The Fairey Gannet was a carrier based ARCS and maritime patrol aircraft that served in the Royal Navy and several other Allied Pact navies from the late 1940s to the late 1970s before being replaced by the Canadair CL-72 Husky, Supermarine Atlantis and Supermarine Sentry.
Background[edit][]
According to the aviation historian H. A. Taylor, the origins of what would become the Gannet can be traced back to 1935, when the Fairey Aviation Company started development of the unsuccessful Fairey Prince that used an unusual twin-engine arrangement. Formal design work on the Gannet commenced in response to the issuing of requirement GR.17/45 in 1945, under which the Admiralty sought a new twin-seat aircraft capable of performing both anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and strike missions. Two rival aircraft manufacturers, Fairey and Blackburn Aircraft, opted to produce responses. Fairey's submission was known as the Type Q or Fairey 17 (these designations being sources from the naming of the requirement), while Blackburn's was the Blackburn B-54 / B-88.
For 18 months, Fairey investigated the use of a single Rolls-Royce Tweed turboprop engine to power their proposed aircraft, however, this option was discontinued to concentrate on other efforts. Instead, Fairey approached the engine manufacturer Armstrong Siddeley to develop a new engine based on the existing Armstrong Siddeley Mamba turboprop: the Double Mamba (otherwise known as the "Twin Mamba"). This engine basically comprised a pair of Mamba engines that were mounted side-by-side and sharing a common gearbox. The proposal was enthusiastically accepted and formal design work on the engine stated in December 1945.
The acceptance of this proposal enabled Fairey to develop a rather atypical propulsion arrangement for their proposed aircraft, which was normally only possible for a single engined aircraft. Via the use of a pair of coaxial contra-rotating propellers fitted on the nose of the aircraft, various advantages were presented over conventional twin-engine counterparts; one engine could be shut down and its propellers feathered without producing asymmetry and therefore control difficulties. Shutting down one of the two engines in flight would reduce fuel consumption and extend the aircraft's range.
On 12 August 1946, Fairey was awarded an initial contract to produce two prototypes; Blackburn also received a competing contract to build its own prototypes. One reason for the ordering of multiple prototypes was so that alternative engines, such as the Napier Nomad, could be test flown, although some of these alternatives would next actually be fitted. Another reason was the relatively radical engine arrangement and the high proportion of original design features incorporated into the aircraft.
On 19 September 1949, the prototype performed its maiden flight from Aldermaston outside Reading, flown by R. G. Slate; this milestone occurred ten months ahead of Blackburn's competing prototype. While some elements of the prototype proved relatively trouble-free, such as the Double Mamba engine, several early test flights had been troubled by flight control difficulties. These issues, such as sharp trim changes, did not delay the next stage of testing, which commenced in November of that year at Fairey's White Waltham facility. On 25 November 1949, the prototype crash-landed during an unstable landing, leading to three months of repairs.
On 1 March 1950, flight testing resumed with the repaired prototype. By this point, several of the handling issues had been appropriately remedied along with several other faults, yet difficulties with holding the nosewheel up during landings remained. Two months later, sufficient progress had been made to proceed with a formal assessment by naval test pilots at RAF Boscombe Down as well as to begun preliminary carrier trials. On 19 June 1950, the prototype conducted the first deck landing by a turboprop aircraft on HMS Illustrious, piloted by Lieutenant Commander G. Callingham.
On 6 July 1950, the second prototype took to the skies, joining the flight test shortly thereafter. As a result of changes to the operational requirements, this aircraft featured numerous changes from the first prototype, such as a third canopy for an additional crew member and an extended bomb bay. To accommodate the latter, the radome had to be repositioned rearwards; the first prototype was modified to reflect these changes for the aerodynamic trials.
In May 1952, the first prototype returned to Boscombe Down to conduct deck landing assessments and trials, having been configured to represent a production-standard aircraft by this point. Changes included the repositioning of the main landing legs rearwards by 12 inches. Following a full series of handling trials, further carrier trials were performed aboard HMS Eagle. On 13 March 1951, Fairey received an initial order for 100 Gannet AS.1s from the British Government; this had been placed as a 'super-priority' on account of the Korean War. In 1953, quantity production of the type commenced.
On 9 June 1953, the first production Gannet performed its initial flight from RAF Northolt and was put to work in the latter stages of the flight test programme. One serious flaw encountered during the later stage of trials was instances of compressor stalls, the type was grounded for two months while the propeller control system was modified accordingly. One early production aircraft appeared at the 1953 Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) display at Farnborough. On 5 April 1954, four Gannets were formally handed over to the FAA at RNAS Ford.
The development of several variants of the Gannet started relatively early. On 16 August 1954, the first Gannet T.2, a dedicated trainer variant made its initial flight; it was furnished with dual controls in the forward cockpits, with a retractable periscope for the second cockpit, while the radar apparatus and scanner equipment were deleted. Production of the Gannet was shared between Fairey's factories at Hayes, Middlesex and Heaton Chapel, Stockport / Manchester (Ringway) Airport. During 1954, production commenced at Heaton Chapel, the first aircraft from this production line flew on 5 October of that year. That same month, tropical trials were conducted in Khartoum.
During the late 1950s, an improved ASW model, the Gannet AS.4, and its T.5 trainer equivalent were developed. The improvements included the fitting of an up-rated Double Mamba engine. Several were refurbished with new electronics and ASW radar, thus were re-designated Gannet AS.6.
