Introduction
Introduction Statistics Contact Development Disclaimer Help
Return Create A Forum - Home
---------------------------------------------------------
IL2 Air Combat!
https://il2freemodding.createaforum.com
---------------------------------------------------------
*****************************************************
Return to: Plane of the Week Articles
*****************************************************
#Post#: 14702--------------------------------------------------
Plane of the Week: The Gloster Gladiator
By: vonofterdingen Date: December 14, 2020, 2:02 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
https://i.postimg.cc/1419mgcH/Screen-Hunter-585.png
The Gloster Gladiator was one of those aircraft that was well
on its way toward obsolescence at the start of the second world
war, yet was very important historically. Its biplane design
showed the aircraft�s role as a transition between WW1 and WW2.
Though it was not competitive against German fighters of the
period, the Gladiator saw plenty of service with the RAF in
Africa, the Med, and the middle east, as well as serving in the
air forces of countless countries such as Finland, Norway,
China, and Belgium. But perhaps the Gladiator�s finest hour was
in the skies over Malta, where the now famous Gladiators Faith,
Hope, and Charity held off the Regia Aeronautica. Though
somewhat apocryphal, the Malta story is the stuff of legends.
From Wikipedia
The Gloster Gladiator was a British-built biplane fighter. It
was used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm
(FAA) (as the Sea Gladiator variant) and was exported to a
number of other air forces during the late 1930s.
Developed privately as the Gloster SS.37, it was the RAF's
last biplane fighter aircraft and was rendered obsolete by newer
monoplane designs even as it was being introduced. Though often
pitted against more formidable foes during the early days of the
Second World War, it acquitted itself reasonably well in combat.
The Gladiator saw action in almost all theatres during the
Second World War, with a large number of air forces, some of
them on the Axis side. The RAF used it in France, Norway,
Greece, the defence of Malta, the Middle East, and the brief
Anglo-Iraqi War (during which the Royal Iraqi Air Force was
similarly equipped). Other countries deploying the Gladiator
included China against Japan, beginning in 1938; Finland (along
with Swedish volunteers) against the Soviet Union in the Winter
War and the Continuation War; Sweden as a neutral non-combatant
(although Swedish volunteers fought for Finland against USSR as
stated above); and Norway, Belgium, and Greece resisting Axis
invasion of their respective lands.
The South African pilot Marmaduke "Pat" Pattle was the top
Gladiator ace with 15 victories with the type.
In February 1937, No. 72 Squadron, based at Tangmere, became
the first squadron to be equipped with the Gladiator; No. 72
operated the type until April 1939, longer than any other
home-based frontline unit. Between March and April 1937, No. 3
Squadron at Kenley also received Gladiators from the remainder
of the first production batch, replacing their obsolete Bristol
Bulldogs. Initial service with the type proved the Vickers guns
to be problematical; the Gladiator was quickly armed with .303
in (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns, which were substantially more
popular, leading to the other guns often only being resorted to
if deemed necessary. On 27 March 1937, No. 54 Squadron at
Hornchurch became the first unit to receive Browning-armed
Gladiators.
By September 1937, all eight Gladiator squadrons had achieved
operational status and had formed the spearhead of London's air
defences. Difficulties with introducing the type had been
experienced. Although the Gladiator was typically well liked by
pilots, the accident rate during operational training on the
type was so high that a small replacement batch of 28 Gladiator
Mk IIs was hurriedly produced. Most accidents were caused by
pilots being caught out by the fighter's increased wing loading,
and many aviators had little experience in landing aircraft with
such a wide flap area. The aircraft had a tendency to stall more
abruptly, frequently dropping a wing while doing so. The
Gladiator very easily entered a flat spin, and great skill was
needed to recover.
During 1938, the RAF had begun to receive its first
deliveries of the Hurricane and Spitfire monoplanes; an emphasis
was soon placed on quickly re-equipping half of the Gladiator
squadrons with either of these monoplane types. By the outbreak
of the Second World War, the Gladiator had largely been replaced
by the Hurricane and Spitfire in front-line RAF service. The
introduction of these aircraft had been eased by the presence of
the Gladiator, squadrons that had operated Gladiators prior to
converting to the monoplane types experienced a noticeably
improved accident record than those who converted from older
types such as the Gauntlet. Experiences such as operating the
Gladiator's landing flaps and familiarisation with its sliding
hood have been attributed to having favourably impacted pilot
conversion.
