Vickers Wellesley

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Vickers Wellesley
Hawker Hind
Vickers Wellesley MkI
Type: Multipurpose aircraft , light day bomber
Design country:

United KingdomUnited Kingdom United Kingdom

Manufacturer:

Vickers

First flight:

1935

Commissioning:

April 1937

Production time:

1936 to 1938

Number of pieces:

176

The Vickers Wellesley was a light bomber of British production. The single-engine mid - decker had its maiden flight in 1935. The Wellesley was already obsolete at the beginning of the Second World War and therefore had to be withdrawn from the European front. It was deployed from 1940 to 1942 in Africa , Egypt and the Middle East .

history

The Wellesley indirectly won a tender in 1935 because its competitors, the Vickers Type 253 , Fairey G.4 / 31 and Parnall G.4 / 31 bombers , could not convince the Royal Air Force . The Wellesley was then financed and offered with venture capital. The RAF ordered 176 machines, which were delivered by 1938. Vickers introduced the geodetic construction method at Wellesley , which was later retained for the Vickers Wellington , Vickers Warwick , Vickers Viking and the prototype of the Vickers Windsor .

The version Mk I had two separate cockpits, the successor version Mk II only had one cockpit. The hull was made of duralumin and covered with fabric. A 925 HP Bristol Pegasus  XX was used as the engine.

In 1938 three machines for long-haul flights were equipped with additional tanks. On November 5, 1938, two Wellesley flew non-stop in two days from Egypt to Darwin in Australia . The record distance was 11,525 km.

The Wellesley was not a particularly good aircraft and was therefore only used against Italy in East Africa in 1940/41 .

Military users

South Africa 1928South African Union South African Union
United KingdomUnited Kingdom United Kingdom

Technical specifications

Three-sided view of the Wellesley Mk. I
Parameter Wellesley Mk I.
crew 2
length 11.96 m
span 22.73 m
height 3.75 m
Wing area 58.5 m²
Empty mass 2889 kg
Takeoff mass 5035 kg
Max. Takeoff mass 5670 kg
drive a radial engine Bristol Pegasus XX with 925 PS (690 kW)
Top speed 369 km / h
Service ceiling 10,060 m
Range 1,786 km
Armament two 7.7 mm Vickers MGs, max. 907 kg bombs

literature

  • CF Andrews, EB Morgan: Vickers Aircraft since 1908. Second Edition, Putnam, London 1999, ISBN 0-85177-815-1 .
  • Norman Barfield: Vickers Wellesley Variants. (Aircraft in Profile 256) Profile Publications Limited, Windsor 1973.
  • Francis K. Mason: The British Bomber since 1914. Putnam Aeronautical Books, London 1994, ISBN 0-85177-861-5 .
  • Iain Murray: Bouncing-Bomb Man. The Science of Sir Barnes Wallis. JH Haynes & Co Ltd., Yeovil 2009, ISBN 978-1-84425-588-7 .
  • The Wellesley. Geodetics in action. In: Air International. Volume 18, No. July 1, 1980, Pilot Press, Bromley, ISSN  0306-5634 , pp. 25-33, 49-50.

Web links

Commons : Vickers Wellesley  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files