Gloster Gauntlet

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

The Gloster Gauntlet was a British single-seat biplane fighter of the RAF,
designed and built by Gloster Aircraft in the 1930s. It was the last RAF fighter
to have an open cockpit and the penultimate biplane fighter in service.

The Gloster S.S.18 first flew in January 1929. The Gauntlet was a development of
the Gloster S.S.19B design, which originally mounted six machine guns (four in
the wings and two in the fuselage), the original S.S.19 prototype being
re-engined with a Bristol Mercury VIs engine, first flying in this form in 1933.
On testing the S.S.19, the Air Ministry placed an order for 24 aircraft in
September 1933, to be named Gauntlet.

The order was followed up with more for the revised Gauntlet Mk. II. This new
model used a revised construction method based on that used by Hawker following
Hawker's takeover of Gloster, as this was much easier to build and repair than
Gloster's welded structure. A total of 204 Mk IIs were produced in the UK.

Role
Fighter

National origin
United Kingdom

Manufacturer
Gloster Aircraft

First flight
1933

Introduction
1935

Retired
1943

Primary users
Royal Air Force
Finland
Denmark

Produced
1933–1936

Number built
246

Developed from
Gloster S.S.19B

Variants
Gloster Gladiator

The Gauntlet Mk. I first entered service with No 19 Squadron at RAF Duxford in
May 1935. The Gauntlet proved successful and popular in operational service,
being 56 mph (90 km/h) faster than the aircraft it replaced, the Bristol Bulldog
to form the main part of the RAF's fighter strength. The Gauntlet was the
fastest aircraft in the RAF from 1935 to 1937.

The Gauntlet Mk II entered service with 56 Squadron and 111 Squadron in May
1936, a further six squadrons being re-equipped with the Gauntlet by the end of
the year. At the height of its career, the Gauntlet equipped a total of 14
Squadrons of RAF Fighter Command. No. 32 (The Royal) Squadron RAF Gauntlets were
used in early trials of ground direction of fighters by radar.

As more advanced fighters, such as the Gloster Gladiator, Hawker Hurricane and
Supermarine Spitfire started to re-equip the Gauntlet squadrons in 1936 and
1937, the Gauntlets were passed on to freshly formed units as their first
equipment to allow then to gain training before receiving more modern fighters.
Gauntlets were also shipped to the Middle East, equipping three RAF squadrons.

All home-based Gauntlet squadrons had re-equipped with more modern fighters by
the start of the Second World War, but remained in service in the Middle East
for longer, with a flight of Gauntlets remaining in service with No.3 Sqn RAAF
in the Middle East when Italy declared war in 1940. These were briefly used for
ground-attack operations against the Italians before being retired from
operations owing to maintenance problems. Gauntlets continued in use for
meteorological flights until 1943.

Seventeen Gauntlets IIs were licence-produced in Denmark, while 25 ex-RAF
machines were supplied by South Africa as support to Finland in 1940 as a result
of the Winter War. Already obsolete, they were used as advanced trainers by the
Finns. The Finnish nickname for the Gauntlet was Kotletti (literally "cutlet").

Specifications (Gauntlet Mk II)

General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 26 ft 5 in (8.05 m)
Wingspan: 32 ft 9½ in (10.0 m)
Height: 10 ft 3 in (3.13 m)
Wing area: 315 ft² (29.3 m²)
Empty weight: 2,770 lb (1,259 kg)
Loaded weight: 3,970 lb (1,805 kg)
Powerplant: 1 × Bristol Mercury VI S2 9-cylinder radial engine, 645 hp (481 kW)

Performance
Maximum speed: 200 knots (230 mph, 370 km/h) at 15,800 ft (4,820 m)
Range: 400 nm (460 mi, 740 km)
Service ceiling: 33,500 ft (10,210 m)
Rate of climb: 2,300 ft/min (11.7 m/s)
Wing loading: 12.6 lb/ft² (61.6 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 0.162 hp/lb ( 266 W/kg)
Climb to 20,000 ft (6,100 m): 9 min

Armament

Guns: Two x 0.303 in Vickers machine guns




*