Meteor: Britain’s First Jet-Powered Cold War Warrior

132 Pages·2012·102.028 MB·English

by  Martyn Chorlton

ME TEOR
'BRITAIN’S FIRST JET-POWERED COLD WAR WARRIOR'
£7.95
ICONS

METEOR
Britain’s fi rst jet fighter
THE STORY of the Gloster Meteor is one of sadly for many, their last. Approximately 890 service across the globe. It was with foreign air
the greatest in the history of the aviation Meteors were lost in RAF service, resulting in the forces that the Meteor saw more action with
industry and one we generally take for deaths of 434 pilots; and this was during coups and revolutions in Argentina and the
granted. This pioneering aircraft was not peace-time. The period during 1950 and 1953 Suez campaign for the Egyptian NF Mk 13s.
particularly advanced, was given very little was so bad (150 losses in 1952 alone) that the It was the F Mk 8s of 77 Squadron, RAAF in
chance to prove itself in combat but, as a whole method of fl ying training was being Korea that chalked up the highest operational
‘fi rst-generation’ jet, its arrival launched the questioned but the bottom line was that the combat record, fl ying 4,836 sorties, shooting
RAF into a new era. Meteor was not a diffi cult aircraft to fl y although down six Mig-15s albeit for the loss of 30 of its
Development of the jet engine, thanks to the it was certainly not ‘viceless’. It was a challenging own. Hopelessly outclassed by the Mig-15, the
eff orts of Frank Whittle, began in 1936, and as machine, especially when fl own asymmetrically, Korean War was the type’s only full opportunity
with all military projects, the outbreak of the when airspeed was critical and the brute to show its metal but, by 1950 the type was
Second World War saw his work accelerate to strength required on the rudder pedal to keep being superseded by the world’s swept
the point of the fi rst fl ight of the E.28/39 from the beast straight was considerable. It was in wing jets.
Cranwell in May 1941. Less than two years later, this confi guration that many pilots were caught Today, any self-respecting aviation museum
the F.9/40 was off the ground and, by August, out and those who survived their training to has at least one Meteor of some description on
the fi rst Meteor F Mk 1s were entering service serve on an operational squadron were advised display but considering nearly 4,000 were built,
with 616 Squadron. This was an incredible not to practice the technique because it was a mere fi ve remain airworthy. In Britain, we are
achievement which saw the Meteor poised to generally described as ‘too bloody dangerous!’ lucky that four of them live here, two of them,
re-equip a host of RAF squadrons during the Regardless, the Meteor was a huge success WA638 and WL419, both T Mk 7/F Mk 8 hybrids,
immediate post-war era. By 1950, the best of story for the Gloster Aircraft Company and the still work for a living with Martin-Baker at
the day fi ghter breed had arrived in the shape industry as a whole. Armstrong Whitworth Chalgrove. Also, NF Mk 11 WM167 (G-LOSM)
of the F Mk 8 and, for the next fi ve years, benefi tted enormously from sub- and recently restored Meteor T Mk 7 WA591
over 30 operational units were fl ying the contracts and later production orders (G-BWMF) are both operated by Air Atlantique’s
type, up until the arrival of the ‘second- for all of the night-fi ghter variants. Classic Aircraft Trust. Overseas, only one Meteor
generation’ Hawker Hunter. Overseas orders were healthy is still fl ying and this is ex-RAF ex-VZ467, an F
The ubiquitous T Mk 7 saw hundreds, if as well with all marks, Mk 8 which is displayed in the colours of 77
not thousands, of potential pilots from the F Mk 3 Squadron, by the Temora Aviation Museum
experience their fi rst taste of jet fl ying and, onwards, seeing in New South Wales.
Martyn Chorlton
July, 2012
WL419, A T Mk 7/F Mk 8 hybrid, has been serving
Martin-Baker since 1964 and continues to do so.
Martin-Baker has been using Meteors since 1945.