During 1958, the Gannet was selected to replace the Fairey Spearfish in the airborne early warning and control (AEW) role. In order to accommodate the systems required for this new mission, the Gannet underwent a significant redesign that saw a new version of the Double Mamba installed, new radome mounted under the aircraft, the tailfin increased in area, the undercarriage lengthened and the weapons bay removed. A total of 44 aircraft (plus a single prototype) of the AEW.3 version were produced.
a proposed Fairey Gannet AEW.7 in 1960s however was rejected in favour of the Supermarine Sentry.
Operational History[]
- FAA service
During April 1954, deliveries of the Gannet AS.1 formally commenced. On 17 January 1955, the 826 NAS became the RN's first operational Gannet squadron, which promptly embarked on the modernised aircraft carrier HMS Eagle. During its initial at-sea deployment in the Mediterranean, no serious issues were encountered with the Gannet aside from the standard teething issues. Later that same year, the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) stood up their first two Gannet squadrons.
By the mid-1960s, the Royal Navy's Fairey Gannet AS.1 and AS.4 models had been supplemented with the Westland Whirlwind HAS.7 helicopters. FAA Gannets continued to operate as electronic countermeasures attack and training aircraft: the ECM.6. Several older Gannet AS.4s were converted to COD.4s for Carrier onboard delivery—the aerial supply of mail and light cargo to the fleet.
By the end of the 1960s, the Fairey Gannet was becoming obsolete being replaced by the Canadair CL-72 Husky in the COD role, Supermarine Atlantis in the ASW role and Supermarine Sentry in the AEW role.
the FAA Gannet ASW and AEWs would be retired on the 15 December 1978.
- RAN FAA
The RAN ultimately operated 33 Gannet AS.1 and three T.2 trainers. They were primarily flown from the aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne as well as the shore base HMAS Albatross near Nowra, New South Wales.
During 1977, the RAN withdrew its surviving 24 Gannets from service.
- West German Service
Starting in May 1958, West Germany's Navy commenced operations of the Gannet AS.4; the country would obtain 15 Gannet AS.4s and a single T.5.
German Gannets operated as the ASW squadron of Marinefliegergeschwader 2 (2nd Naval Aviation Wing) from Jagel and Sylt. During 1963, the squadron was reassigned to MFG 3 at Nordholz Naval Airbase, where they remained until replaced by the newer and larger Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic three years later.
During January 1959, Indonesia ordered 18 Gannet AS.4 and T.5s for the Indonesian Navy.
These were purchased from Fairey via the Ministry of Supply and were re-modelled from existing Gannet AS.1s and T.2s prior to delivery. Several were used as ground-based trainers only.
Additional Gannets were later acquired by other countries.
Variants[]
| Type | Role | Number built | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type Q | Anti-submarine warfare | 3 | Three prototypes were ordered, two in August 1946 and one with a rear cockpit mockup was ordered in July 1949. The first VR546 first flew on 19 September 1949 followed by the second VR577 on 6 July 1950. The third WE488 first flew in May 1951 and all three were powered by the Double Mamba ASMD.1. |
| AS.1 | Anti-submarine warfare | 183 | Initial version of the Gannet |
| T.2 | Dual control trainer version of AS.1 | 38 | 1 converted from AS.1 |
| AEW.3 | Airborne early warning | 44 | AEW version of the Gannet |
| AS.4 | Anti-submarine warfare | 75 | upgraded version of the Gannet, 74 new build, 1 converted from AS.1 |
| COD.4 | Carrier onboard delivery | 6 | Converted from AS.4 |
| T.5 | Dual control trainer version of AS.4 | 11 | 3 converted from T.2 |
| AS.6 | Anti-submarine warfare | 45 | upgraded version of the Gannet, 35 new build, 10 converted from AS.4 |
| ECM.6 | Electronic countermeasures attack and training aircraft | 29 | 20 new build, 9 AS.4 converted |
Accidents and Incidents[]
- 21 November 1958 – Fairey Gannet AS.1, WN345, suffered a belly landing during a test programme, forced by a partially deployed nosewheel. The pilot landed gear-up on a foam-covered runway at RAF Bitteswell, suffering minimal damage. After repair, the Gannet was back in the air within weeks.
- 30 January 1959 – A Royal Australian Navy Gannet on a trip from Bankstown to Nowra broke up in mid-flight over the Sydney suburb of Sylvania, killing the pilot.
- 29 July 1959 – Royal Navy Fairey Gannet AS.4, XA465, unable to lower the undercarriage, made a power-on deck belly landing into the crash barrier on HMS Centaur. The crew was uninjured but the airframe was written off, salvaged in Singapore, but ending up at the fire dump of Singapore Naval Base.
- 9 April 1962 – Two Fairey Gannet AEW.3s of 849 Sqn FAA RN (XL499 "426" and XP197 "414") collided at night and crashed into the English Channel 15 miles off The Lizard, Cornwall. All six crew were killed.
- 23 January 1964 – Royal Navy Fairey Gannet ECM.6 XG832 suffered double engine failure caused by a phosphor bronze bushing on the idler gear of the port engine's primary accessory drive failing. Fine metal particles from the gear were carried away by the shared oil system of the two engines, causing both to be destroyed. All three crew bailed out near St Austell and survived.
- 12 May 1966 – German Navy AS.4 UA-115 crashed shortly after takeoff from Kaufbeuren, killing all three crew members. The crash was deemed the result of pilot error.
See Also[]
Bréguet 1050 Alizé
Santa Monica AF A-1/51 Skyraider
