Hawker Hind

infobox Aircraft
name = Hind
type = Light bomber, Trainer
manufacturer = Hawker Aircraft Limited

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300px_
caption = Hawker Hind, flying example in Shuttleworth Collection
designer = Sydney Camm
first flight = 12 September 1934
introduced = 1935
retired = 1957 (Afghanistan)
status =
primary user = Royal Air Force
more users = Iran New Zealand South Africa
produced = 1935-1938
number built = 528
unit cost =
variants with their own articles = Hawker Hart Hawker Hector Hawker P.V.4The British Hawker Hind was an Royal Air Force light bomber of the inter-war years produced by Hawker Aircraft. It was developed from the Hawker Hart day-bomber introduced in 1931.

Design and development

An improved Hawker Hart bomber defined by Specification G.7/34, was purchased by RAF as interim aircraft while more modern monoplane bombers such as the Fairey Battle were still in development. Structural elements were a mixture of steel and duralumin with the wings being fabric covered while the main differences compared to the earlier Hart was a new powerplant, (the Rolls Royce Kestrel V) and the inclusion of refinements from the earlier derivatives such as the cut-down rear cockpit developed for the Demon. The prototype ("K2915") was constructed very rapidly due to Hawker's development work for other proposals, and made its first flight on September 12, 1934. A variety of changes were subsequently incorporated ("ram's horn" manifolds, Fairy-Reed metal propeller and engine improvements) with the first production Hind ("K4636") flown on 4 September 1935.

Operational history

The Hind went into service in November 1935 and eventually equipped 20 RAF bomber squadrons. A number were also sold to foreign customers including Afghanistan, the Irish Free State, Latvia, Persia (Iran), Portugal, South Africa, Switzerland, and Yugoslavia. By 1937, the Hind was being phased out of frontline service, replaced by the Fairey Battle and Bristol Blenheim, and with many of the Auxiliary Air Force squadrons changing role to fighter or maritime patrol units. At the outbreak of the Second World War 613 Squadron remained retained the Hind in the Army co-operation role before re-equipping the Hawker Hector in November 1939. [ [http://192.5.30.122/history/h613.html History of No. 613 Squadron] Royal Air Force Air Historical Branch. Retrieved 13 January 2008] The Hind found a new career in 1938 as a training aircraft representing the next step up from basic training on Tiger Moths. It continued in use as an intermediate trainer during the Second World War.

Hind trainers were also operated by Canada and New Zealand.

In 1941, Hinds flew combat missions in their original role as light bombers. South African Hinds were employed against Italian forces in Kenya, Yugoslav Hinds were used against the Germans and Italians while Iranian Hinds were used briefly when invading Allied British and Soviet contingents attacked Iran.

Variants

;Hind I:Two-seat light bomber aircraft for the RAF.

Operators

;flag|Afghanistan|1931
*Afghan Air Force acquired 28 aircraft in 1938, the final example retiring in 1957.;flag|Canada|1921
*Royal Canadian Air Force;flagcountry|Iran|1925
*Imperial Iranian Air Force;IRL
*Irish Air Corps;LAT
*Latvian Air Force;NZL
*Royal New Zealand Air Force acquired 78 aircraft of which 63 entered service, primarily as trainers 1940-1943. The other 15 were lost to enemy action in transit.
**No. 3 F.T.S. Ohakea RNZAF
**No. 6 Squadron RNZAF
**No. 20 Squadron RNZAF
**No. 21 Squadron RNZAF
**No. 22 Squadron RNZAF;POR
*Portugal Air Force;flag|South Africa|1928
*South African Air Force;SUI
*Swiss Air Force;UK
*Royal Air Force
**No. 12 Squadron RAF
**No. 15 Squadron RAF
**No. 18 Squadron RAF
**No. 21 Squadron RAF
**No. 24 Squadron RAF
**No. 34 Squadron RAF
**No. 40 Squadron RAF
**No. 44 Squadron RAF
**No. 49 Squadron RAF
**No. 50 Squadron RAF
**No. 52 Squadron RAF
**No. 57 Squadron RAF
**No. 62 Squadron RAF
**No. 63 Squadron RAF
**No. 82 Squadron RAF
**No. 83 Squadron RAF
**No. 88 Squadron RAF
**No. 90 Squadron RAF
**No. 98 Squadron RAF
**No. 103 Squadron RAF
**No. 104 Squadron RAF
**No. 106 Squadron RAF
**No. 107 Squadron RAF
**No. 108 Squadron RAF
**No. 110 Squadron RAF
**No. 113 Squadron RAF
**No. 114 Squadron RAF
**No. 139 Squadron RAF
**No. 142 Squadron RAF
**No. 185 Squadron RAF
**No. 211 Squadron RAF
**No. 218 Squadron RAF
**No. 267 Squadron RAF
**No. 500 Squadron RAF
**No. 501 Squadron RAF
**No. 502 Squadron RAF
**No. 503 Squadron RAF
**No. 504 Squadron RAF
**No. 602 Squadron RAF
**No. 603 Squadron RAF
**No. 605 Squadron RAF
**No. 609 Squadron RAF
**No. 610 Squadron RAF
**No. 611 Squadron RAF
**No. 613 Squadron RAF
**No. 614 Squadron RAF
**No. 616 Squadron RAF;flag|Yugoslavia|kingdom
*Royal Yugoslav Air Force

