Volume 25 #3, Issue 116French Flair
Our last Mystery Aircraft was a ...HAWKER DANECOCK / DANKOK![]() Although one of the lesser known inter-war RAF fighters, the Hawker Woodcock was significant in its own right. It was the first to be specifically designed as a night-fighter and the first fighter to enter production in post World War One Britain. The Danes had an already good relationship with an English aero company, having purchased and also licence built the Avro 504, so consequently had little hesitation in placing an order following an evaluation of the Woodcock II demonstration aircraft. Hawker Engineering were asked to supply three similar aircraft and the Danes also commenced negotiations to acquire a license for production of further examples, adopting the name Dankok. Here we look at the type and also focus on the only known survivor. Finland's Hurricane -The VL PYÖRREMYRSKY![]() From the end of the Winter War into the early part of the Continuation War, Finland’s State Aircraft Factory was still producing the obsolete Fokker D.21 fighters which, although had performed admirably, were now no longer capable in combat. Their replacement was the indigenous VL Myrsky (Storm), series production of which had begun in 1942 prior to the fighter entering operational service in August 1944. However there were also plans to build a more capable fighter - the VL Pyörremyrsky (Hurricane). Circumstances saw only one example built and fortunately that aircraft survives today. This article looks at the aircraft’s troubled life. The Smith Selection
Percival Passion![]() In 1930s Great Britain, wood and fabric were still popular materials for aircraft construction and during that Golden Age of aviation some delightfully stylish wooden monoplanes began to emerge from UK factories to challenge the biplanes of the day for supremacy in the skies. The de Havilland Aircraft Company, Avro , Spartan, Miles brothers, and Australian born Edgar Percival all contributed. The new ‘Gull’ series by Percival Aircraft really ‘hit the ground running’ with reliable, robust and notably fast touring aeroplanes and the name ‘Percival Gull’ was soon linked to impressive record flights spanning much of the globe. Here we take a look at the evolution of the type. Kip Aero's Sopwith 1 ½ Strutter
Breathing life back into capable classicAs global interest in ‘Golden Age’ classics continues to grow, it is pleasing to see the labour intensive restorations of these wooden touring monoplanes that emerged from the well known British companies are starting to breathe life into a growing number of these types. Although built for military service during WWII, the Proctor was effectively a ‘sheep in wolf’s clothing’, having evolved from the elegant Vega Gull, so restored examples can be returned to their military uniforms or take on the civilian colours that a great many wore for the decades that followed WWII. In this feature, Brian Turner details the journey to bring one such survivor back to full health. |
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