Westland F.7/30
| Westland F.7/30 | |
|---|---|
| Role | F.7/30 |
| National origin | United Kingdom |
| Manufacturer | Westland |
| Designer | W.E.W. Petter |
The Westland F.7/30 was a British fighter prototype. A single prototype was built in 1934, but the type was not put in production because the Gloster Gladiator won the F.7/30 competition.
Development
The Westland F.7/30 was designed in response to RAF specification F.7/30, which was actually issued in 1931. It called for a day and night fighter with an armament of four rifle-calibre Vickers Mk.III machine guns, a top speed of at least 195 mph and a high rate of climb. The aircraft was to be a "zone fighter" rather than an interceptor, i.e. it would be used to mount standing patrols.
Contrary to rumour, the specification did not request the use of the Rolls-Royce Goshawk engine, although many of the competitors did use it. It did emphasize the importance of a better "fighting view" than was offered from the cockpit of traditional biplane fighters, and suggested a low-wing monoplane design as a desirable solution.[1]
The designer of the Westland F.7/30, W.E.W. Petter, initially opted for a monoplane with the engine buried in the fuselage between the wings, driving a tractor propeller though a long extension shaft. This put the pilot in front of and slightly above the engine, so that he also had an excellent forward view. Concerns about a high landing speed resulted in the conversion of the design to a biplane with a gull wing configuration for the upper wing.[2]
Initially the cockpit was open, but in two stages this was converted into a fully enclosed cockpit. The machine guns were installed in the cockpit walls, two on each side. The engine was a Rolls-Royce Goshawk III, cooled by a radiator that was installed ventrally, aft of the legs of the fixed undercarriage. The initial tail configuration was somewhat odd because the rudder hinge line was designed to be vertical when the aircraft was on its wheels, rather than in flight, but after testing the aircraft received a larger tailfin of more conventional design.[3]
Performance of the Westland F.7/30 did not meet specifications: A figure is often given of 185 mph at 15,000 ft[3] but flight test data indicate that the top speed was a disappointing 146 mph at 10,000 ft, nearly 100 mph slower than the Gloster Gladiator that emerged as the winner of the F.7/30 competition.[4][2] It also needed 18.8 minutes to reach 20,000 ft.
Specifications (variant)
General characteristics Performance
References
- ^ Sinnot, Colin The Royal Air Force and Aircraft Design 1923-1939, Frank Cass Publishers, UK 2001.
- ^ a b Bowyer, Michael F.J. Interceptor Fighters for the Royal Air Force 1935-1945, Patrick Stephens Ltd., UK 1984.
- ^ a b Goulding, James Interceptor, Ian Allan Ltd. UK 1986.
- ^ Mason, Tim British Flight Testing Martlesham Heath 1920-1939
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