Although, by 1941, all Gladiators had been withdrawn from
front-line duties defending the British Isles, a need to defend
Britain's trade routes throughout the overseas territories of
the British Empire had been recognised and therefore the RAF
redeployed many of its Gladiators to the Middle East to defend
the theatre and the crucial Suez Canal. The Gladiator saw
considerable action during early stages of the war, including
participating in the action in the French and Norwegian
campaigns, in addition to various peripheral campaigns.
[img width=1024
height=674]
https://i.postimg.cc/HLNjGkKS/Screen-Hunter-586.png[/img]
In October 1937, the Chinese Central Government ordered 36
Gladiator Is, which were delivered in two crated batches to
Guangzhou via Hong Kong. The Chinese Gladiators used the
American M1919 Browning machine gun to fire American .30-06
Springfield ammunition, the main ammunition of the Chinese
Nationalist Air Force. By February 1938, these aircraft had been
assembled into two squadrons and the Chinese pilots familiarised
themselves with them. The Gloster Gladiator had its combat d�but
on 24 February 1938. That day, in the Nanking area,
Chinese-American Capt John Wong Sun-Shui (nicknamed 'Buffalo')
shot down an A5M Claude navy fighter, the first victim of a
Gladiator. Wong is believed to have shot down a second A5M, for
the wrecks of two Japanese fighters were found. During that
clash, Chinese Gladiators lost two of their number.
Chinese Gladiators scored several more victories over
Japanese aircraft from 1938 to 1940 during the Second
Sino-Japanese War. In China Gladiators were used extensively
before the start of 1940 by the 28th, 29th and 32nd squadrons of
the 3rd Group. Chinese aviators considered the Gladiator an
excellent fighter in its class but pilots soon found it
increasingly difficult to hold their own against the modern A5M,
and because of a lack of spare parts due to an arms embargo the
surviving Gladiators were mostly relegated to training. When
newer Japanese aircraft such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero entered
the theatre, the Gladiators' days were numbered. American-born
Chinese pilot John "Buffalo" Wong, the first Gladiator flying
ace and first American fighter ace of the Second World War, was
eventually shot down in combat with A6M Zeros on 14 March 1941
and died two days later from his injuries. He and Arthur Chin
were among a group of 15 Chinese Americans who formed the
original group of American volunteer combat aviators in China.
During the Winter War, the Finnish Air Force (FAF) obtained
30 Mk II fighters from the UK. Ten of the aircraft were donated
while the other 20 were bought by the FAF; all were delivered
between 18 January and 16 February 1940, the first entering
service on 2 February 1940. The Finnish Gladiators served until
1945 but they were outclassed by modern Soviet fighters during
the Continuation War and the aircraft was mostly used for
reconnaissance from 1941. The Finnish Air Force obtained 45
aerial victories by 22 pilots with the aircraft during the
Winter War and one victory during the Continuation War. Twelve
Gladiators were lost in combat during the Winter War and three
during the Continuation War. Two pilots became aces with this
aircraft: Oiva Tuominen (6.5 victories with Gladiators) and
Paavo Berg (five victories).
Besides the FAF Gladiators, the Swedish Voluntary Air Force,
responsible for the air defence of northernmost Finland during
the later part of the Winter War, was also equipped with
Gladiator fighters, known as J8s (Mk Is) and J8As (Mk IIs). The
Flying Regiment F 19 arrived in Finnish Lapland on 10 January
1940 and remained there until the end of hostilities. It fielded
12 Gladiator Mk II fighters, two of which were lost during the
fighting and five Hawker Hart dive bombers, plus a
Raab-Katzenstein RK-26 liaison aircraft and a Junkers F.13
transport aircraft. The aircraft belonged to and were crewed by
the Swedish Air Force but flew with Finnish nationality
markings. The Swedish Gladiators scored eight aerial victories
and destroyed four aircraft on the ground. One concern was
expressed when F 19's executive officer Captain Bj�rn Bjuggren
wrote in his memoirs, that the tracer rounds of the Gladiator's
machine guns would not ignite the gasoline when penetrating the
fuel tanks of Soviet bombers.
