The Gloster Javelin was a much under-rated aircraft that has received less then its fair share of books. This book covers the Javelin’s service career comprehensively and will probably long be the definitive account of a fighter that was significant and important to the RAF, if not for its direct service but as it role in preparing for the next generations. A must read for aviation enthusiasts.
NAME: Gloster Javelin, an operational history FILE: R2478 AUTHOR: Michael Napier PUBLISHER: Pen & Sword BINDING: hard back PAGES: 264 PRICE: £25.00 GENRE: Non Fiction SUBJECT: Air war, night fighters, Cold War, jet fighter, trans-sonic, range, radar, missiles, rockets, guns, infrared, All-Weather fighter
ISBN: 1-47384-881-4
IMAGE: B2478.jpg BUYNOW: http://tinyurl.com/lur9owx LINKS: DESCRIPTION: The Gloster Javelin was a much under-rated aircraft that has received less then its fair share of books. This book covers the Javelin's service career comprehensively and will probably long be the definitive account of a fighter that was significant and important to the RAF, if not for its direct service but as it role in preparing for the next generations. A must read for aviation enthusiasts. The Gloucester Javelin was prepared to the same Air Ministry specification that the De Havilland DH110 was designed to meet. The two aircraft were very different and the DH110 probably lost out because of the spectacular crash at the Farnborough Air Display that killed its pilot and showered the spectators with wreckage. De Havilland had used the twin boom design to allow the first jet engines to avoid long exhaust ducts, reducing active thrust. With the Vampire/ Venoms that started entering service with the RAF in the closing months of WWII, this was very important. The Meteor solved the problems of early engines by wing mounting two engines in minimal housings so that the inlet and exhaust ducts were very short, almost non-existent. The Vampire was to rely on a single engine and that meant finding a way of keeping the nose clear for guns and keeping the exhaust as short as possible. By placing intakes in the wing roots and bifurcating the intake air supply, a short intake length was achieved. Providing two booms from the trailing edge of the wings to take the tailplane allowed the engine to exhaust without a long duct pipe. The DH110 was to employ two Avon engines and a similar configuration was not only something De Havilland was used to, but it avoided the complications of alternative configurations. The English Electric P1 (Lightning) had to accommodate after-burning and used an over and under configuration that was to delay construction and continued to present fire problems through its life. Glosters took an equally innovative approach and employed a delta wing and raised 'T' tail plane. This also allowed for very short exhaust ducts. The design also allowed the provision an all-missile armament with unguided rockets in place of guns and Firestreak guided missiles on under-win pylons. For the RAF requirement, De Havilland had provided a choice of mounting four cannon in bays to either side of the nose wheel that could be replaced by retractable rocket pods. The RAF opted for a gun armament and provision for four Firestreak guided missiles on pylons under the wings. They produced a fighter that was considerably larger than the DH110. What made the Javelin significant to the RAF was not in great performance, or use in combat, but as a sturdy platform that would provide first experience of a true All Weather Fighter. It was also provided with better range than the typical RAF point interceptors and allowed for the use of air-to-air refuelling. What was learned by flying the Javelin was incorporated into design and tactics for the aircraft that were to follow. In service, a Javelin squadron was usually based at an airfield with Hawker Hunter day fighters. The Hunter was a beautiful single seat aircraft that was trans-sonic and a pilot's aircraft. That may be one reason why the massive, corpulent Javelin failed to excite much general appreciation. It also failed to win export success as the Hunter achieved and it had a much shorter service life.