The Hawker Hurricane fighter was produced between 1937-1944 and served through out WW2, it evolved very little in design unlike the Supermarine Spitfire which had numerous very different variants. By the end of 1940 the Hurricane had become decidedly lacking in performance compared to the latest fighter designs but remained a reliable and stable gun platform, existing Hurricanes were therefore sent to less demanding theatres of operations, many being tropicalised for use in North Africa by fitting a Vokes dust/sand filter, others were fitted with catapult spools and an arrester hook for use on Merchant aircraft carriers as the Sea Hurricane. From October 1940 new Hawker Hurricanes were built as fighter bombers and gained the nickname 'Hurribomber', the aircraft was initially designated the Hurricane IIA Series 2 but was quickly re-designated the Hurricane Mk IIB to reduce spare part ordering confusion. The Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB was fitted with racks allowing them to carry two 250 lb or 500 lb bombs, alternatively two 45-gallon drop tanks could be fitted to increase range, main armament was either twelve .303 machine guns or four cannon and six .303 machine guns. The Hurribomber pictured above, G-HHII, was built by the Canada Car and Foundry Co Ltd. and served with the Royal Canadian Air Force from 1942 to 1945 and has recently been restored to flying condition. Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB Hurribomber Specifications: Crew: Pilot only Weight: Empty 5,500 lbs. Maximum Takeoff weight: 7,300 lbs. Wing Span: 40ft. 0in. Length: 32ft. 2.5in. Height: 13ft. 1in. Engine: Single 1,280hp Rolls-Royce Merlin XX V12 piston engine Maximum Speed at 22,000 ft: 342 mph Cruising Speed at 20,000 ft: 296 mph Service ceiling: 36,500 ft Range: 480 miles
Armament:
Twelve 7.7mm (0.303in.) wing-mounted machine guns or Six machine guns and four cannon
Two 250 or 500-lb bombs
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