WL419 is its ninth and along with WA638 will
inevitably be their last.
Martin-Baker via Martyn Chorlton
Acknowledgements
Tony Buttler (Contributor)
Claire Chorlton (Proofi ng)
Owen Cooper (Contributor)
Derek D Dempster (Contributor)
Andy Hay (Artwork)
Tony Haig-Thomas (Contributor)
Peter Heath (Contributor)
Sue Keily (Ad Sales Manager)
Mark Lambert (Contributor)
Cover Caption: The Gloster F Mk 4 demonstrator, G-AIDC, pictured Tim Mason (Contributor)
off the south coast of England in September 1946. The aircraft was
Dennis Newton (Contributor)
‘pranged’ by a Belgian pilot in 1947 but was rebuilt as the T Mk 7
Zoe Tabourajis (Art Editor)
demonstrator G-AKPK. Aeroplane
R G Worcester (Contributor)
Published by Kelsey Publishing Ltd. Printed at William Gibbons & Sons Ltd on behalf of Kelsey Publishing Ltd,
Cudham Tithe Barn, Berry's Hill, Cudham, Kent TN16 3AG. Tel: [phone]. Fax: [phone]. METEOR | 3
Email: [email protected]. Website: www.kelsey.co.uk. ©2012 ISBN: 978-1-907426-47-6
Contents
6-11 ‘No airscrew fitted with 24-25 The First Meteor 42-47 The nocturnal ‘meat-box’
this method of propul- Drawings by Tony Buttler – The NF Mk 11 to
sion’ - Gloster -The First NF Mk 14
Ten Years 28-31 The backbone of RAF
Fighter Command by 50-53 M ore about the
14-19 The pioneering Gloster Owen Cooper Meteor T Mk 7 Trainer
E.28/39
34-37 Flying the Meteor F Mk 8 56-59 The FR Mk 9 and PR Mk
by Derek D Dempster 10 by Martyn Chorlton
62-63 ‘Ace in the hole’ by
Martyn Chorlton
66-69 The eight-gun Meteor
by Tony Buttler
4
70-71 Pushing the envelope – 98-101 Prone Pilot
a pictorial history of by Mark Lambert
some of the Meteor
test-beds 102-105 Droning over the Fens
by Tim Mason
74-77 Meteoric Records
by Gp Capt Peter Heath
110-115 Massed ‘Meat-Box’
Production compiled
80-83 Meteor tales
by Owen Cooper
by Tony Haig-Thomas
116-121 The variants –
84-87 Flying the Trent Meteor The F.9/40 through
by R G Worcester to the NF Mk 14
90-95 RAAF Meteor operations 124-129 The units – Compiled
in Korea by Dennis Newton by Martyn Chorlton
METEOR | 5

The Gloster E.28/29 W4041/G gently lifts from Cranwell’s main
runway during fl ight testing. This photo was taken later during
the test program because the aircraft is fi tted with auxiliary fi ns
to improve stability at high speeds. Via Aeroplane
‘No airscrew fi tted with this
method of propulsion’
Gloster Aircraft Company - Ten Years of Jet Progress – The Aeroplane, 11 May 1951
HISTORY WAS MADE on the evening of May 15, 1941, at his engine was suitable for aircraft propulsion. George
RAF Cranwell, with the fi rst fl ight of the Gloster-Whittle Carter, who had designed the aircraft, saw in its successful
E.28/39 jet-propelled monoplane. This article, which marks fi rst fl ight the beginning of a new era in which the jet
the tenth anniversary of that fl ight, describes the engine would supersede airscrew propulsion in many
background of development which led up to it and some important applications.
of the progress it made possible. That successful fi rst fl ight of the E.28/39 at Cranwell in
Cranwell airfi eld, close to the Lincoln fen country and fact marked the fusion of two lines of development;
scene of so many notable fi rst fl ights, because of its great engine and airframe. Before we go any further we shall
runway, did not have good weather on May 15, 1941. But record the main features in these developments, which
by the evening the clouds had lifted and the weather have had such a far-reaching eff ect on the progress of
became, if not ideal for a fi rst test fl ight, at least possible. modern civil and military aviation.
