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Bristol Blenheim I (Type 142M) The 1930s background
211 Squadron El Dabaa 1939, LJ-R (L1490) leading (CFR Clark) In Britain, the metropolitan airforce grew rapidly with the successive expansion plans of the period, the Blenheim for example being one element of Expansion Scheme C. In the flurry of rapid growth, the Air Ministry and Air Staff struggled to juggle resources and to rethink requirements as better designs came into being through the specification system and through private venture. Here, too, lay the roots of somewhat confused progress among the sound, the not so sound and the ill-judged, with fatally slow development for some projects (like the Boulton Paul Defiant), effectively none for others pressed into production (like the Fairey Battle), and comparatively speedy development for others (like the Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley and the Blenheim). Bristol beginnings Among the so-called Press Barons of the early 20th Century United Kingdom, the Harmsworth brothers were prominent if not pre-eminent as owners of the The Daily Mail, The Times, and The Daily Mirror. The younger of the two, Lord Rothermere, had earlier been the first Secretary of State for the Royal Air Force in the turbulent World War I period under Lloyd George. Still actively interested in aviation, Bristol's Type 135 design for a 2 crew, 6 passenger twin (2xBristol Aquila) came to Rothermere’s attention in early 1934, his interest in a fast personal transport having been piqued by that of Beaverbrook (also a media magnate) in the Douglas DC1. In the end, after some cautious discussion with both the Air Ministry and with the press baron, Bristols offered and Rothermere ordered the up-rated Type 142 private venture (2xBristol Mercury), which as built became his personal aircraft Britain First. This, the sole Type 142, was donated by its owner to the Air Ministry shortly after delivery. The original Bristol Type 135 design was never built, proceeding instead to a further development, the Type 143 with 2xAquilas and slightly enlarged to 8 passengers plus 2 crew. A single Type 143 was built in parallel with the Type 142. A militarised transport version of the Type 143 was also proposed (the Type 143F with 2 Mercury IX). With an interchangeable nose/armament option and provision for a “free-mounted Lewis” in a dorsal position, the Type 143F design attracted the attention of the Finnish government who opened negotiations to buy 9 of the type. However, the Finnish proposal was overtaken by the RAF's initial order for 150 of the Type 142M Blenheim (which the Finns subsequently both bought and license built). Likewise, Bristols were unable to take up Rothermere's offer to order a replacement for his donated Type 142. Blenheim development The task was a major redesign: of the wing centre-section and fuselage (raising the wing to mid-fuselage to provide for a bomb-bay stressed for 1000lbs); of the nose (to provide navigating and bomb-aiming positions beside the pilot); of the rear fuselage (to add the dorsal turret and radio operator's position); and for provision of all the associated military equipment (turret hydraulics, flares, bombing and gunnery hardware, radio, hatches, dinghy, external hard points); and re-stressing of the airframe for military use. Result: a 19% increase in empty weight (from 6,300lb to 8,100lb) for a 2,400lb or 24% increase in all-up weight to 12,200lb (though weight reports vary) and the raising of the tailplane by 8". A major redesign, by any standard. Development was quick in the sense that production orders were placed straight off-plan: that is, off the Type 142M plans. Following the Britain First first flight at Bristol Filton in April 1935, Bristol's July 1935 Type 142M proposal was met with Air Ministry Spec B.28/35 (bomber) in August, incorporating the modifications described above and followed immediately by the first production order for 150 aircraft. The first flight of the Type 142M/Blenheim I prototype K7033 took place on 25 Jun 1936, 14 months after the Britain First flight. Service trials followed, and the design was given final production approval in December 1936. The first service delivery (K7036) on 10 March 1937 was just short of 2 years development since the "Britain First" flight, and not far short of 4 years from Barnwell's initial twin design. Successful conversion: no doubt. Quick? Perhaps. A tribute to Barnwell's expertise? Certainly. But let's not pretend it was simple. The fabled top speed of 307 mph (and more realistically, of 285 mph with maximum load) were in fact those achieved by Britain First, and in its as-delivered condition. Mischievously, Jane's 1938 edition quoted the latter as the Type 142M/Blenheim I top speed, often re-quoted since, alongside the equally unattainable 295mph for the Mark IV. Development summary
