Fairey Barracuda

Barracuda
Fairey Barracuda Mk I
Type	Torpedo/dive bomber
Manufacturer	Fairey Aviation
Designed by	Marcel Lobelle
Maiden flight	7 December1940
Introduced	1943
Primary user	Fleet Air Arm
Produced	1941-1945
Number built	2,607
Developed from	Fairey Albacore

The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo- and dive-bomber used during the Second World War, the first of its type to be fabricated entirely from metal. It was introduced to the Fleet Air Arm as a replacement for the Fairey Swordfish and Fairey Albacore biplanes. It is notable for its role in attacking the German battleship Tirpitz and infamous for its unusual appearance when the undercarriage was extended and wings folded.

Design and development

The Barracuda resulted from Air Ministry Specification S.24/37 issued in 1937 for a monoplane torpedo bomber. Of the six submissions, the designs of Fairey Aviation and Supermarine (Type 322) were selected and two prototypes of each ordered. The first Fairey prototype flew on 7 December 1940. The Barracuda was a shoulder-wing cantilever monoplane with an oval all-metal fuselage and a braced tail unit with the tailplane mounted near the top of the fin. It had a retractable landing gear and non-retracting tailwheel. The hydraulically operated main landing gear retract into a recess in the side of the fuselage. A flush deck-arrester hook is fitted ahead of the tailwheel. The crew of three were in tandem under a continuous glazed canopy. The pilot had a sliding canopy and the other two crew members canopy was hinged. The two rear-crew had alternate locations in the fuselage, with the navigator having bay windows below the wings for downward visibility.^[1] The wing had a large Youngman flaps that doubled as dive brakes. Originally fitted with a conventional tail, flight tests suggested stability would be improved by mounting the stabiliser higher, similar to a T-tail, which was implemented on the second prototype. The Barracuda was originally intended to use the Rolls-Royce Exe engine but production of this powerplant was abandoned which delayed the prototype's trials. The prototypes eventually flew with the lower-powered 12-cylinder Vee type Rolls-Royce Merlin 30 engine (1,260 hp or 940 kW) and a three-bladed de Havilland propeller. Further experience with the prototypes and the first production machines (Mk I) revealed the aircraft to be underpowered as a result of the weight of extra equipment that had been added since the initial design. Only 30 Mk Is were built (including five by Westland) and were used only for trials and conversion training. Replacing the Merlin 30 with the more powerful Merlin 32 (1,640 hp or 1,225 kW) and a four-bladed propeller resulted in the definitive Mk II variant of which 1,688 were manufactured by Fairey Stockport/Ringway (675), Blackburn (700), Boulton Paul (300), and Westland (13). A total of 2,607 Barracudas were built. The Supermarine Type 322 first flew in 1943 but with the Barracuda already in production it did not progress further.