Down in one corner of the airfi eld, ‘Jerry’ Sayer, who was Most credit must clearly go to Frank Whittle
then Gloster’s Chief Test Pilot, climbed into the cockpit of a (now Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle, OM, KBE, CB, FRS,
small green and brown monoplane and, at 20 minutes to Hon FRAes), whose inventive genius not only foresaw the
eight, lifted it gently from the grass runway. possibilities of the gas-turbine for aircraft propulsion, but
The fl ight lasted 17 minutes and was uneventful apart also turned the possibility into fact.
from some trouble in locking the nose wheel down for the The full story of Whittle’s early work has been told at
landing. Before he could leave the cockpit, Sayer was being various times and in various places. In particular, we would
congratulated by the small group who had witnessed the refer readers to Whittle’s own paper, presented to the
fl ight, among them Frank Whittle and George Carter. And, later, Gp Capt (later Air Cdre) Frank Institute of Mechanical Engineers in 1945 as the fi rst James
when he prepared his Test Flight Report, he wrote, among Whittle OM, KBE, CB, FRS, Hon Clayton Lecture and printed in The Aeroplane for October 
much else: ‘No airscrew fi tted with this method of propulsion.’ FRAes, the father of jet propulsion.
Those eight words, which ten years later have an Via Martyn Chorlton
almost naive quality, in fact defi ned the essential
revolution which the fl ight represented. It was the fi rst Flt Lt P E G ‘Gerry’ Sayer OBE who
time a British aeroplane had fl own without an airscrew piloted Britain’s fi rst jet powered
and the success of that fl ight marked both an end and a aircraft into the air from Cranwell
beginning. For Whittle, then only 33 years of age and a on May 15, 1941. Sadly, he went
Squadron Leader, it was the end of the long struggle to missing during a Hawker Typhoon
perfect his aircraft gas-turbine and the even more diffi cult gun sight test from Acklington on
task of convincing the sceptics-and they were many-that October 21, 1942. Via Aeroplane 
The 850lb thrust
Whittle W.1 engine
which powered
the E.28/29.
Via Martyn Chorlton
19, November 2 and November 9, 1945, for a full account.
January, 1930, is the date which can most conveniently
be considered as that on which the idea of the aircraft
gas-turbine took definite shape. Previously, Whittle had
considered the possibilities of jet propulsion and of gas
turbines, without linking the two, but by the beginning of
1930 he had perceived that the gas-turbine could be used
for jet propulsion and applied for his first patent along
these lines in January of that year. For a period, lack of
financial support prevented anything other than paper
work, but Whittle was finally able to start practical
development of his engine in 1936, when Power Jets Ltd.
was formed with a capital of £2,000 to foster his idea.
The first engine, although designed to be suitable for
flight, was not actually intended as a flight engine. Its
basic design was simple, comprising a single-stage
centrifugal compressor, a single combustion chamber and
a single-stage turbine coupled directly to the compressor.
Each of these major organs represented a big advance in
engineering practice, however; for instance, the
compressor was to have a pressure ratio of about 4:1. In a  The Grebe was developed into depended so largely. Other important problems which
single stage; the combustion intensity was considerably the Bristol Jupiter powered required a great deal of attention at this time included the
greater than anything previously attempted and a turbine Gamecock and 90 served the RAF air flow through the engine and notably, the design of the
wheel of about 16ins. diameter had to produce over 3,000 but it was withdrawn early turbine disc itself. In its third reconstruction, the W.U.
s.h.p. Whittle was especially concerned with the following a high number of engine finally proved the success of the principle beyond
combustion problem and when the first engine, known as accidents. Via Martyn Chorlton reasonable doubt, although the two year period following
the W.U. (Whittle Unit), began running on April 12, 1937, it the first run in this form in October, 1938, was actually one
became clear that this problem was far from being solved. of the most difficult of all for Whittle and his team.