Into service
For the period between its service entry in March 1937 and the arrival of Hawker Hurricanes in 111 Squadron at Christmas that year, the Blenheim was as fast as any fighter in the RAF. Bristol figures show, for production Blenheim Mark Is, a maximum full-load speed of 279 mph at 15,000 ft and of 265 mph at 10,000 ft. For the Mark IV, Bristol data show a maximum speed of 266 mph at 11,800 ft. By 1941, ageing operational aircraft could not have achieved such speeds in level flight. In action, fully laden aircraft on a long sortie might cruise at 180 mph or 200mph for an endurance of around 5 hours. At high power settings, the consumption of the Mercuries made daunting inroads into the 280 gallon fuel capacity of the Mark I. While cruising with the mixture set fully lean, you might eke out 40 gallons of 87 octane an hour but pull on +5lb of boost in rich mixture to dodge an unwelcome visitor and you might be looking at 160 gallons an hour or more (though the Mark VIII Mercuries were only rated to stand this treatment for 5 minutes!). By the time Mark IV Blenheims entered service at home in early 1939, Mark Is had found their way to the Middle East and the Far East. By 1940 in Europe, and by 1941 overseas, the Blenheim's place as a fast medium day bomber had been eclipsed by later developments. Under-bombed, under-gunned and under-powered, Mark Is and Mark IVs alike were obsolescent if not obsolete. Even so, the Blenheim had been built in large numbers and was very active in the early part of the RAF’s war. Operating in every conceivable role and in literally every Home and Overseas Command, the Blenheim recorded many “firsts”, apart from the early technical achievements already noted. Its service as the first radar night fighter may stand as exemplar for them all. With the Battle of Britain and the beginning of Luftwaffe night bombing attacks, 6 RAF Squadrons were equipped with Blenheim IFs converted to the night fighter role, fitted successively with Aerial Interception (AI) Mark II, III and IV radar sets. At the time, a nimble multi-seat twin was highly desirable as a night fighter, the early AI radar sets weighing around 600 lb. The first successful radar night interception was achieved by a Fighter Interception Unit Blenheim IF with AI Mark IV on 22/23 July 1940, guided to AI range by Ground Controlled Interception (the standard technique). The Blenheims continued radar night fighter operations with modest success until April 1941, even as Beaufighters were being introduced. As radar development continued, Blenheim Mark IFs with obsolete AI sets accompanied Mark IV bombers on offensive night intruder operations over occupied Europe. The Blenheim paid the price for being conceived in that period of rapid development which saw it arrive as the premier medium day bomber of the time (with the similarly tasked Battle its contemporary), just as equally radical development in fighter design was bearing fruit. The Air Ministry and the Air Staff had contemplated and successfully encouraged rapid development of high speed monoplane bomber and interceptor designs virtually simultaneously in 1934 and 1935. The urgent need to expand with modern equipment apart, the rationale for pressing ahead with lightly armed day bombers in such quantity while developing the Hurricane and Spitfire remains to be explained. Even if the powered turret of the Blenheim was then at the forefront of technology, the entry to service of high speed, single-seat multi-gun monoplane fighters rendered the fast medium day bomber role untenable for the time being. Speed, power, armament and endurance all advanced very greatly in those few short years before war finally came again to Europe. All were to advance again in the press of war. Blenheim Is in the Middle East and Far East When Italy entered the war in June 1940, the RAF Middle East order of battle included nine Blenheim squadrons:
