places to form a distinctive Z-shape on each side. The length of the nose wheel shock absorber causes the Gannet to have a distinctive nose-high attitude, a common characteristic of carrier aircraft.
The prototype first flew on 19 September 1949 and made the first deck landing by a turboprop aircraft, on HMS Illustrious on 19 June 1950, piloted by Lt Cdr G Callingham. The type entered production in 1953 and the RN's first operational squadron (826 NAS) was embarked on HMS Eagle. A total of 348 Gannets were built, of which 44 were the heavily modified AEW.3. Production was shared between Fairey's factories at Hayes, Middlesex and RIngway Airport, Manchester.
An AEW variant (AEW Mk 3), carrying the American AN/APS-20F radar in a large, bulbous radome suspended beneath the fuselage, under the wing leading edge, requiring a major structural redesign. This variant first flew in August 1958, with trials carried out with HMS Centaur in November. When the AEW.3s were withdrawn and scrapped, their radar equipment was recycled into the RAF Avro Shackleton AEW.2. Gannets also operated as ECM aircraft (ECM.6) and as carrier onboard delivery (COD.4).
The Royal Australian Navy purchased 36 Gannets and operated them from the carrier HMAS Melbourne and the shore base HMAS Albatross near Nowra, NSW. Indonesia and Germany also bought some in the late 1950s.
The photo is probably from the early or mid-1960s as it came to me from a family friend who was serving aboard HMS Victorious during that period. There are no markings on photo or its rear...
Gannet Launches
The steam catapult launch bridle is just falling away under the main wheels of this Gannet (AEW?) that is launching from aboard (I think) HMS Victorious (there's a V on the aircraft's tail, which I assume indicates the ship the aircraft belonged to?).
The Fairey Gannet was built in response to the 1945 Admiralty requirement GR.17/45. Fairey selected an engine based on the Armstrong Siddeley Mamba: the Double Mamba (or "Twin Mamba"), basically two Mambas mounted side-by-side and coupled through a common gearbox to coaxial contra-rotating propellers. Power was transmitted from each engine by a torsion shaft which was engaged through a series of sun, planet, epicyclic and spur gears to give a suitable reduction ratio and correct propeller shaft rotation. The Double Mamba engine could be run with one stopped to conserve fuel and extend endurance for cruise flight. The contra-rotating propellers meant that when only half of the Double Mamba was running there were no thrust asymmetry problems. The Mamba exhausts were situated on each side of the fuselage, at the root of the wing trailing edge. The gas-turbine engine could run on kerosene, "wide-cut" turbine fuel or diesel fuel, allowing the Admiralty to eliminate the dangerous high-octane petroleum spirit required to operate piston-engined aircraft from carriers.
The pilot is seated well forward, conferring a good view over the nose for carrier operations, and sits over the Double Mamba engine, directly behind the gearbox and propellers. The second crewmember, an observer, is seated under a separate canopy directly behind the pilot. After the prototype, a second observer was included, in his own cockpit over the wing trailing edge. This addition disturbed the airflow over the horizontal stabiliser, requiring small finlets on either side.
The Gannet has a large internal weapons bay in the fuselage and a retractable radome under the rear fuselage. The Gannet's wing folds in two places to form a distinctive Z-shape on each side. The length of the nose wheel shock absorber causes the Gannet to have a distinctive nose-high attitude, a common characteristic of carrier aircraft.
The prototype first flew on 19 September 1949 and made the first deck landing by a turboprop aircraft, on HMS Illustrious on 19 June 1950, piloted by Lt Cdr G Callingham. The type entered production in 1953 and the RN's first operational squadron (826 NAS) was embarked on HMS Eagle. A total of 348 Gannets were built, of which 44 were the heavily modified AEW.3. Production was shared between Fairey's factories at Hayes, Middlesex and RIngway Airport, Manchester.
An AEW variant (AEW Mk 3), carrying the American AN/APS-20F radar in a large, bulbous radome suspended beneath the fuselage, under the wing leading edge, requiring a major structural redesign. This variant first flew in August 1958, with trials carried out with HMS Centaur in November. When the AEW.3s were withdrawn and scrapped, their radar equipment was recycled into the RAF Avro Shackleton AEW.2. Gannets also operated as ECM aircraft (ECM.6) and as carrier onboard delivery (COD.4).
The Royal Australian Navy purchased 36 Gannets and operated them from the carrier HMAS Melbourne and the shore base HMAS Albatross near Nowra, NSW. Indonesia and Germany also bought some in the late 1950s.
The photo is probably from the early or mid-1960s as it came to me from a family friend who was serving aboard HMS Victorious during that period. There are no markings on photo or its rear...