Initially, the combustion chamber was in the form of a Although the arrangement of the combustion chambers
large semi-circular loop between the compressor and was to prove successful, attempts to use a system based
turbine; a later reconstruction used a single straight on pre-vaporization of the fuel had to be abandoned at
combustion chamber but was again not completely Gloster IVA seaplane N222, which the end of two years’ intensive research as impracticable.
successful. The W.U. was finally constructed with ten travelled to Venice for the 1927 This particular problem was only resolved when Mr I.
separate combustion chambers and took on a shape Schneider Trophy event but was Lubbock, of the Shell Petroleum Co. Ltd., whose resignation
recognizably similar to that of the later engines. held back in reserve to the was announced recently, produced an alternative design of
Needless to say, combustion was not the only Mk IVB. It was later used as a combustion chamber using atomized spray injection. This
problem encountered, but it was upon the solution of this high-speed trainer for the 1929 was an important turning-point in the development of the
problem that the eventual success of the engine and 1931 races. Aeroplane  Whittle engine. Before the W.U. was finally wrecked on
February 22, 1941, by turbine disc failure, several non-stop
runs of up to 10 hours were completed at a cruising speed of
14,000rpm. Work on a second engine had begun under Air
Ministry contract in the summer of 1939, this being intended
to power an experimental aeroplane, the design of which
was initiated concurrently by Gloster Aircraft Ltd. As this
engine, the type W.l, progressed, certain parts were rejected
as un-airworthy. These were used, together with certain
spare components made for the W.U., to complete an engine
known as the W.1X, intended as an early edition of the W.l.
The W.1X was completed in November, 1940; it resembled
the W.U. in layout, but was a considerable improvement. Apart
from providing useful information for improvement of the W.l
itself, the W.1X was used in the Gloster E.28/39 for preliminary
taxing trials at Brockworth, during which three short hops
 The Jaguar or Jupiter powered
Gloster Mars VI Nighthawk, of
which 29 were ordered for the
RAF and 25 more serve the Greek
Air Force. Via Martyn Chorlton
were, in fact, made on April 8, 1941.  The wonderful Gloster Navy, the company’s design staff turned their attention to
Subsequently, the E.28/39 was moved by road to Gladiator, which was the ultimate a study of high-speed wing sections, seeking in particular
Cranwell, the W.l engine was fitted, and the first flight was in 1930s biplane fighter design, a section suitable for high-speed single-seat biplanes.
made, as already recorded, on May 15. The W.l was very entered RAF service at a time Using one such wing section, the Grebe was developed
similar in design to the W.U. in its third form, but was when the new-generation and became the first of a long line of Gloucestershire
lightened wherever possible. The design of the auxiliary monoplanes such as Hurricane fighters produced for the RAF.
drive box was altered considerably and the number of and Spitfire were also beginning Another important phase of the company’s activity
turbine blades was increased to 72. to appear. Regardless, 747 were began in 1923 when the Gloster I racing monoplane was
A design maximum speed of 17,750rpm was used for built and many were flown converted to a seaplane for competition in the first
the W.l but it was actually cleared for flight at the lower against far superior aircraft post-war Schneider Trophy Contest. Gloucestershire
rating of 16,500rpm, at which speed a static thrust of during the early years of the seaplanes competed in 1925, 1927 and 1929 and, on
850lb was obtained. The first run of the engine was made Second World War. Aeroplane September 10 in 1929, the Gloster VI, which was also the
on April 12, 1941 and the teething troubles experienced company’s first monoplane, established a World speed
were comparatively few, as a result of experience gained record of 336.31mph.
on the W.1X. In fact, Power Jets succeeded in completing a By this time, the company had moved to Brockworth
25-hour special category test, installed the engine in the Aerodrome, which it still occupies and the name had been
E.28/39 and accomplished 10 hours of flight testing within changed to Gloster Aircraft Co. Development of the Grebe
46 days of the first run. which, in its later versions achieved 160mph, resulted in
the Gamecock, also produced for the RAF.