In India and the Far East at the same date Nos, 34, 60 and 62 Squadrons operated Blenheim Is. For No. 27 Squadron, it was to be November 1940 before their mixed bag of Wapitis, Harts and Tiger Moths could be exchanged for Blenheim IFs (the fighter version, created by the addition of a four Browning gun belly pack under the bomb bay). By May 1941, RAF Middle East had at its disposal the following 11 Blenheim Squadrons:
In December 1941, Japan opened hostilities across the Far East and Pacific. Re-equipped in strength with Mark IVs, 84 Squadron and 211 Squadron (now released from 72 OTU duties) were in transit to the Far East from mid to late January 1942. 113 Squadron had already departed the Middle East in early January with their sixteen Mark IVs, to operate from Burma. There they were joined in February by 45 Squadron to fight against the advancing Japanese until forced to withdraw to India. By March 1942, disaster had befallen the Blenheim Squadrons in the struggle for Singapore, Sumatra and Java (Nos 27, 34, 60 (Mark Is and Buffalos), 62 (Mark Is and Hudsons), 84, and 211) and for Burma. Transferring to Colombo that month, 11 Squadron (now with Mark IVs) also had anxious moments but survived. By April 42, RAF Middle East was still operating Blenheim units in the Western Desert, for example 203 Squadron, 55 Squadron, (Mark IVs), 14 Squadron, (Mark IVs) at various posts. The best in-print sources recognise that the official records of these Units, their movements and their place in Orders of Battle is incomplete and occasionally in conflict, as are later interpretations of the state of play. It was a difficult period of WWII. Specifications
211 Squadron Blenheim Is
In late April, the Squadron moved briefly to its war-station at El Dabaa before returning to Ismailia on 1 May to complete the conversion. By the end of the month they had taken all 18 Blenheims on charge from the Aircraft Depot, RAF Aboukir (12 as Initial Equipment and 6 as their Immediate Reserve). A busy and somewhat frustrating period followed, as the Squadron also undertook servicing of newly-arrived Blenheims air-ferried in from the UK by Blenheim Delivery Flights, consequent local ferrying duties, servicing of its own Blenheims while addressing local equipment difficulties; and limited flying of its own machines. Still, by July 1939 their training programme was in full swing, though they were still bedevilled with technical shortages, particularly of W/T sets for the aircraft and of the tools and servicing equipment needed for maintenance.
Codes painted over, Vokes filters fitted and ready for desert work: running up at a permanent RAF station, Ismailia from the RAAFA Aviation Heritage Museum caption. The aircraft serial is only faintly visible and may be L1528 or L8523. The overall state of the aircraft may be consistent with recent arrival, perhaps after a Blenheim Delivery Flight. By early August, whatever the problems, the tense political situation saw RAF ME Squadrons adopting a state of readiness and moving forward to their war stations. On 10 August, 211 Squadron returned to Daba and desert life. Meanwhile, Blenheim Delivery Flights from the UK to the Middle East continued, the air-ferry task offering an opportunity for a spot of adventure and Home leave for 211 Squadron aircrew. A number were detached to the UK for BDF duties, and these carried on until war broke out. The result of these late jaunts was, however, unfortunate from the Squadron’s point of view, as the two crews absent on BDF duty at 4 September were promptly shanghaied in the UK: F/O WH Edwards and P/O Pat Burnett, along with their Observers (Sgt Allan and LAC Tickner) and W/Ops (F/Sgt Horwood and AC Wright). Edwards was promoted and went on to be decorated for his service in 2 Group until falling PoW, as recounted elsewhere. Burnett did eventually return to the Squadron, arriving on 4 January 1940 and command of 'B' Flight for a period, before resuming as Adjutant on 21 March 1940. By April he was flying again, the last 211 Squadron ORB entry for him being a sortie on 23 April 1940 to search for a suspect submarine. Pat Burnett went on to serve elsewhere in the Desert and as an Instructor at Ismailia, before returning to the UK where he completed a further 45 sorties and was twice decorated (DSO, DFC) for his service with 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron and 9 Squadron. He retired an Air Commodore, and passed away in March 2004.