urvivors

An airworthy ex-Afghan Hind flies with the Shuttleworth Collection. Others are on display at the RAF Museum in Hendon and the Canada Aviation Museum. Several former Royal New Zealand Air Force Hinds are being restored/reconstructed by the Subritzky family / The Classic Aircraft Collection at Dairy Flat near Auckland, of which at least NZ1517/K6687, and NZ1535/K6721 are under restoration to airworthy condition; substantial parts are also held for NZ1518/K6717, NZ1528/L7184, NZ1544/K6810 and NZ1554/K5465. Another former RNZAF Hind is being restored for static display at MoTaT. The remains of other Hinds were recently located in Afghanistan.

pecifications (Hind)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=prop
ref=The British Bomber since 1914Mason 1994, p.261.]
crew=2
capacity=
length main= 29 ft 3 in
length alt= 8.92 m
span main= 37 ft 3 in
span alt= 11.36 m
height main= 10 ft 7 in
height alt= 3.23 m
area main= 348 ft²
area alt= 32.3 m²
airfoil=
empty weight main= 3,195 lb
empty weight alt= 1,452 kg
loaded weight main= lb
loaded weight alt= kg
useful load main= lb
useful load alt= kg
max takeoff weight main= 4,657 lb
max takeoff weight alt= 2,167 kg
more general=
engine (jet)=
type of jet=
number of jets=
thrust main= lbf
thrust alt= kN
thrust original=
afterburning thrust main= lbf
afterburning thrust alt= kN
engine (prop)=Rolls-Royce Kestrel V
type of prop=Water cooled V-12
number of props= 1
power main= 640 hp
power alt= 477 kW
power original=
max speed main= 161 knots
max speed alt= 185 mph, 298 km/h
max speed more= at 15,500 ft
cruise speed main= knots
cruise speed alt= mph, km/h
never exceed speed main= knots
never exceed speed alt= mph, km/h
stall speed main= 39 knots
stall speed alt= 45 mph, 72 km/h
stall speed more="Air Transport Auxiliary Ferry Pilots Notes (reproduction)". Elvington, York, UK: Yorkshire Air Museum, 1996. ISBN 0-9512379-8-5.]
range main= 374 nm
range alt= 430 mi, 692 km
ceiling main= 26,400 ft
ceiling alt= 8,050 m
climb rate main= ft/min
climb rate alt= m/s
loading main= 13.3 lb/ft²
loading alt= 37.1 kg/m²
thrust/weight=
power/mass main= 0.14 hp/lb
power/mass alt= 0.22 kW/kg
more performance=
*Climb to 10,000 ft 8 minutes 6 seconds
armament=
* One synchronised forward firing Vickers gun and one Lewis gun in rear cockpit
* Up to 510lb (227 kg) bombs under wings.
avionics=

ee also

aircontent
related=
Hawker Hart -
Hawker Audax -
Hawker Demon
similar aircraft=
Fairey Fox -
Vickers Vildebeest
sequence=
lists=
* List of aircraft of the Royal Air Force
* List of bomber aircraft
see also=

References

* Mason, Francis K. "The British Bomber Since 1914". London: Putnam Aeronautical Books, 1994. ISBN 0-85177-861-5.

External links

* [http://www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/hind.html Hawker Hind]
* [http://www.jaapteeuwen.com/ww2aircraft/html%20pages/hawker%20hind.htm British Aircraft of world War II: Hawker Hind]
* [http://www.aviation.technomuses.ca/collections/artifacts/aircraft/HawkerHind.shtml The Hawker Hind in Canada]