Blenheim

[Warlord]

Ok, warplane enthusiasts out there, this one´s for you:

The Blenheim, awful bomber, interesting heavy fighter or something else?

I´ve been finding the plane a lot in my daily reading lately, so I decided to ask the experts about it...

[kfz]

Not quite sure what you wanna know there Warlord?

Pretty typical pre war light bomer soon left behind in the vast advances from 1940 onwards.

[arneken]

Stil in use later in the war. In Africa some belgium pilots flew with them. Not that bad then.

I've got a monument for a Blenheim crew not far from where I live.

[Warlord]

Well, my dear Kfz, everything there is to know about the ship, from specs to tactical history to opinions on pros and cons. I already know a bit, but just that, a bit.

Maybe (hopefully! ), there will even be some sort of a discussion about the whole issue...

[Canberra Man]

The primary controls were excellent, ie. Flying controls, throttles, braking and instrumentation. Trouble was caused by the poor layout of the secondary controls: The pitch change controls were two push/pull plungers behind the pilot's left elbow, just below two identicalplungers for the carburretor cut-outs - the latter were soon guarded by a sprung flap! Like the throttles, they were red and green for port or starboard engine, but that wasn't much use at night, unless the pilot had colour sensitive elbows! The hydraulic system was controlled by three identical push/pull stirrup plungers down by the pilots right thigh - and the circuit had first to be energised from 'neutral' by selecting either 'Undercarriage and flaps' or 'turret' followed pushing or pulling the flaps or undercarriage selector up or down as needed. It was all too easy to retract the undercarriage rather than the flaps after landing, especially at night. Pilota had also to remember to first activate the control to provide pressure in the correct circuit before raising or lowering the wheels or flaps, or providing hydraulic power to the turret. If he didn't do this, nothing happened. Just imagine, wrong circuit selected, no turret supply and a Messerscmitt attacking!!!
The fuel cocks were on the right hand wall of the cockpit 'behind' the pilots right shoulder and difficult to reach from his seat. (As were the winders for the cowl gills) The fuel gauges were mounted in the roof behind his head! Good God!!! Hope this makes sense.

Ken

[Warlord]

Of course it does, mate.

Could this rather uncomfortable control layout have been the cause for the plane´s, say, quite average performance during the war?

[Canberra Man]

Originally Posted by Warlord

Of course it does, mate.

Could this rather uncomfortable control layout have been the cause for the plane´s, say, quite average performance during the war?

It was the cause of too many crashes, especially at night.

Ken

[kfz]

if i remember right the only flying condition Blenheim crashed on landing a few years ago?

[Gage]

The only way to bail out of one was thru the top sliding hatch and you then had a big chance of going through the airscrew on the way down.

[Canberra Man]

The early short nosed Blenheim was found wanting. Under powered, one gun in the turret, one side mounted in the nose fired by the pilot, hopeless. They even tried to make a fighter of it by producing a meccano style bolt on gun pack, but with no increase in power, was even more hopeless. But then the light dawned. The nose was extended, more armament, more power, but it still was not a viable bomber. But, then, the fuselage was deepened, the wings were moved mid position to give a bigger bomb bay to carry torpedes, bombs or mines and became the Beaufort, an ideal anti shipping intruder and was well liked by the crews.
Then came the next mod, short nose, four cannon, four machine guns, still the ability to carry a torpedo. it became the Beaufighter. With airbourne radar, it became feared by night bombers and shipping, because, now the airbourne rocket had come of age. The Japs used to call it whispering death, because, throttled back approaching a target in the jungle, it could not be heard.