British

031490 - HAWKER TYPHOON: The RAF's Ground-Breaking Fighter-Bomber

By Tony Buttler

Although first designed as a fighter, during the fighting in and over Europe during 1944 and 1945 the Hawker Typhoon gained a tremendous reputation and true fame as a ground-attack aircraft and tank-buster. This was a remarkable achievement because, during its development and early career, the Typhoon had experienced severe problems with its Napier Sabre engine and catastrophic failures of its airframe.

The Typhoon’s offensive ground-attack work is well known, but that tends to overshadow the type’s successes operating from 1942 as a true fighter based in the UK. Nevertheless, during the final year of World War Two, following the D-Day landings in June 1944, the Typhoon performed a crucial role in the European theatre. After May 1945 it disappeared from RAF squadrons very quickly, so to leave such a record of success over such a short time is nothing short of outstanding! It was not a world-beater, but the Typhoon was perfect for the job that was required of it. Many books that document the Typhoon cover it in conjunction with its successor, the Hawker Tempest. However, this work, fully illustrated with over 180 photographs, gives this heavyweight machine a well-deserved volume of its own.