WOW567 Fairey Barracuda

Description

The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber. It was the first aircraft of this type operated by the Royal Navy’s FAA to be fabricated entirely from metal.

The Barracuda was developed as a replacement for the Fairey Albacore biplanes. Development was protracted due to the original powerplant intended for the type, the Rolls-Royce Exe, being cancelled; it was replaced by the less powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. On 7 December 1940 the first Fairey prototype conducted its maiden flight; early testing revealed it to be underpowered. However the definitive Barracuda Mk II had a more powerful model of the Merlin engine, while later versions were powered by the larger and even more powerful Rolls-Royce Griffon engine.

The first Barracudas entered operational service in January 1943 with 827 Squadron of the FAA.  A total of 24 front-line FAA squadrons were equipped with Barracudas. With the principally function as a torpedo bomber the Barracuda  could also be used as a dive-bomber.

As the only British naval aircraft in service stressed for dive bombing following the retirement of the Blackburn Skua, the Barracuda participated in Operation Tungsten.

On 3 April 1944, 42 aircraft took off from the British carriers HMS Victorious and HMS Furious, to attack the German battleship Tirpitz. using a combination of 1,600 lb and 500 lb bombs for the loss of one bomber and scored 14 direct hits on the. Tirpitz, severely damaging the battleship, also killing 122 of her crew and injuring 316, as well as disabling the ship for over two months.

The Thomas Gunn Fairey Barracuda Mk II (5C) flew on the April 1944 attack on the Tirpitz attack, with 829 Naval Air Squadron Fleet Air Arm.

The type participated in numerous carrier operations during the conflict, being deployed in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the Pacific Ocean against the Germans, Italians, and Japanese respectively during the latter half of the war.  In addition to the FAA, the Barracuda was also used by the Royal Air Force, the Royal Canadian Navy, the Dutch Naval Aviation Service and the French Air Force.

The figures and accessories are shown for scale comparison purposes only and are not included