Blackburn Skua - Definition and Overview

Blackburn Skua
Description
Role	Dive-bomber; fighter; target-tower
Crew	2
First Flight	February 9, 1937
Entered Service	August 28, 1938
Manufacturer	Blackburn Aircraft Ltd
Dimensions
Length	35 ft 7 in	10.8 m
Wingspan	46 ft 2 in	14.1 m
Height	14 ft 2 in	4.3 m
Wing area	312 ft²	29.0 m²
Weights
Empty	5,490 lb	2,490 kg
Loaded	8,228 lb	3,730 kg
Maximum takeoff	lb	kg
Powerplant
Engine	Bristol Perseus XII
Power	905 hp	675 kW
Performance
Maximum speed	225 mph @ 6,500 ft	360 km/h @ 2,000 m
Combat range	800 miles	1,290 km
Ferry range	miles	km
Service ceiling	20,200 ft	6,150 m
Rate of climb	ft/min	m/min
Wing loading	26.4 lb/ft²	128 kg/m²
Power/Mass	0.11 hp/lb	0.18 kW/kg
Armament
Guns	4 × 0.303 in (7.62 mm) forward-firing machine guns 1 rear Lewis gun
Bombs	500 lb	225 kg

The Blackburn Skua was a combat aircraft operated by the Fleet Air Arm. The prototype first flew in 1937 with a Bristol Mercury powerplant, but production models used the Bristol Perseus.

Built to specification O 4/34 it was a radical development for the FAA, being of all-metal construction and their first service monoplane.

192 Skuas were built. Skuas are credited with shooting down the first enemy aircraft of the Second World War, a Dornier Do 18 downed on September 26, 1939. On April 10, 1940 16 Skuas flying from the Orkney Islands sank the German cruiser Königsberg in Bergen Harbour during the invasion of Norway. This was the first large warship sunk by allied forces in the war.

The Skua suffered heavy losses when confronted with modern fighters, particularly the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and they were withdrawn from front-line service in 1941.

External link

• Fleet Air Arm Archive - Blackburn Skua (http://www.fleetairarmarchive.net/Aircraft/Skua.htm)