Smooth Flying From A Hawker Sea Hurricane

Hawker Sea Hurricane Made To Launch Off Carriers

Although inferior to the Supermarine Spitfire, the Hawker Sea Hurricane, a small single-seat fighter, left its mark on all important battles in which the British Royal Navy was involved in early 1940’s. In dire need of defending their ships from Luftwaffe attacks, the British converted the Hawker Hurricane into a fighter better suited for its navy.

• With over 80 single changes made to its design, the Sea Hurricane was adapted to be launched from merchant ships with the aid of catapult spools.
• While the mechanism allowed the plane to take off, it didn’t have any part in helping it land back safely on the small ship decks, leaving pilots to worry about finding a proper land location. Later on, the Sea Hurricane was also used from carriers.

Since the fighter first belonged with the Royal Air Force, the Hawker Sea Hurricane was first used by RAF pilots aiding the Royal Navy. It became obsolete in 1943, with the addition of Seafires and Wildcats to Allied air forces.