History of the Gloster Company In 1927, the company absorbed the Steel Wing
Company and thus acquired extensive experience in the
Origins of the company which produced the first British jet application of steel strip to aircraft construction.
aeroplane can be traced back to the 1914-18 War; Conversion to metal aircraft led to a large-scale
historically it has several claims to fame prior to the advent reorganization of the works layout and for a long time
of the jet engine. Aircraft production in the First World War Gloster Aircraft produced more metal structures than any
demanded the co-operation of many wood-working other British aircraft constructor.
companies, of which concerns H. H. Martyn and Co. were Following the company’s introduction to metal
typical. In 1915, this well-established Cheltenham construction with the Gorcock and Goldfinch in 1928,
company of architectural engineers formed the nucleus of The RAF’s first new post-First attention was directed to the production of single-seat
the Gloucestershire Aircraft Co. World War One fighter was the fighters with increased armament. The S.S.18 and S.S.19
Throughout the War, the company was occupied in Gloster Grebe, a development of six-gun fighters resulted, and led to the introduction of
sub-contract work, including the manufacture of DH.4 and the Grouse. The little fighter the Gauntlet and the most famous of all Gloster biplane
D.H.6 fuselages and complete Bristol Fighters. In 1920, the served the RAF from 1923 to 1928 fighters, the Gladiator.
decision was made to proceed with original aircraft design and the RNZAF until 1938. Throughout the company’s history, the emphasis has
and the services of Mr H. P. Folland were obtained, first as Via Martyn Chorlton  always been upon racing aircraft and single and two-seat 
consultant and later as chief engineer and designer.
Mr Folland had previously been responsible for the
designs of the British Nieuport Co., and the first
Gloucestershire aircraft were recognizably based on
these designs, the former company being no longer in
existence. Thus appeared the first of the Mars series, the
Mars 1, also known as the Bamel. The Mars 1 was entered
in, and won, the 1921 Aerial Derby and repeated this
success in 1922 and. 1923. On October 4, 1922, it
established an unofficial record with a speed of 212.15
mph. The company’s aircraft have, since that date,
continued in the high-speed tradition and the jet-
propelled E.28/39 and, later, the Meteor, were both in
accord with this tradition.
In 1921, Mr Hugh Burroughes’ joined the board of the
company, a director of which he has been ever since.
While production activities were concentrated upon
Sparrowhawk two-seat fighters for the Imperial Japanese
METEOR | 9
Built to specification F.9/37, only
two of these cannon-armed
fighters were constructed. The
design was eventually superceded The first Gloster F.9/40 (Meteor) to fly
by the Beaufighter and the was DG206 by Michael Daunt from
Mosquito. Aeroplane Cranwell on March 5, 1943. Aeroplane
fighters and major production activities have always been
concerned with the latter class of aircraft. Some interesting
prototypes were also built in the inter-war period,
however, including the Gannet lightplane, the Guan for
high-altitude research, the Goral and Goring bombers, the
A.S.31 air survey biplane and a large four-motor bomber
and troop transport. The company which Mr W. G. Carter
joined in 1937 as Chief Designer was thus well suited to
undertake pioneering work. Long experience of the
development of high-speed and racing aeroplanes,
large-scale production of fighters for the RAF, techniques
of metal construction and design of high speed wing
sections all served Gloster Aircraft well in their
development of jet aircraft
Mr George Carter himself also had a versatile
background, including much experience of fighter design.
