Blackburn Firebrand

The Blackburn Firebrand was a British single-engine strike fighter for the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy designed during World War II. Originally intended to serve as a pure fighter, its unimpressive performance and the allocation of its Napier Sabre piston engine by the Ministry of Aircraft Production for the Hawker Typhoon caused it to be redesigned as a strike fighter to take advantage of its load-carrying capability. Development was slow and the first production aircraft was not delivered until after the end of the war. Only 220 (plus 3 prototypes) were built before it was withdrawn from front-line service in 1953.

Specifications (Firebrand T.F. Mk IV)

Crew: 1
Length: 38 ft 9 in (11.81 m)
Wingspan: 51 ft 3.5 in (15.634 m)
Height: 13 ft 3 in (4.04 m)
Wing area: 383 sq ft (35.6 m2)
Empty weight: 11,457 lb (5,197 kg)
Gross weight: 16,700 lb (7,575 kg)
Fuel capacity: 239 imp gal (1,090 l; 287 US gal)
Powerplant: 1 × Bristol Centaurus IX 18-cylinder radial engine, 2,520 hp (1,880 kW)
Propellers: 4-bladed Rotol, 13 ft 3 in (4.04 m) diameter

Performance

Maximum speed: 342 mph (550 km/h, 297 kn)
Cruise speed: 256 mph (412 km/h, 222 kn)
Range: 745 mi (1,199 km, 647 nmi)
Rate of climb: 2,600 ft/min (13 m/s)

Armament

Guns: 4 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Hispano autocannon
Rockets: 16 × RP-3
Bombs: 1 × 1,850 lb (840 kg) torpedo or 2 × 2,000 lb (910 kg) bombs

Blackburn Firebrand TF Mk.2 of 708 Naval Air Squadron DK382 By Valom 1/72 Scale Model