Blackburn Cubaroo
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| T.4 Cubaroo | |
|---|---|
| Type | Torpedo Bomber |
| Manufacturer | Blackburn Aircraft |
| Designed by | F A Bumpus |
| Maiden flight | 1924 |
| Status | Prototype |
| Number built | 2 |
The Blackburn T.4 Cubaroo was a prototype British biplane torpedo bomber of the 1920s. Built by Blackburn Aircraft and intended to carry a large 21 inch torpedo, the Cubaroo was one of the largest single-engined aircraft of the world at the time of its first flight.
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[edit] Design and development
In 1922, the British Air Ministry drew up Specification 16/22, for a long-range torpedo bomber capable of carrying a 21 inch torpedo (which was at the time thought capable of sinking the largest warship) over a range of 800 miles (1,300 km)[1]. Major F. A Bumpus, chief designer of Blackburn Aircraft submitted the design for the Blackburn T.4 Cubaroo, which was a large biplane powered by a single example of the new 1,000 hp (746 kW) Napier Cub engine. Avro also submitted a design against this specification, the Avro 557 Ava, which was a similarly large biplane, powered by two 600 hp (448 kW) Rolls-Royce Condor engines.
In order to carry the heavy (over 2000 lb (909 kg)) torpedo over a long range, the Cubaroo was massive. With a wingspan of 88 ft (27 m), it may have been the largest single-engined military aircraft in the world at the time[1], and was fitted with the most powerful aircraft engine available [2], the Napier Cub, which was an unusual X-type engine which weighed over a ton excluding radiators. The Cubaroo, with a mainly metal structure, had a deep fuselage to accommodate the Cub engine, and was fitted with folding, two-bay wings. In order to allow the torpedo to be carried, the Cubaroo was fitted with a main undercarriage comprising two sets of two wheels, with the torpedo being carried on a crutch between the two sets of wheels.
[edit] Operational history
The first prototype (with serial N166) flew in secrecy in the summer of 1924[1], proving to have good handling characteristics, with the engine not causing problems (the Cub had already been test flown in an Avro Aldershot test bed) [1]. It was then fitted with a metal, three-blade adjustable pitch propeller and was delivered for testing at RAF Martlesham Heath, but was written off after its undercarriage collapsed on 2 February 1925. A second prototype flew in 1925, but the Air Ministry abandoned the requirement for a torpedo bomber to carry the 21 inch torpedo, and lost interest in single engined heavy bombers, so the second prototype Cubaroo was used as an engine test bed, flying with the experimental 1,100 hp (820 kW) Beardmore Simoon engine [1].
[edit] Operators
- Royal Air Force operated aircraft for evaluation and as a test bed only.
[edit] Specifications (Cubaroo)
Data from The British Bomber since 1914 [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: Four - Pilot, Navigator, Bomb-aimer/gunner and midships gunner
- Length: 54 ft 0 in (16.46 m)
- Wingspan: 88 ft 0 in (26.83 m)
- Height: 19 ft 4 in (5.89 m)
- Empty weight: 9,632 lb (4,378 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 19,020 lb (8,645 kg)
- Powerplant: 1× Napier Cub 16 cylinder water cooled X-type engine, 1,000 hp (746 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 100 knots (115 mph, 185 km/h)
- Range: 1,565 nm (1,800 mi, 2,900 km)
- Service ceiling 11,800ft (3,600 m) (alsolute)
Armament
- Three .303 in Lewis guns in midship gunners cockpit and at beam hatches
- One 21 inch (533 mm) naval torpedo
or
- Four 550 lb (250 kg) bombs
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f Mason, Francis K (1994). The British Bomber since 1914. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0 85177 861 5.
- ^ Lewis, Peter (1980). The British Bomber since 1914, Third Edition, London: Putnam. ISBN 0 370 30265 6.
[edit] External links
[edit] See also
Comparable aircraft Avro 557 Ava
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