Operational history

A Royal Navy Fairey Barracuda Mk II carrying an 18-inch (46 cm) torpedo

The first Barracudas entered service on 10 January 1943 with No. 827 Squadron and were deployed in the North Atlantic. The following year they entered service in the Pacific Theatre. The Barracuda first saw action with No. 810 Squadron during the Salerno landings. Barracudas eventually would equip 23 front line squadrons. From 1944 onwards, the Mk IIs were accompanied in service by radar-equipped (but otherwise similar) TB Mk IIIs which were used for anti-submarine patrols. 852 Mk IIIs were eventually produced (406 by Fairey, 392 by Boulton Paul). The Royal Canadian Navy took delivery on 24 January 1946 of 12 radar equipped Fairey Mk II Barracudas (Fairey designated the radar equipped Barracuda as MK III so a discrepancy exists as Canada called them MK IIs) aircraft for the first acquired aircraft carrier H.M.C.S. Warrior and assigned them to the newly formed 825 Squadron. Canadian aircraft mechanics had been trained in England during the war serving on British aircraft carriers, notably H.M.S. Puncher and H.M.S. Nabob which along with some Canadian pilots, the Canadian Navy operated for the British Navy. The Canadian Naval Air Branch in Canada after the war was dominated by Royal Navy commissioned Officers and other lesser ranks. After the war, aircraft technician (all types) trainees from Canada were sent to England for training until 1948 when the School Of Naval Aircraft Maintenance, SNAM was established at R.C.N.A.S., H.M.C.S. Shearwater, Dartmouth Nova Scotia. H.M.C.S. Warrior had been built for service in hot climates and had no heating systems and because of this the ship was unable to operate in the colder eastern climate of Canada. It was sent to the Canadian west coast via the Panama canal for duty in the warmer climate. It was paid off in 1948 and returned to Britain along with the Barracuda aircraft. It replaced by H.M.C.S. Magnificent equipped with Fairey Fireflies, Bristol Seafuries, and later with Avengers. The Mk IV never left the drawing board, so the next and final version of the Barracuda was the Mk V which replaced the Merlin powerplant with a Rolls-Royce Griffon and featured various aerodynamic changes. The Mk V did not take to the air until 16 November 1944, and Fairey built only 37 before the war in Europe was over. Early, underpowered Barracudas suffered from poor rate of climb but once airborne, proved easy to fly. Pilots came to appreciate the powerful Youngman flaps/airbrakes and carrier landings were simple due to the aforementioned flaps and good visibility from the cockpit. During the earlier part of its service life, the Barracuda suffered a fairly high rate of unexplained fatal crashes, often involving experienced pilots. In 1945 this was traced to small leaks developing in the hydraulic system. The most common point for the leak was at the point of entry to the pilot's pressure gauge and was situated such that the resulting spray went straight into the pilot's face. The chosen hydraulic fluid contained ether and as the aircraft rarely were equipped with oxygen masks (and few aircrew wore them below 10,000 ft (3,000 m) anyway) the pilot quickly became unconscious leading to a crash. An Admiralty order issued at the end of May 1945 required all examples of the type to be oxygen fitted as soon as possible, and for pilots to use the system at all times. Operation of airbrakes at high speeds caused a sudden change in trim which could throw the aircraft into an inverted dive. This proved fatal on at least five occasions during practice torpedo runs. In spite of their odd appearance, Barracudas were effective dive bombers (torpedoes were rarely, if ever, used in combat by the type in spite of appearing in many publicity photos because the aircraft lacked the engine power to effectively carry them) and played a pivotal role in a major attack on the German battleship Tirpitz. On 3 April 1944, 42 aircraft from British carriers HMS Victorious and Furious scored 14 direct hits on Tirpitz with 250 lb (114 kg) and 500 lb (227 kg) bombs at the cost of three bombers ^[2]. The attack disabled Tirpitz for over two months. Barracudas were used to test several innovations including RATOG rockets for takeoff and a braking propeller which slowed the aircraft by reversing the blade pitch. The Barracuda continued in Fleet Air Arm service until the mid 1950s, by which time they were all replaced by Grumman Avengers. Not a single example exists today, although the Fleet Air Arm Museum has large pieces of wreckage from two crashed aircraft and hopes to collect enough parts to eventually assemble a complete example for static display.

Variants

Mk I

First production version, Rolls-Royce Merlin 30 engine with 1,260 hp (940 kW), 30 built

Mk II

Upgraded Merlin 32 engine with 1,640 hp (1,225 kW), four-bladed propeller, ASV radar, 1,688 built

Mk III

Anti-submarine warfare version of Mk II with radar in a blister under rear fuselage, 852 built

Mk IV

Mk II (number P9976) fitted with a Rolls-Royce Griffon engine with 1,850 hp (1,380 kW), first flight 11 November 1944, abandoned in favor of Fairey Spearfish.

Mk V

Griffon 37 engine with 2,020 hp (1,505 kW), payload increased to 2,000 lb (910 kg), ASH radar under the left wing, revised tailfin, 37 built

Operators

 United Kingdom

• Fleet Air Arm

Specifications (Barracuda Mk II)

General characteristics

• Crew: 3
• Length: 40 ft 0 in (12.18 m)
• Wingspan: 47 ft 6 in (14.49 m)
• Height: 15 ft 0 in (4.60 m)
• Wing area: 404.94 ft² (37.62 m²)
• Empty weight: 9,800 lb (4,445 kg)
• Loaded weight: 12,600 lb (5,715 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 14,080 lb (6,385 kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Rolls-Royce Merlin 32 liquid-cooled V12 engine, 1,640 hp (1,225 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 210 mph (180 knots, 340 km/h) at altitude
• Cruise speed: 195 mph (169 knots, 315 km/h)
• Range: 725 mi (630 nm, 1,165 km)
• Service ceiling 21,600 ft (6,585 m)
• Wing loading: 31.1 lb/ft² (151.9 kg/m²)
• Power/mass: 0.13 hp/lb (210 W/kg)

Armament

• Guns: 2× 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Vickers K machine guns in rear cockpit
• Hardpoints: 5: (two under each wing and one under the fuselage), with a capacity of 1,620 lb (735 kg), equipped to carry:
  • 1× torpedo or
  • Bombs or
  • Depth charges or
  • Mines
• Four paratroopers have been deployed from underwing containers on several occasions

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

• Fairey Barracuda
• British Aircraft of World War II: Fairey Barracuda

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• Aichi D3A
• Blackburn Skua
• Breda Ba.65
• Curtiss SB2C Helldiver
• Douglas Dauntless
• Grumman TBF Avenger
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• Nakajima B5N
• Nakajima B6N
• Supermarine Type 322
• SB2A Buccaneer
• Vultee A-31 Vengeance
• Yokosuka D4Y

Designation sequence

• Seafox - Fulmar - Albacore - Barracuda - Firefly - Spearfish - Gyrodyne

Related lists

• List of aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm