- Yes
- No
Hello! and welcome to my suggestion for the third and final V bomber, the Handley Page Victor, I feel this has a good reason for coming to the game given its rich history throughout British history and its fame alongside its V-bomber Brethren that are some of the most famous jet bombers in history.
History
Spoiler
The Victor and the V-force share a strong link to the British Nuclear programme and Nuclear deterrent doctrines of the early cold war, the Victors story begins in 1946 with OR.1001 issuing which anticipated a government decision on a future jet bomber design that would be issued the next year as Specification B.35/46 requesting the development of a Four engine swept-wing jet medium bomber with a cruising speed of 500 Knots and a ceiling of at least 55,000 feet.
Unlike Vickers initial design, the Valiant, two designs were chosen initially, the Handley Page HP.80 and the Avro 698, these would go on to be the Victor and Vulcan. Two HP.80 prototypes were built, WB771 and WB775, However midway through construction of the first prototype that the runway at Radlett airfield, where they were being built, was not long enough for the first flight and so the two airframes were transported to RAF Boscombe Down. On Christmas Eve 1952 WB771 made its first flight that lasted 17 minutes by test pilot Hedley Hazelden. 10 days after the HP.80 was given the designation “Victor”.
Initially the Victor B.1s were armed with Blue Danube nuclear bombs and later the Yellow Sun bombs when available, they also carried US made nuclear bombs on occasion. A notable event for the victors early career is that on the 1st of June 1956 Victor XA917 piloted by test pilot Johnny Allam broke the speed of sound whilst in a shallow descent at high power, the airspeed read Mach 1.1 and bystanders on the ground reported hearing a Sonic boom. the airframe maintained its stability and at the time was credited with being the largest aircraft to break the speed of sound at the time.
The Victors served for over 40 years, most notably during the Falklands and Iraq conflicts, in 1982 Victor K.2s were the only reason the RAF Vulcan bombers were able to reach Stanley airfield due to constant refuelling. additionally in Operation Desert Storm 8 Victors were sent to the middle east in support of British aircraft, here they operated around the clock to keep coalition air forces in flight leading up to and during the air war against Iraq.
Specs/ Armament
Spoiler
General characteristics
- Crew: 5
- Length: 114 ft 11 in (35.03 m)
- Wingspan: 110 ft (34 m)
- Height: 28 ft 1.5 in (8.573 m)
- Wing area: 2,406 sq ft (223.5 m2)
- Airfoil: Root: 16% Modified RAE Airfoil; Tip: 6% Modified RAE Airfoil
- Empty weight: 89,030 lb (40,383 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 205,000 lb (92,986 kg)
- Powerplant: 4 × Armstrong Siddeley A.S.Sa.7 Sapphire turbojet engines, 11,050 lbf (49.2 kN) thrust each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 545 kn (627 mph, 1,009 km/h) at 36,000 ft (11,000 m)
- Range: 5,217 nmi (6,004 mi, 9,662 km)
- Service ceiling: 56,000 ft (17,000 m)
Armament
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Bombs:
- Up to 35 × 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs
or - 1× Yellow Sun, Blue Danube or Mark 5 free-fall nuclear bombs
or - 1x Blue Steel Standoff Nuclear Missile
- Up to 35 × 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs
Photos
Spoiler
Victor shortly after landing, its drogue chute still attached
Victor Dropping all of its 35 1000lb bombs
Victor B.1s Cockpit
Row of Victors at what appears to be RAF Honington
Victors Nose, showing its unique Bombardier windows
Diagram of the Victor with and without standoff nuclear Missiles
WB775, the second Victor Prototype
Victor in game
Spoiler
In game the victor has potential to be a great addition after the Canberra, filling the gap between the Canberra’s and Buccaneer, it would play similarly to other british Bombers, with little to no defensive armament but extremely high bombload, if even a single bomber got through it could destroy all 4 bases AND still have enough to destroy the airfield.
in terms of BR i feel it would come in around 9.0/9.3 as it has fairly high speed but extremely low defensive capabilities, not having countermeasures or turrets, however it would be a testament to the V-Force as it is the verry last of the V-bombers, having served as a tanker up until 1993, a decade longer than the Vulcan.
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