Read the forum code of contact
By: 22nd September 2007 at 23:03 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-Apparently it was WFU in May 1941 and it received metal wings in June 1940. I have seen a picture somewhere of it in camouflage but I don't know when the picture was taken.
I hope this helps.
FC
By: 22nd September 2007 at 23:31 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-G-AFKX was ex L1606 and I believe still in use in 1943. AJJ has one photograph of it.
By: 23rd September 2007 at 01:29 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-' One ex-RAF Mk I diverted to Hawker demonstrator/test-bed as G-AFKX remained in use through 1943.'
http://www.jaapteeuwen.com/ww2aircraft/html%20pages/hawker%20hurricane.htm
Reg G-AFKX
Type Hawker Hurricane I
c/n W/05436
History L1606 G-AFKX
Date 25.05.39
CoR 6636
Fate/Comments Wfu 4.5.41
http://www.goldenyears.ukf.net/reg_G-A11.htm
By: 23rd September 2007 at 01:32 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-.... and it received metal wings in June 1940.
Hi Fatcivvy, where do you have these info from? Would be nice to know?
Martin
By: 23rd September 2007 at 09:30 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-By: 23rd September 2007 at 09:34 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-Different...
Oooohhhh Shiney!!!:eek:
Cheers Mark12...Nice one..
By: 23rd September 2007 at 09:46 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-Hi Fatcivvy, where do you have these info from? Would be nice to know?
Martin
Martin,
I got the info from the Putnams' book, British Civil Aircraft 1919-1972: Volume II by A.J. Jackson.
FC
By: 23rd September 2007 at 11:28 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-Martin,I got the info from the Putnams' book, British Civil Aircraft 1919-1972: Volume II by A.J. Jackson.
FC
FC, thanks! :)
Martin
By: 23rd September 2007 at 23:49 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-G-AFKX
Was this the machine known as the langley defence hurricane!!!
By: 24th September 2007 at 05:00 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-excellent Gents, thanks for all the responses, and the pic is great!
So can I correctly assume then that this machine went back to the RAF (or RN) at some point with metal wings, which were installed after its time spent as a Hawker test machine?
I have seen a couple of different versions of the civil reg from a few different sources; were they blue or black?
cheers, and thanks again!
greg v.
P.S. Pardon my ignorance, but what does "WFU" stand for? (edit: got it, "withdrawn from use"; I was thinking in terms of RAF acronyms...)
By: 26th January 2017 at 23:53 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-G-AFKX was ex L1606 and I believe still in use in 1943. AJJ has one photograph of it.
Ok, it took me a decade but I contacted David at AJJ... turns out they had three pics of G-AFKX, two of which clearly show the black civil reg (black was noted on the back of one of the photos) on the underside of the wings. There are no shots showing the topside of the wings, but I'm going on the assumption that the civil reg was there as well. I asked David if I could post the pics here but there's some issue with 3rd party websites etc. Sorry gents.
All the pics are of the aircraft still in it's fabric wing phase, and clearly show no trace of gun ports or ejection chutes, plus an early pitot under the wing as well as early tailwheel leg and windshield.
cheers
gv
By: 27th January 2017 at 00:04 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-There is a picture taken 'in the second half of 1943' of it in Day Fighter camouflage, but with G-AFKX marked where the serial would be on a service aircraft. It was published in Gordon Swanborough's 'British Aircraft at War 1939-1945' (The book version of the Air Pictorial series)
Quite a fuzzy pic, so you can't really tell what wing it has, but if pushed I'd say metal, as the landing light looks a little further outboard
By: 27th January 2017 at 02:50 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-Cool, thanks for the info Dave.
By: 27th January 2017 at 12:11 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-As I had the book out[ATTACH=CONFIG]250953[/ATTACH]
By: 27th January 2017 at 14:27 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-It is difficult to be certain from the photo, but could this aircraft have had its non-standard nose ring replaced in its final state? Originally the nose ring was a one-off designed to match the diameter of the early Rotol spinner.
By: 27th January 2017 at 14:37 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-[ATTACH=CONFIG]250958[/ATTACH]
Could G-AFKX be the Langley Defence Hurricane?.
Image taken from Aircam Aviation Series No.24
By: 27th January 2017 at 15:04 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-There is definitely something under the nose on the Langley pic.
Better photo of the nose here:
Need to remember how many rivets on a mk I panel v a mk II
By: 27th January 2017 at 15:06 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-It would seem not, as this would require a new fuselage as well as a new wing, to cope with the Merlin XX. Presumably it would also have been listed amongst those aircraft converted from Mk.I to Mk.II standard: memory suggests that none were of such an early build standard.
I believe that a serial has been suggested for the Langley Hurricane, though I don't recall which. Could this have been featured in the AFAIK section of Air Britain, or on their website?
By: 27th January 2017 at 15:20 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-G-AFKX was based on Mk.I airframe (contrary to the usual photo captions) originally allocated serial L1606 and I believe a replacement L1606 was built, because it seems to have the shorter wing root fairing associated with the shorter Mk.I nose. It should, on the other hand, have had a performance similar to the Mk.II, as G-AFKX had by 1941 been fitted with a Merlin 45 engine and metal wings.
By: 27th January 2017 at 16:41 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
-As the Merlin 45 was a single stage single geared Merlin, like the original Mk.III, then that's another hint that it wasn't the same aircraft as the Langley Hurricane. Though of course it would be possible to put the shorter engine into a Mk.II airframe - as was indeed done once for 880 Sq on HMS Indomitable - it must have been rare.
Posts: 125
By: gregv - 22nd September 2007 at 21:42
hello all
Does anyone know if Hurricane G-AFKX, as used by Hawker for engine & propeller tests, ever received metal wings? And what became of this aircraft?
cheers
gv