Blackburn Skua
Encyclopedia
The Blackburn B-24 Skua was a carrier-based
low-wing, two-seater, single-radial engine
aircraft operated by the British
Fleet Air Arm
which combined the functions of a dive bomber
and fighter
. It was designed in the mid-1930s, and saw service in the early part of the Second World War
. It took its name from the seabird
.
of all-metal (duralumin)
construction with a retractable undercarriage
and enclosed cockpit
. It was the Fleet Air Arm
's first service monoplane, and was a radical departure for a service that was primarily equipped with open-cockpit biplane
s such as the Fairey Swordfish
.
Performance for the fighter role was compromised by the aircraft's bulk and lack of power, resulting in a relatively low speed; the contemporary marks of Messerschmitt Bf 109
made 290 mph (467 km/h) at sea level over the Skua's 225 mph (362 km/h). However, the aircraft's armament of four fixed, forward-firing 0.303 in
(7.7 mm) Browning machine guns
in the wings and a single flexible, rearward-firing .303 in (7.7 mm) Vickers K machine gun
was effective for the time. For the dive-bombing role, a single 250 lb (110 kg) or 500 lb (230 kg) bomb was carried on a special swinging crutch under the fuselage, which enabled the bomb to clear the propeller arc on release. Four 40 lb (20 kg) bombs or eight 20 lb (9 kg) Cooper bombs could also be carried in racks under each wing. It had large Zap-type air brake
s/flap
s which helped both in dive bombing and landing on aircraft carriers at sea.
Skuas are credited with the first confirmed "kill" by British aircraft during the Second World War: a Dornier Do 18
flying boat was downed over the North Sea
on 26 September 1939 by three Skuas of 803 Naval Air Squadron
, flying from the aircraft carrier
. On 10 April 1940, 16 Skuas of 800 and 803 NAS led by Lieutenant Commander
William Lucy, flying from RNAS Hatston
in Orkney Islands
sank the in Bergen harbour
during the German invasion of Norway
. This was the first major warship ever to be sunk by dive bombing, indeed the first major warship ever sunk in war by air attack. Lucy later also became a fighter ace
flying the Skua. However, these two mostly Skua squadrons suffered heavy losses during an attempt to bomb the at Trondheim
on 13 June 1940; of 15 aircraft in the raid, eight were shot down and the crews killed or taken prisoner. Among the latter were both squadron commanders, Captain
R. T. Partridge (RM) and Lieutenant Commander John Casson (RN).
Although it fared reasonably well against Axis bomber
s over Norway and in the Mediterranean, the Skua suffered heavy losses when confronted with modern fighters - particularly the Bf 109 - and they were withdrawn from front line service in 1941. The aircraft was largely replaced by another two-seater, the Fairey Fulmar
, which doubled the Skua's forward armament and had a speed advantage of 50 mph (80 km/h). A number of aircraft were converted to target tug
s following withdrawal from front line service. Others were completed as target tugs from the factory and used by the RAF and Fleet Air Arm in this role ("Fleet Requirements"). They were also used as advanced trainers for the Fleet Air Arm. The last Skua in service was struck off charge in March 1945.
The Roc
was a very similar aircraft developed as a "turret fighter" with all its armament in a dorsal turret
. The Roc was expected to serve alongside the Skua. Rocs were attached to Skua squadrons to protect the fleet anchorage at Scapa Flow in early 1940, and briefly from and Ark Royal during the Norwegian Campaign
. Skuas and Rocs flew both fighter sweeps and bombing sorties over the English Channel during Operation Dynamo
, and Operation Ariel
, the evacuation of Allied forces from Dunkirk and other French ports.
sfjorden in Norway at 242 metres depth. Due to an engine failure, the Skua, flown by John Casson, leader of 803 Squadron, had to make an emergency water landing
in the fjord. Both crew members survived and spent the next five years as prisoners of war. Despite efforts to get the aircraft to the surface as gently as possible, the tail broke off. The engine had become detached in the original ditching. The fuselage, cockpit and wings were salvaged. The Skua will be restored at Norway's aviation museum in Bodø
.
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
low-wing, two-seater, single-radial engine
Radial engine
The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel...
aircraft operated by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Fleet Air Arm
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters...
which combined the functions of a dive bomber
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target reduces the distance the bomb has to fall, which is the primary factor in determining the accuracy of the drop...
and fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
. It was designed in the mid-1930s, and saw service in the early part of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It took its name from the seabird
Skua
The skuas are a group of seabirds with about seven species forming the family Stercorariidae and the genus Stercorarius. The three smaller skuas are called jaegers in North America....
.
Design and development
Built to Air Ministry specification O.27/34, it was a low-wing monoplaneMonoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
of all-metal (duralumin)
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
construction with a retractable undercarriage
Undercarriage
The undercarriage or landing gear in aviation, is the structure that supports an aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxi, takeoff and land...
and enclosed cockpit
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
. It was the Fleet Air Arm
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters...
's first service monoplane, and was a radical departure for a service that was primarily equipped with open-cockpit biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
s such as the Fairey Swordfish
Fairey Swordfish
The Fairey Swordfish was a torpedo bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company and used by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy during the Second World War...