At the beginning of the Second World War, during what was
known as the "Phoney War", Britain deployed the British
Expeditionary Force (BEF) into France to fight alongside the
French army. As part of this force, RAF units operating various
aircraft were dispatched to contribute, including two Gladiator
squadrons. Initial air operations on either side were limited by
the winter weather; however, immediately following Germany's
commencement of the Manstein Plan and its invasion of the Low
Countries on 10 May 1940, the BEF's Gladiators participated in
the Dyle Plan, an unsuccessful counterattack on German forces.
From 10 May 1940 to 17 May, the Gladiators were in continuous
demand on the front line, quickly losing numerous aircraft and
their crews in the rapid action. On 18 May 1940, a Luftwaffe
bombing raid destroyed many of the BEF's Gladiators and
Hurricanes on the ground at Vitry-en-Artois, shortly after which
the BEF's withdrawal to Dunkirk for evacuation to mainland
Britain began.
Gladiators typically flew patrol flights that led to occasional
clashes with Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft. On 17 October
1940, British Gladiators scored their first success when No 607
Squadron "B" Flight shot down a Dornier Do 18 flying boat
('8L+DK' of 2.KuFlGr 606), on the North Sea. On 10 April 1941,
804 NAS took off from Hatston, in Orkney, to intercept a group
of approaching German aircraft. Lt Cdr J. C. Cockburn was
credited with one destroyed and Blue Section with a "damaged".
At Malta, a stock of 18 Sea Gladiators from 802 Naval Air
Squadron had been delivered by HMS Glorious, in early 1940.
Three were later shipped out to take part in the Norwegian
Campaign and another three were sent to Egypt. By April, Malta
was in need of fighter protection and it was decided to form a
flight of Gladiators at RAF Hal Far, to be composed of RAF and
FAA personnel. Several Sea Gladiators were assembled and
test-flown. In the siege of Malta in 1940, for ten days the
fighter force defending Malta was the Hal Far Fighter Flight,
giving rise to a myth that three aircraft, named Faith, Hope and
Charity, formed the entire fighter cover of the island. The
aircraft names came into use after the battle. More than three
aircraft were operational, though not always at the same time;
others were used for spare parts.[55] No 1435 Flight, which
later assumed control of Malta's air defence, took on the names
Faith, Hope and Charity for its aircraft upon its reformation as
the air defence unit in the Falkland Islands in 1988.
The Italian air force units deployed against Malta should
have easily defeated the Gladiators but its manoeuvrability and
good tactics won several engagements, often starting with a dive
on Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero bombers before the Fiat
CR.42 and Macchi MC.200 escort fighters could react. On 11 June
1940, a Gladiator damaged a Macchi and on 23 June, a Gladiator
flown by George Burges, managed to shoot down an MC.200.[56]
Another successful pilot over Malta was "Timber" Woods who
managed to shoot down two S.79s and two CR.42s, also claiming a
Macchi hit on 11 June and another S.79 damaged. The Gladiators
forced Italian fighters to escort bombers and reconnaissance
aircraft. Although the Regia Aeronautica had started with a
numerical advantage and air superiority, during the summer of
1940 the situation was reversed, with Hurricanes being delivered
as fast as possible and gradually taking over the island's air
defence.
By June, two of the Gladiators had crashed and two more were
assembled.[59] Charity was shot down on 31 July 1940.[60][61]
Its pilot, Flying Officer Peter Hartley, scrambled at 09.45 with
fellow pilots F. F. Taylor and Flight Lieutenant "Timber" Woods,
to intercept an SM.79, escorted by nine CR.42s from 23� Gruppo.
