Boulton Paul Bittern
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| P.31 Bittern | |
|---|---|
| Type | |
| Manufacturer | Boulton Paul Limited |
| Maiden flight | February 1927 |
| Number built | 2 |
The Boulton Paul Bittern was a 1920s British night-fighter aircraft from Boulton Paul Limited of Norwich, named after the marsh bird of the same name
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[edit] Design and development
Designed to Air Ministry Specification 27/24, which called for a single-seat night fighter for use against enemy bomber aircraft, the Bittern design was different from others in that it was a twin-engined shoulder wing monoplane rather than the usual single-engine biplane.
Two prototypes were built, both very underpowered. As a result, during testing performance was so poor that further development was abandoned.[1]
The first prototype had fixed Vickers machine guns, the second had guns that could be angled from 0 to 45 degrees upwards so the fighter could attack bombers from below without having to put the aircraft into a climb. The wingspan of the second prototype was increased by about 1.5 m.[2][3]
[edit] Specifications (Second prototype)
Data from [4]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1 (pilot)
- Length: 32 ft (9.75 m)
- Wingspan: 41 ft (12.5 m)
- Height: ()
- Loaded weight: 4,500 lb (2,041 kg)
- Powerplant: 2× Armstrong Siddeley Lynx radial engine, 230 hp (172 kW) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 152 mph
Armament 2 Lewis guns mounted in barbettes
[edit] References
- ^ The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. (1997). Ed. Donald, David. Prospero Books. pg 118. ISBN 1-85605-375-X.
- ^ Boulton-Paul P.31 Bittern - night fighter
- ^ The WWII Fighter Gun Debate: Upward firing guns
- ^ British Aircraft Directory
[edit] External links
[edit] See also
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