.
Performance for the fighter role was compromised by the aircraft's bulk and lack of power, resulting in a relatively low speed; the contemporary marks of Messerschmitt Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
made 290 mph (467 km/h) at sea level over the Skua's 225 mph (362 km/h). However, the aircraft's armament of four fixed, forward-firing 0.303 in
.303 British
.303 British, or 7.7x56mmR, is a .311 inch calibre rifle and machine gun cartridge first developed in Britain as a blackpowder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee-Metford rifle, later adapted to use smokeless powders...
(7.7 mm) Browning machine guns
M1919 Browning machine gun
The M1919 Browning is a .30 caliber medium machine gun that was widely used during the 20th century. It was used as a light infantry, coaxial, mounted, aircraft, and anti-aircraft machine gun by the U.S. and many other countries, especially during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War...
in the wings and a single flexible, rearward-firing .303 in (7.7 mm) Vickers K machine gun
Vickers K machine gun
Not to be confused with the Vickers light machine gunThe Vickers K machine gun, known as the Vickers Gas Operated in British service, was a rapid-firing machine gun developed and manufactured for use in aircraft by Vickers-Armstrongs...
was effective for the time. For the dive-bombing role, a single 250 lb (110 kg) or 500 lb (230 kg) bomb was carried on a special swinging crutch under the fuselage, which enabled the bomb to clear the propeller arc on release. Four 40 lb (20 kg) bombs or eight 20 lb (9 kg) Cooper bombs could also be carried in racks under each wing. It had large Zap-type air brake
Air brake (aircraft)
In aeronautics, air brakes or speedbrakes are a type of flight control surface used on an aircraft to increase drag or increase the angle of approach during landing....
s/flap
Flap (aircraft)
Flaps are normally hinged surfaces mounted on the trailing edges of the wings of a fixed-wing aircraft to reduce the speed an aircraft can be safely flown at and to increase the angle of descent for landing without increasing air speed. They shorten takeoff and landing distances as well as...
s which helped both in dive bombing and landing on aircraft carriers at sea.
Operational history
Dornier Do 18
The Dornier Do 18 was a development of the Do 16 flying boat. It was developed for the Luftwaffe, but Lufthansa got 5 aircraft and used these for tests between the Azores and the North American continent in 1936 and on their mail route over the South Atlantic from 1937 to 1939.27–29 March 1938 a...
flying boat was downed over the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
on 26 September 1939 by three Skuas of 803 Naval Air Squadron
803 Naval Air Squadron
803 Naval Air Squadron was a Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm squadron.-Interwar:803 NAS was formed on 3 April 1933 by promoting No 409 Flight to the status of a squadron, with nine Ospreys...
, flying from the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
. On 10 April 1940, 16 Skuas of 800 and 803 NAS led by Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
William Lucy, flying from RNAS Hatston
RNAS Hatston
RNAS Hatston, also called HMS Sparrowhawk, was a Royal Naval Air Station.It was situated one mile to the north west of Kirkwall on the island of Mainland, Orkney...
in Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
sank the in Bergen harbour
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
during the German invasion of Norway
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
. This was the first major warship ever to be sunk by dive bombing, indeed the first major warship ever sunk in war by air attack. Lucy later also became a fighter ace
Fighter Ace
Fighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...
flying the Skua. However, these two mostly Skua squadrons suffered heavy losses during an attempt to bomb the at Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
on 13 June 1940; of 15 aircraft in the raid, eight were shot down and the crews killed or taken prisoner. Among the latter were both squadron commanders, Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
R. T. Partridge (RM) and Lieutenant Commander John Casson (RN).
Although it fared reasonably well against Axis bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s over Norway and in the Mediterranean, the Skua suffered heavy losses when confronted with modern fighters - particularly the Bf 109 - and they were withdrawn from front line service in 1941. The aircraft was largely replaced by another two-seater, the Fairey Fulmar
Fairey Fulmar
The Fairey Fulmar was a British carrier-borne fighter aircraft that served with the Fleet Air Arm during the Second World War. A total of 600 were built by Fairey Aviation at its Stockport factory between January 1940 and December 1942...
, which doubled the Skua's forward armament and had a speed advantage of 50 mph (80 km/h). A number of aircraft were converted to target tug
Target tug
A target tug is an aircraft which tows an unmanned drone, a fabric drogue or other kind of target, for the purposes of gun or missile target practice. Target tugs are often conversions of transport and utility aircraft, as well as obsolescent combat types...
s following withdrawal from front line service. Others were completed as target tugs from the factory and used by the RAF and Fleet Air Arm in this role ("Fleet Requirements"). They were also used as advanced trainers for the Fleet Air Arm. The last Skua in service was struck off charge in March 1945.