Sgt Observer GA “Jimmy” Riddle, left, P/O “Bobby” Campbell, centre and LAC Banyard WOp/AG right, stand in front of a Blenheim I. The state of the exhaust collector rings suggests a recent engine change. Taken at an Advanced Landing Ground by Capt Balfour, Army Liaison Officer to the Squadron. Campbell and Riddle are very familiar figures from the Desert, Greece and beyond. Banyard appears in the Squadron record of raids a number of times in August 1940 but not thereafter. The ORB for June and July did not, unfortunately, record individual sorties. Here, too is further evidence of a 211 Squadron practice more common than might once have been supposed: the bomb-load is clearly 4xSBC and the bomb-bay doors have accordingly been removed. The same modification is also documented in the Parade article, and in an in-flight shot once in Bill Baird’s collection. An all-too-rare shot from the desert, and a privilege to share here, thanks to the late Jimmy Riddle and Ian Carter.
Greece, most likely, from the working blues. Sgt Jack WainhouseWOp/AG left and Sgt George “Check” Checkets WOp/AG right. Blenheim Is in 211 Squadron service included: May 1939 to June 1940 *L1486 Undershot night landing and damaged beyond repair (DBR) 13 March 1940, P/O Collier & LAC Thomas hospitalised. See Grierson, Cooper, Sainsbury and Wingrove photos. June 1940 to April 1941 L8376 UQ-D Damaged by CR.42 attack and forced landed, deadstick at Derna 4 September 1940 . S/Ldr Bax, Sgt Bain, AC Wise safe but PoW. L8531 Destroyed on the ground, Paramythia 22 March 1941, see CFR Clark Operations in Greece. L8511 Damaged by flak in raid over Valona. Single-engine wheels-up forced landing, Corfu 24 November 1940. Incorrectly recorded as L8411 in ORB. S/Ldr Gordon Finlayson DFC, P/O Davies, P/O Geary DFC safe and returned to Squadron May to June 1941 Note: These lists of aircraft flown by 211 Squadron personnel were sourced from the Operations Record Book and from aircrew Logbook facsimiles or transcripts. In the nature of things, aircraft recorded as flown by 211 Squadron crews may not have been recorded as on 211 Squadron charge. ORB and Logbook entries or transcripts are good sources but may nevertheless contain errors. There are some discrepancies with Warner’s account. L6670 Shown here with the Squadron's wartime UQ code but without an individual letter, L6670 apparently operated as UQ-R for some period. In the RAF phonetics alphabet (up until 1942, at least) R was voiced as "R for Robert" — a name The Bish was wont to use of himself. At some period in 1939, L1490, too had operated as R-Robert: but wearing the codes LJ-R, and not in The Bish’s hands.
One of the best known pictures of a 211 Squadron aircraft, shown here in desert paint (Middle Stone, Dark Earth and blue undersurfaces apparently lighter in tone than the Azure Blue of the Mark IV seen on the late Len Cooper’s page. This photograph has been been published on a number of occasions captioned as “at a forward landing ground” or “at Paramythia”, but see the next photograph. Compare also with Geoff Grierson’s shot of L1483 shown on the Middle East page. The squadron letters here may be dull red, and have been interpreted that way by many illustrators, but it is difficult to be certain that they are not in fact grey..
Compared with the highly cropped state so often used, here the original full-frame photograph shows L6670 caught mid-flare and within feet of the ground, quite unmistakably at Menidi (Tatoi) with the mass of Parnes in the background. The blurred masses seen centre-ground below the mainwheels are the Flight tents on the far side of the landing run. For other pictures of Menidi (Tatoi) topography see Clark, Checketts, Cooper, Fryatt, Tatoi today. It seems that the enlarged, cropped version is the source of the confusion in reference works and illustrations about the correct Squadron code at this period: UQ, applied in red or grey, has often been misinterpreted. Photo source: Royal Air Force in the World War, Volume 3 1940-1945, N Macmillan (Harrap 1949). Macmillan gave no attribution, though the cropped version is sometimes credited to the Imperial War Museum. In 1998 I inquired of the IWM Photograph Archive about photographs of 211 Squadron personnel or aircraft. Their response was that there were none, however, it is clear that this is an official photograph, of which there are a great many versions in print and on-line.
