File:Hawker_Hurricane_I_'R4118_UP-W'_(G-HUPW)_(41455530471).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
The Hawker Hurricane was a family of fighter aircraft first produced in 1935 by the British aircraft manufacturer Hawker. It became one of the most important British fighters of World War II, playing a crucial role in defending Britain during the Battle of Britain.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Type
- Fighter aircraft
- National origin
- United Kingdom
- Manufacturer
- Hawker Aircraft
- Designer
- Sydney Camm
- Built by
- Austin Motor Company Avions Fairey Canadian Car and Foundry Gloster Aircraft Company Rogožarski Zmaj Aircraft
- Primary users
- Royal Air Force Royal Canadian Air Force Royal Navy Soviet Air Forces
- Number built
- 14,487 (UK and Canada)
- Manufactured
- 1937–1944
- Introduction date
- December 1937
- First flight
- 6 November 1935
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Operator
- Yugoslav Air Force
- Country of origin
- United Kingdom
- Manufacturer
- Hawker Aircraft
- Designed by
- Sydney Camm
- Image
- Hawker Hurricane I 'R4118 UP-W' (G-HUPW) (41455530471).jpg
- Has use
- multi-role combat aircraft
Show 9 more facts
- first flight
- 1935-11-06
- Commons category
- Hawker Hurricane
- powered by
- Merlin
- armament
- unguided bomb
- topic's main category
- Category:Hawker Hurricane
- Commons gallery
- Hawker Hurricane
- total produced
- 14532
- native label
- Hawker Hurricane
- service entry
- 1937-00-00
via Wikidata · CC0
~40 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by the Supermarine Spitfire during the Battle of Britain in 1940, but the Hurricane inflicted 60% of the losses sustained by the Luftwaffe in the campaign, and fought in all the major theatres of the Second World War.
The Hurricane originated from discussions between RAF officials and aircraft designer Sir Sydney Camm about a proposed monoplane derivative of the Hawker Fury biplane in the early 1930s. Despite an institutional preference for biplanes and lack of interest by the Air Ministry, Hawker refined its monoplane proposal, incorporating several innovations which became critical to wartime fighter aircraft, including retractable landing gear and the more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. The Air Ministry ordered Hawker's Interceptor Monoplane in late 1934, and the prototype Hurricane K5083 performed its maiden flight on 6 November 1935.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Hawker Hurricane” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.