The Roc
Blackburn Roc
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Brew, Alec. The Turret Fighters: Defiant and Roc. Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK: Crowood Press, 2002. ISBN 1-86126-497-6....
was a very similar aircraft developed as a "turret fighter" with all its armament in a dorsal turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
. The Roc was expected to serve alongside the Skua. Rocs were attached to Skua squadrons to protect the fleet anchorage at Scapa Flow in early 1940, and briefly from and Ark Royal during the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
. Skuas and Rocs flew both fighter sweeps and bombing sorties over the English Channel during Operation Dynamo
Operation Dynamo
The Dunkirk evacuation, commonly known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, code-named Operation Dynamo by the British, was the evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, France, between 26 May and the early hours of 3 June 1940, because the British, French and Belgian troops were...
, and Operation Ariel
Operation Ariel
Operation Ariel was the name given to the World War II evacuation of Allied forces from ports in western France, from 15–25 June 1940, due to the military collapse in the Battle of France against Nazi Germany...
, the evacuation of Allied forces from Dunkirk and other French ports.
Variants
- Skua Mk.I : two prototypes. Powered by the Bristol MercuryBristol Mercury|-See also:-Bibliography:* Bridgman, L, Jane's fighting aircraft of World War II. Crescent. ISBN 0-517-67964-7* Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Cambridge, England. Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-163-9...
, it had distinctive fairings to the engine cowling over the tappet valveTappetA tappet is the noise made by a worn cam follower, however the term is widely used to represent the cam follower itself. In mechanical engineering it is a projection which imparts a linear motion to some other component within an assembly...
s of the Mercury. The first prototype, K5178, had a much shorter nose while K5179, the second prototype, had a lengthened nose to improve longitudinal stability.
- Skua Mk.II : Production aircraft powered by the sleeve valveSleeve valveThe sleeve valve is a type of valve mechanism for piston engines, distinct from the usual poppet valve. Sleeve-valve engines saw use in a number of pre-World War II luxury cars and in USA in the Willys-Knight car and light truck...
d Bristol PerseusBristol Perseus|-See also:-Bibliography:* Bridgman, L, Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II. Crescent . ISBN 0-517-67964-7* Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Cambridge, England. Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-163-9...
. Long nose as per K5179 but with a shorter, smooth cowling. Two-seat fighter and dive bomber for the Royal Navy; 190 built by Blackburn at Brough AerodromeBrough AerodromeBrough Aerodrome is located at Brough, East Riding of Yorkshire, England.The site was first used by the Blackburn Aeroplane & Motor Company during World War I for the testing of seaplanes....
.
Recovery of L2896
In April 2007, the only known nearly complete Blackburn Skua was discovered in OrkdalOrkdal
Orkdal is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Orkanger. Other villages in the municipality include Kjøra, Geitastrand, Gjølme, Thamshavn, Fannrem, Vormstad, Svorkmo, and...
sfjorden in Norway at 242 metres depth. Due to an engine failure, the Skua, flown by John Casson, leader of 803 Squadron, had to make an emergency water landing
Water landing
A water landing is, in the broadest sense, any landing on a body of water. All waterfowl, those seabirds capable of flight, and some human-built vehicles are capable of landing in water as a matter of course....
in the fjord. Both crew members survived and spent the next five years as prisoners of war. Despite efforts to get the aircraft to the surface as gently as possible, the tail broke off. The engine had become detached in the original ditching. The fuselage, cockpit and wings were salvaged. The Skua will be restored at Norway's aviation museum in Bodø
Bodø
is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...
.
Operators and units
- Fleet Air ArmFleet Air ArmThe Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters...
- 755 Naval Air Squadron
- 757 Naval Air Squadron
- 758 Naval Air Squadron
- 759 Naval Air Squadron
- 760 Naval Air Squadron
- 767 Naval Air Squadron
- 769 Naval Air Squadron
- 770 Naval Air Squadron
- 771 Naval Air Squadron
- 772 Naval Air Squadron
- 774 Naval Air Squadron
- 776 Naval Air Squadron
- 778 Naval Air Squadron
- 779 Naval Air Squadron
- 780 Naval Air Squadron
- 782 Naval Air Squadron
- 787 Naval Air Squadron
- 788 Naval Air Squadron
- 789 Naval Air Squadron
- 791 Naval Air Squadron
- 792 Naval Air Squadron792 Naval Air Squadron792 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy was originally formed at St. Merryn in August 1939 as an Air Target Unit, equipped with six Blackburn Skuas. The squadron disbanded in 1945 and merged with 794 Naval Air Squadron....
- 794 Naval Air Squadron
- 797 Naval Air Squadron
- 800 Naval Air Squadron
- 801 Naval Air Squadron801 Naval Air Squadron801 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm squadron of the Royal Navy formed in 1933 which fought in World War II, the Korean War and the Falklands War.- Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Air Force:...
- 803 Naval Air Squadron803 Naval Air Squadron803 Naval Air Squadron was a Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm squadron.-Interwar:803 NAS was formed on 3 April 1933 by promoting No 409 Flight to the status of a squadron, with nine Ospreys...
- 806 Naval Air Squadron806 Naval Air Squadron806 Naval Air Squadron was a fighter squadron in the Fleet Air Arm that existed from February 1940 to December 1960 and saw active service in Norway, the Dunkirk evacuation and the Malta Convoys.-Formation:...
- Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
- RAF Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Units
Specifications (Skua Mk. II)