Swordfish

[Steve]

I took this pic at a Duxford airday, not seen one since.
Hard to believe these were operational in WW2, must of been an easy target, looks very slow and cumbersome to me? looks like there are three crew as well!

[Farmer John]

I think they were known as "Stringbags", you would have to be brave to take one of them against some of the targets they went for.

[Y0ungN1ck]

It was a Swordfish torpedo strike that crippled Bismark's steering and allowed her to be caught and destroyed by the Royal Navy.

[Dartskipper]

Swordfish attacking the Italian fleet at Taranto was thought to be the inspiration for the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. The RN torpedo technicians had devised a modification that enabled the torpedoes to be dropped into shallow water and run to their target.

[Malcolm G]

This aircraft is one of two airworthy examples in the UK, there are two more in Canada.

Copied from the Fleet Air Arm archive, which I think is a little out of date:

LS326 was built in 1943 at Sherburn-in Elmet in Yorkshire by Blackburns and is therefore really a ‘Blackfish’. She saw active service flying on North Atlantic convoy duties with ‘L’ Flight of 836 Squadron on board the MAC ship ‘Rapana’. After the war she flew from the naval air stations at Culham (Oxford) and Worthy Down (Winchester) before going to Fairy Aviation as G-AJVH. In 1960 she came back to the Navy and was painted for a starring role in the film ‘Sink the Bismarck’. She now wears her wartime 836 Squadron colours. In 1960 she returned to the Navy and was painted for a starring role in the film ‘Sink the Bismarck’ with the codes [5A]. She is presently one of only three active airworthy Swordfish in the world and of the fifteen surviving examples, four of them are currently based at Yeovilton. At the present time LS326 wears her wartime 836 Squadron markings and wears the codes [L2]. In May 1999 she was adopted by the City of Liverpool and she wears the city's coat of arms on her fuselage. She is currently resting in the RNHF hangar for the 2000 airshow season, leaving W5856 to solely fly the RNHF flag at Airshows across the UK

[Chadburn]

Originally Posted by Steve

I took this pic at a Duxford airday, not seen one since.
Hard to believe these were operational in WW2, must of been an easy target, looks very slow and cumbersome to me? looks like there are three crew as well!

Being slow was a distinct advantage as the Enemy gunsights were not calibrated for such a slow aircraft.

[paul178]

Eugene Esmonde VC one of my heros since childhood!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Esmonde

[BobClay]

Interesting to think that at Taranto and during the Bismarck campaign a slow open cockpit biplane demonstrated that the mighty battleship was passing into obsolescence. That air power was to be the name of the game for both land and sea warfare.

[Dartskipper]

What goes round, comes round, Bob. The ultimate deterrent was designed to be carried by aircraft until an American engineer had a flash of genius and put the nasty thing on top of a rocket that could be fired from a submarine.

[BobClay]

Yes I read somewhere that a modern strategic submarine contains more explosive firepower than all the bombs dropped by all sides in World War 2 !!

Problem is it's an all or nothing weapon.

It's an interesting thought though that if one of those was caught unawares on the surface even by a Swordfish !! (let alone a modern anti-sub aircraft weapons system) it might just find itself in a bit of trouble.

[paul178]

Bob are you suggesting that the Stringbag could be operated from the new carriers in a ASW role?

[BobClay]

Well it is a bit far-fetched .... but .... of what use is an aircraft carrier .. without aircraft ? ... even Stringbags !!

[Chadburn]

There are apparently around 400 members of the R.N. receiving aircraft handling training in the U.S. So we may be getting aircraft from the U.S. on a joint services arrangement, something that has been going on for years.

[BobClay]

I still think that's kind of sad given the pioneering history of British aviation. I guess we're relegated to 'users' only these days.

[vegaskip]

Swordfish were in front line operation at the start and finish of WW2. They were still operational when their replacement, the 'Albacore' came and went. The Spitfire might be the RAF's icon, and won the Battle of Britain, but they have the Swordfish along with the RN, and MN to thank for getting their fuel through to them.
Jim

[Dredger]

Originally Posted by Steve

I took this pic at a Duxford airday, not seen one since.
Hard to believe these were operational in WW2, must of been an easy target, looks very slow and cumbersome to me? looks like there are three crew as well!

Great Pic.

[paul178]

Originally Posted by vegaskip

Swordfish were in front line operation at the start and finish of WW2. They were still operational when their replacement, the 'Albacore' came and went. The Spitfire might be the RAF's icon, and won the Battle of Britain, but they have the Swordfish along with the RN, and MN to thank for getting their fuel through to them.
Jim

I belive the Hawker Hurricane despatched more than the Spitfire 55% to45% although Hurricane losses were higher,but without it would we have won the BoB?

Signed A Hurricane fan.

[Dartskipper]

There were many more Hurricane equipped Squadrons than Spitfire Squadrons in 1940. Statistics can distort facts depending on how they are interpreted. The historian and author Dilip Sarkar wrote a very interesting book ,"Why the Spitfire won the Battle of Britain." Basically, his reasoning was that without the Spitfire, the Hurricane may not have had the success it achieved, but that both aircraft complemented each other. The Hurricane was undoubtedly easier to repair and return to battle than the Spitfire, but because of the Spitfire's reputation with Luftwaffe Bf109 pilots, they tended to avoid both aircraft when over Southern England. Not many Luftwaffe pilots who were shot down claimed they had been beaten by a Hurricane pilot, most said that a Spitfire had beaten them.

But none of the RAF's front line aircraft would have got anywhere without the cargoes of aviation fuel brought across the Atlantic.

[BobClay]

Nor without radar, nor without the incredible, almost internet like communication structure the RAF used to co-ordinate the battle. Those really are the unsung heroes.