Jim Wyse’ late father served with 70 Squadron as an Observer in the Middle East until late 1939, and the shot is from his album of photographs. Sgt Wyse DFM went on to serve in 59 Squadron with Blenheim IVs in France in 1940, surviving to escape from Dunkirk aboard one of the “little boats”. This nice shot was apparently taken at a large permanent RAF station in the ME, possibly Ismailia or possibly Habbaniyah from Sgt Wyse’ service dates and 70 Squadron moves. The turret is not only retracted but apparently with the VGO unmounted. This, with the presence of personnel in civilian clothes, suggests a peace-time date perhaps between 1937 and 1939. The aircraft is shown in the factory-issue European camouflage of that period. The undersides are night black, the upper surfaces dark earth dark/green. There are no under-wing roundels, while the serials are in the original large white style. Possibly taken on orthochrome film, suggested by the tones of the fuselage roundel, apparently Type A.1 with the yellow comparatively dark, the (dark) blue outer rather light, and the red centre comparatively dark. Although ortho film prints can be hard to interpret, in this case it is plain that the yellow Type A.1 outer is present rather than overpainted with camouflage. The outer ring is uniform in tone and discontinuous with the borders of the dark earth/dark brown pattern just forward of the roundel. James Halley’s K File: The Royal Air Force of the 1930s (Air Britain 1995), a valuable and mostly reliable reference, records K7096 as arriving in the Middle East at "Air Depot Aboukir 1 Dec 1937, erected and deld to 30 Sqn, presumed lost in Greece Apr 1941". Unfortunately, RAF ME aircraft records are not as complete as those for Home commands, and in this case the presumed fate of K7096 is in error. No. 30 Squadron operated Blenheims mainly out of Ismailia from Jan 38 until the outbreak of war in the ME, and then in the Western Desert along with Mark IFs. Wherever K7096 had been engaged, she later saw service with 211 Squadron during the establishment of 72 OTU, where she was already on strength in July 1941 as recorded in the Logs of both Charlie Pailethorpe (Navigator) and of Bob Barclay (in the turret): “23/7/41 Blenheim K7096: Pilot Taffy Watson [Watkins], WOp RMB [Barclay]. To Wadi Gazouza 0.50 [min]” Blenheim Is at 72 OTU June 1941–Dec 1941, Wadi Gazouza Les Payne was one of the RAAF pilots on the early 211 Squadron (soon to be 72 OTU) Blenheim operations course at Wadi Gazouza from July 1941. 404114 Sgt PL Payne was referred to as “Perce” in the service, by eg Bill Burnside and others. Les now lives in retirement in Queensland. From his time at Middle East Pool, 72 OTU, and 11 Squadron, he has dug out some magnificent prints of airmen, aircraft, and scenery from his collection, which he has kindly shared with Adrian Fryatt and I. Two examples follow, to start with.
The same shot is among the personal papers of Bill Burnside in the Australian War Memorial archives. Two Blenheims in close formation at Wadi Gazouza in mid to late 1941. From the position, it is shot from the Observer’s seat in the aircraft of the flight leader of a vic formation, looking starboard to his no. 3, who is well tucked in here. This tight formation hints at the roots of their optimism about the power of combined defensive fire from the turrets: the closer the better. For flying like this, the pilots needed not only a bit of daring, but the skill and confidence in each other that came from practice. Done well, it could even be made to work in cloud. Pretty hair stuff.
Les went on to remark that this Mark I Blenheim had hydraulic failure, and that after fitting new props and oil coolers (and Vokes air filters, presumably!) it was back in the air. By late 1941, the Mark Is were getting decidedly worn and the hydraulics, tricky enough on their own account, could also fail with the result seen here. The RAAF boys suffered a spate of accidents, and also occasionally got lost. These are terrific photographs.
www.211squadron.org © DR Clark & others 1998–2008 |
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