HANDLEY-PAGE HALIFAX
SPECIFICATIONS
· Type: 7 seat long-range heavy
bomber
· Powerplant: (B.Mk III): four
1,615-hp Bristol Hercules XVI radial piston engines
· Performance: max speed 282mph
at 13,500 ft; ceiling 24,000 ft; maximum range with maximum bomb load 1,030
miles..
· Weights: empty 38,240 lb; maximum
takeoff 65,000 lb.
· Dimensions: span 104 ft 2 in;
length 70 ft 1 in; height 20 ft 9in; wing area 1,275 sq ft
· Armament: one Vickers K .303
machine gun on flexible mount in nose, and eight Browning .303-in
machine-guns (4 each in dorsal and tail turret), plus up to 13,000 lb of
bombs.
· Operator: RAAF, RAF, RCAF
The Mk. I Halifax heavy bomber carried a crew of seven, these being
pilot, engineer, bomb aimer/observer, navigator, wireless operator, mid-upper
gunner and tail-gunner. It was powered by four Rolls-Royce Merlin X engines
each generating 1,280 hp using three-bladed, variable pitch, metal propellers.
It had a maximum speed of 265 mph (426 km/h) at 17,500 ft (5,300 m), with
a ceiling of 22,800 ft (6,950 m) and a range of 1,860 miles (3,000 km).
It carried six 0.303 in. machine guns, two in the mid-upper position and
four in the tail turret. It was capable of hauling 13,000 lbs (5,890 kg)
of bombs or mines.
A good view of a MK I Halifax.
The Mk. II had more powerful Merlin engines, a machine gun for the
bomb aimer and a redesigned tail structure that improved handling characteristics
considerably.
The Mk. III was the second major production variant. It had a radical
change in engine, with the Merlin being replaced by the Bristol Hercules
XVI air-cooled engines each developing 1,615 hp. At the time Merlin engines
were in great demand and the Avro Lancaster with Bristol engines proved
to be underpowered.
A MK III Halifax.
The Halifax was made in numerous versions, the most numerous being the
Mk. I and II with 2,050 produced. Unfortunately, the Halifax Mk. I had
a serious flaw in the design of it's tail structure that caused it to go
into a rapid, uncontrollable spin if it was flung about the air too much.
This undoubtedly caused a number of fatal crashes. The design of the tail
structure was changed in the Mk. II and III versions.A total of 2,060 Mk.
IIIs were produced from Feb. 1944 to the war's end. Mk. VI and VII versions
were completed at the war's end with more powerful engines and longer range.
A MK V Halifax.
The Halifax was primarily a night heavy bomber, but it was also used
in Coastal Command to hunt U-boats as the Mk. V and for dropping paratroops.
It was also used to ferry troops, as an air ambulance and a glider-tug.
In the night bomber role Halifaxes flew a total of 75,532 missions, dropping
more than 227,000 tons of bombs. Only four Halifaxes made it to 100 missions.
A MK VI Halifax.
The veteran Halifax of Bomber Command was a Mk.III (LV 907), Friday
the Thirteenth of No.158 Squadron at Lisset, which survived the war with
128 sorties to its credit.
A Halifax getting ready for some action bombing up.
The two final bomber versions of the Halifax, introduced at the end
of the war, were the Mks.VI and VII. The Mk.VI mounted 1,800-hpHercules
100 engines and had additional fuel tankage for extended range.The last
Halifax operation of the war by Bomber Command was an attack on two coastal
gun batteries in the Frisian Islands on 25th April 1945.The Halifax was
withdrawn from Bomber Command immediately after the war, but it continued
in service with Coastal Command as the G.R.VI and with transport squadrons
at home and overseas as the A.VII. A final version was also produced, largely
post-war, for the Airborne Forces this was the A.IX.
a good view of a Halifax on the ground
The Halifax is one of the unsung heroes of the Second World War. It
was just as numerous as the Avro Lancaster and it was also a very solid
reliable aircraft.If you look at the two of them together in size, power
and bomb load, range, cruise and armament they're quite similar. But the
Lancaster took part in more spectacular and well-known raids and as a result,
received more recognition. Powered by the same four Rolls-Royce Merlin
engines as the Lancaster and crewed by seven men as well, the Halifax lagged
behind the Lancaster in operational altitude, range and bomb load. Halifaxes
flew 75,532 missions and dropped more than 227,000 tons of bombs.A total
of 6,176 Halifaxes were built but today there is no complete Halifax bomber
on display. A number of mock ups and wrecks are displayed in various museum
but the most complete aircraft is the Halifax in Trenton, Ontario in Canada.
The group hopes to build thee most complete Halifax anywhere in the world.
This is what a Halifax Squadron should look like.
Thanks to the 57
RESCUE team for the information on the Halifax
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