In December 1945, the Air Ministry had informed Hawker that ground attack would be the Fury I’s primary role. With the war over and the future of fighting aircraft pointing toward jet power, orders for the Fury I were reduced again in September 1945 to 120 units. Work to install a Sabre engine in LA610 began in July 1945. But in March 1945, two additional Sabre-powered prototypes (VP207 and VP213) were requested. ![]() However, in February 1945 the Fury I order was reduced by 50 aircraft to 150. In November 1944, the MAP requested a Sabre-powered Fury prototype be built utilizing the Griffon-powered LA610 airframe. In October 1944, the Ministry of Aircraft Production (MAP) assured Hawker that Sabre production would continue. The large duct under the spinner housed the radiator, similar to that used on the Tempest V and VI.Īlthough the Air Ministry ordered 200 Sabre-powered Fury I aircraft in August 1944, there were rumors that Sabre production would be shut down following the war’s end. The Hawker Fury LA610 originally flew with a Griffon engine and contra-rotating propellers. The Centaurus-powered Fury (NX798) first flew on 1 September 1944 followed by the Griffon-powered Fury (LA610) on 27 November 1944. Although the detailed design drawings for the Sabre-powered Fury were finished first, developmental delays of the new Sabre VII (NS.93/SM) engine resulted in the Centaurus- and Griffon-powered Furys being completed first. Around this time, the two new Hawker aircraft received their official names: Fury (for the Royal Air Force’s land-based version) and Sea Fury (for the Fleet Air Arm’s naval version).įrom the beginning, the preferred power plants were the Napier Sabre for the Fury and the Bristol Centaurs for the Sea Fury. This plan was approved, and Specification N.22/43 was issued to Hawker for the new Navy fighter. Sydney Camm, Hawker’s chief designer, felt that arresting gear and folding wings could be added to the “improved Tempest” design to make it meet the requirements laid out in N.7/43. In April 1943, Specification N.7/43 was issued for a new Navy fighter. The Air Ministry supported Hawker’s designs under Specification F.2/43 issued in February 1943. On 1 July 1941 Hemmingway was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).The Napier Sabre-powered Hawker Fury LA610 in-flight exhibiting exactly what a high-performance aircraft should look like. He was shot down again over Eastchurch in Kent just a week later. In August 1940, he was forced to bail out over the Thames Estuary when his plane was damaged. He was credited with destroying a Heinkel He 111 bomber and a Dornier Do 17.ĭuring the Battle of Dunkirk, he flew supporting missions over the Channel, before flying Hurricanes in daily sorties during the Battle of Britain throughout the summer of 1940. "Paddy deserves our deep gratitude for all he did to preserve the freedoms we now enjoy."īorn in Dublin in 1919, John Hemingway joined the RAF in 1938 and, following the outbreak of the Second World War, was assigned to 85 Squadron in France. He fought bravely to uphold our values and way of life in the face of tyranny, laying the foundation for the way we deliver collective Air Defence through NATO to deter those who would do us harm. ![]() "As a fighter pilot during the Battle of Britain, he defended the skies over the UK daily, much as our Typhoon pilots do today. The RAF's Air Marshal Sir Rich Knighton said: "Group Captain Paddy Hemingway, the last of The Few, is a true inspiration and his accomplishments are as relevant today as they were more than 80 years ago. Group Captain Hemmingway was brought to the vintage fighter in a wheelchair, and its engines were powered up, so he could once again experience the sight and sound of his WWII "office".
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