Westland Interceptor
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2017}}
| {{Infobox aircraft begin
| name= Westland Interceptor | image=Westland Intrceptor.jpg | caption= }}{{Infobox aircraft type | type= Fighter | national origin= United Kingdom | manufacturer= Westland Aircraft | designer=W.E.W. Petter | first flight=1929 | introduced= | retired= | status= Retired | primary user= | number built= 1 | developed from= | variants with their own articles= }} |
The Westland Interceptor was a fighter developed by the British company Westland Aircraft to Air Ministry Specification F.20/27.{{cite web|url=http://history.whl.co.uk/f2027_interceptor.html|title=AGUSTAWESTLAND - Westland History - F 20/27 Interceptor (1928)|accessdate=2009-01-16}} When tested in 1929 and 1930, it showed unsatisfactory handling characteristics and was rejected by the RAF in favour of the Hawker Fury biplane fighter.
Development
Specification F.20/27 was for a fighter operating in the daylight interception role. The main requirement was that the F.20/27 fighter would be able to overtake, in the shortest possible time, an enemy aircraft passing overhead at {{convert|150|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} at an altitude of {{convert|20,000|ft|m|abbr=off}}.Colin Sinnott, The Royal Air Force and Aircraft Design 1923-1939, Frank Cass publishing, UK 2001. This put the emphasis on high speed and rate of climb.
Design work on the Interceptor started in late 1927, and it made its first flight in early 1929, with Lieutenant L. G. Paget at the controls.James Goulding, Interceptor, Ian Allan Ltd., UK 1986. The Interceptor was a low-wing monoplane with an all-metal structure and wire-braced wings, covered mostly in fabric with the exception of the front fuselage. It had a fixed undercarriage. The single prototype was powered by an uncowled Bristol Mercury IIA, later replaced by a Mercury III. It was armed with two .303-inch (7.7-mm) Vickers Mk.II machine guns, installed in the sides of the fuselage with the breeches within reach of the pilot. The guns were synchronized to fire through the propeller, and heated to improve their operation at high altitude. The RAF had intended to call for four-gun armament in Specification F.20/27, but after an administrative mix-up it was sent out to manufacturers calling for only two guns.
The handling characteristics of the Interceptor have been described as "alarming."Tim Mason, British Flight Testing: Martlesham Heath 1920-1939, Putnam, UK 1993 In steep turns the elevator became ineffective, and the aircraft was prone to enter a spiral dive or a spin from such flight attitudes. The Mercury II engine suffered from persistent high oil temperatures. Test pilots gave a negative assessment of the Interceptor, causing it to be withdrawn from the F.20/27 competition.
The aircraft continued to fly until 1935, but no orders were placed. Significant aerodynamic modifications were made to improve the handling characteristics, including a considerable increase in the height of the fin and rudder, to improve spin recovery. The troublesome Mercury engine was exchanged for a Bristol Jupiter VII, and later fitted with a Townend ring to reduce drag.
The Interceptor and two of the competing F.20/27 designs, the Vickers Jockey and de Havilland DH.77, were historically important because they were monoplane fighter prototypes, after a long period during which the standard fighter design was a biplane. However, all three were found lacking in overall performance and handling during the test flights, showing that the aircraft designers had failed to reach the project goal.{{cite web|url=http://www.airwar.ru/enc/fww1/interceptor.html|title=Interceptor|accessdate=2009-01-16}} The F.20/27 competition was won by the Hornet, which entered service under the name Hawker Fury.
Specifications
{{Aircraft specs
|prime units?=imp
|crew=
|capacity=
|length ft=25
|length in=4
|length note=
|span ft=38
|span in=0
|span note=
|height ft=9
|height in=8
|height note=
|wing area sqft=214
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=
|airfoil=
|empty weight lb=2350
|empty weight note=
|gross weight lb=
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight lb=3325
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=Bristol Mercury IIA
|eng1 type=9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine
|eng1 hp=440
|eng1 note=
|prop blade number=2
|prop name=fixed-pitch propeller
|prop dia ft=
|prop dia in=
|prop dia note=
|max speed mph=192
|max speed note=
|cruise speed mph=164
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed mph=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed mph=
|never exceed speed note=
|range miles=385
|range note=
|combat range miles=
|combat range note=
|ferry range miles=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=
|ceiling ft=
|ceiling note=
|climb rate ftmin=
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|wing loading lb/sqft=
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption lb/mi=
|power/mass=
|more performance=
|guns=2x fixed forward firing .303 in (7.7 mm) Vickers machine guns
}}
See also
{{aircontent
|see also=
|related=
|similar aircraft=
- Armstrong Whitworth Starling II
- Bristol Bulldog Mk.II
- de Havilland DH.77
- Fairey Firefly II
- Hawker Fury
- Saunders A.10
- Vickers Jockey
|lists=
}}
References
{{commons category|Westland Interceptor}}
{{reflist}}
{{refbegin}}
{{refend}}
Derek N James: "Westland Aircraft Since 1915"
{{Westland aircraft}}
Category:1920s British fighter aircraft
Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft
Category:Aircraft first flown in 1929