GLOSTER SEA GLADIATOR

The Gloster Sea Gladiator was a British in-flight fighter from the interwar period and World War II. The machine was built in a biplane system with a classic, fixed undercarriage. The drive was provided by a single radial motor Bristol Mercury VIIIA or AS with 830 HP. The on-board armament of the aircraft consisted of four 7.7 mm machine guns. The Gloster Sea Gladiator was essentially a development of the Gloster Gladiator Mk. II, however, adapted to operate from British aircraft carriers. In the first batch, 38 Mk. II. The modernization consisted in strengthening the rear part of the fuselage, using a special hook enabling landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier and installing a radio with a greater range. In the course of deliveries of this first batch, the Royal Navy placed orders for the second series of Gloster Sea Gladiator planes, which included 60 machines. In addition to the above-mentioned changes, it differed from the basic version of the Gladiator with the addition of, among others, catapulting hooks. A total of 98 Sea Gladiators were created, but they were used primarily for training. At the outbreak of World War II, there were only 15 aircraft of this type in the line in the HMS air group Glorious and HMS Courageous. However, after 1939, many machines of this type, which had fought in the Norwegian campaign (1940) and in the Mediterranean in 1940-1941, were returned to service. In general, after 1941, Sea Gladiator machines were not used in combat