He had been Chief Draughtsman with Sopwith Aviation
Co. and later Chief Designer when the company became  Gloster Meteor F Mk Is of 616 give his attention to the particular concept of the fighting
Hawker Engineering, Ltd. Joining de Havillands, he was (South Yorkshire) Squadron machine which he had previously used in the design of the
responsible for completion of the D.H.72 heavy-bomber pictured at Manston having first Gloster F.9/37. The design was built around the use of two
design, the construction of which was in fact completed received the new type on July 12, engines, each giving 2,000lb.s.t. and in most respects, the
by Glosters. Then followed a period with A. V. Roe on 1944. Via Martyn Chorlton F.9/40 followed conventional practice for a twin-engined
Manchester design, prior to joining Glosters. aircraft. Early in 1941, Glosters received a contract for the
The first Gloster design by Mr Carter was itself construction of 12 prototypes, followed in September (by
noteworthy, as it was one of the first British twin-engined which time the E.28/39 had flown for 10 hours) by a
single-seat fighters, to specification F.9/37. Prototypes production order. The name Thunderbolt was chosen, but
with Peregrine and Taurus engines were built, but this was amended to Meteor when the Republic P-47
particular class of fighter was only to come into its own Thunderbolt appeared.
when the jet engine became reality. When it did so, Carter Again, little time was wasted and the first F.9/40
was again the first to use two of the new engines for a airframe was ready for flight in July, 1942. Engine
single-seat fighter, and the Meteor resulted. development had not kept pace, however, and the two
Before Meteors were seen in the shops at Brockworth, Rover-built W.2B units fitted in the first airframe were giving
however, Gloster Aircraft were to complete their wartime only 1,000lb at 15,000rpm instead of the designed 1,800lb.
task of producing 2,750 Hurricanes and 3,330 Typhoons, With these engines, the aircraft was taxied, on July 10, 1942,
while the design staff occupied itself exclusively with the on the 3,000yd runway at Newmarket Heath, but a flight
development of the jet-propelled aeroplane. was not attempted. ‘Jerry’ Sayer did this taxying trial, but he
was killed before the first flight could be made. Michael
Development of the Meteor Daunt thus became responsible for further development
flying of the F.9/40, assisted by John Crosby Warren and
Before the E.28/39 began to take shape in the factory, the The Metrovik F.2 ‘Freda’ powered John Grierson.
Air Ministry was already planning for the use of jet- Meteor DG204/G which first flew Before the W.2B reached a suitable stage for flight in the
propelled fighter aircraft, which they hoped would be in on November 13, 1943. The F.2 F.9/40, examples of the Halford H.1 engine (prototype of the
operation before the end of the War. These preparations engines initially produced de Havilland Goblin) became available, and two were
were considered justified in view of the successful bench 1,800lbs of thrust which was installed in one of the F.9/40s (DG206/G). This aircraft was
running of the early Whittle engines. Thus, early in 1940, increased to 2,000lbs. Not taken to Cranwell, where taxying trials began on March 3,
Power Jets were authorized to start development of the deemed as reliable enough for 1943, at an all-up weight of 11,500lb, 1,500lb more than the
advanced W.2 engine (from which developed the Rolls- production, the knowledge gained W.2B version. Daunt made the first flight on March 5, with
Royce Welland and Derwent), and Gloster Aircraft received a from the F.2 was later used in the tanks half full and engine speed limited to 8,000 rpm, at
contract for the design of a twin-engine interceptor fighter Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire which the power was about 1,500lb.s.t.
to Specification F.9/40. George Carter was thus able again to engine. Via Martyn Chorlton  From this point on, development of the prototypes (only
eight of which were ultimately completed) progressed
rapidly. Rolls-Royce W.2B engines became available and were
flown in three of the aircraft; a second airframe was devoted
to Halford H.1 engines, another was fitted with Metrovick F.2
axial-flow engines (DG204) slung beneath the wings, yet
another was flown with Power Jets W.2/500 and later W.2/700
engines, and the last of the eight took the air in the Summer
of 1944 with prototype Rolls-Royce Derwent engines.
In the course of development flying with these aircraft,
various problems were encountered, in particular engine