During a dogfight a CR.42 flown by Serg. Manlio Tarantino shot
down Hartley's Gladiator (N5519), badly burning him.[62] Woods
shot down Antonio Chiodi, commander of the 75a Squadriglia five
miles east of Grand Harbour. Chiodi was subsequently awarded a
posthumous Medaglia d�Oro al Valor Militare, Italy's highest
military award. In May 2009, the remains of Charity and others
were the subject of an underwater search by NATO minesweepers.
Hope (N5531) was destroyed on the ground by enemy bombing in May
1941. The fuselage of Faith is on display at the National War
Museum, Fort St Elmo, Valletta today. The fate of at least five
more Gladiators that saw action over Malta is not as well
documented.
The Finnish Air Force was the last to use the Gloster biplane
in combat. It was under Finnish insignia that the Gladiator
achieved its last air victory. During the Continuation War,
against the Soviets, Glosters supported the advance of the
Karelian Army around Lake Ladoga. On 15 February 1943, 1st Lt
H�kan Str�mberg of LLv 16, during a reconnaissance mission along
the Murmansk railway, between the White Sea and the Lake Onega,
spotted, on Karkijarvi, a Soviet Polikarpov R-5 taking off.
Stromberg dived on it and shot it down into the forest near its
airfield with two bursts. This was the last confirmed victory in
the Gladiator.
[img width=1024
height=623]
https://i.postimg.cc/3RDN3HQ3/Screen-Hunter-587.png[/img]
In game�
I do not like flying the Gladiator at all. For one thing, I
do not like biplanes in IL-2, due in part to the limited
visibility. If I do have to fly a biplane, I prefer the Fiat and
Polikarpov varieties. They seem faster and mor maneuverable than
the Gladiator. For my part, I appreciate the Gladiator most as
an easy opponent. The Gladiator does appear in some fine IL-2
campaigns though, covering theaters such as Syria, East
Africa/Somalia, and the Mediterranean. In those early war
theaters it is more competitive. And of course, there have been
some fine campaigns covering the Faith, Hope, and Charity story
at Malta.
#Post#: 14704--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: The Gloster Gladiator
By: DHumphrey Date: December 14, 2020, 2:26 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Excellent article Von ... another great PoW !!!
I enjoy flying this aircraft in the game, one thing though is
that you have to use the "Shift + F1" feature to give you a good
site picture before you shoot. I normally use this when I'm
close, roughly .20 - .25 away from the enemy and while I'm on
their six.
I've used this plane many times in some campaigns I've produced.
It fought well in North Africa and also in Greece.
Here is one of my campaigns where you'll fly the Gladiator
during the first few missions. :)
https://www.mission4today.com/index.php?name=Downloads3&file=details&id=2662
https://i.ibb.co/HTBttc9/dawtital.jpg
#Post#: 14705--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: The Gloster Gladiator
By: cafs Date: December 14, 2020, 2:57 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
The final RAF biplane fighter, but not a great one. Von, I do
not like flying biplanes on IL-2 for the same reason, horrible
visibility from the cockpit.
Malta's Gladiators came from, at least, 10 cratered Royal Navy
Sea Gladiators kept as a reserve for the RN carriers. The myth
was created because just a Vic of Gladiators flew the
interception missions over the island, sometimes only a pair
were scrambled.
Thanks Von.
#Post#: 14706--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: The Gloster Gladiator
By: JG51_Ruski Date: December 14, 2020, 4:50 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Great article Von ..Thank you for the work always welcome
#Post#: 14970--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: The Gloster Gladiator
By: Beowolff Date: December 28, 2020, 10:01 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Super article! I LOVE biplanes and I really love the Glad...
however, as Cafs pointed out I don't particularly like flying
them in IL2 because of the cockpit messing with my vision.
However, the Gladiator does a fair job when compared to similar
aircraft and if i really CONCENTRATE I can usually hold my own
against most enemy aircraft.
Super article, Von! You do a GREAT job with this! Many thanks!
S! ;)
Beo
*****************************************************
You are viewing proxied material from gopher.createaforum.com. The copyright of proxied material belongs to its original authors. Any comments or complaints in relation to proxied material should be directed to the original authors of the content concerned. Please see the disclaimer for more details.