Barracuda rebuild

[Dan K]

My apologies if this has been posted elsewhere (Did a quick search and didn't find). Linked is the forum thread of a UK group planning a rebuild (100% original bits is the goal) of a Mk II Barracuda for the FAA Museum:

http://www.bluebirdproject.com/message/ ... ?f=2&t=265

[Mudge]

OK...Time to edumacate the Mudge....again!
What's a Barracuda?
Besides a big toothed fish and a Plymouth, that is.

Mudge the curious

[RMAllnutt]

OK...Time to edumacate the Mudge....again!
What's a Barracuda?
Besides a big toothed fish and a Plymouth, that is.

Mudge the curious

A Royal Navy carrier attack aircraft from WWII. It saw a lot of action in the Atlantic, and the Pacific, but was very underpowered in its early versions. It was also as ugly as sin, but pretty cool in its own way. Its much prettier cousin is the Fairey Firefly. No complete survivors are known to exist.

Cheers,
Richard

[RareBear]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Barracuda

[Mudge]

OK...Time to edumacate the Mudge....again!
What's a Barracuda?
Besides a big toothed fish and a Plymouth, that is.

Mudge the curious

A Royal Navy carrier attack aircraft from WWII. It saw a lot of action in the Atlantic, and the Pacific, but was very underpowered in its early versions. It was also as ugly as sin,but pretty cool in its own way. Its much prettier cousin is the Fairey Firefly. No complete survivors are known to exist.

Cheers,
Richard

OMG...you're absolutely right.

Mudge the aesthete

[bdk]

Mudge, you be the judge. Which is uglier; The Blackburn Skua or the Fairey Barracuda?

[The Inspector]

depends, ever seen a Barracuda all folded up for stowage? It looks like 3rd grade oragami gone wrong-or like someone described over trans Atlantic phone cable, while drunk, how a TBF looked all tucked in for the night

GOOGLE images for ' Fairey Barracuda' shows a good overhead shot of a Barracuda model all lobstered up

[RareBear]

It's a close race, but the Barracuda is the winner.

Walt

[Mudge]

It's a close race, but the Barracuda is the winner.

Walt

Yeah. I'd have to agree. The Skua looks kinda' like an anorexic T-6.
The Barracuda looks like a "binge and purge" victim, just before the purge.

Mudge the svelt

[RMAllnutt]

It's a close race, but the Barracuda is the winner.

Walt

Yeah. I'd have to agree. The Skua looks kinda' like an anorexic T-6.
The Barracuda looks like a "binge and purge" victim, just before the purge.

Mudge the svelt

I would say just after the purge actually

Regardless of her ugliness, she's an important aircraft to see rebuilt. It's exciting to hear that she will be rebuilt by the bluebird team as well. If you've followed any of their work at all, you will understand how fantastic this news is. These guys have rebuilt the bluebird from a completely smashed up wreck found on the bottom of Coniston Waters using almost every single piece of metal which was recovered, no matter how bent or torn. It's an absolute work of art. You can be sure that when the Barracuda is finished, she will be almost entirely original, with very little modern material.

Cheers,
Richard

[JDK]

Mudge, you be the judge. Which is uglier; The Blackburn Skua or the Fairey Barracuda?

Perhaps better to remember both were flown by brave young men badly let down by those who specified for their aircraft.

The Skua achieved the first sinking of a capital ship by dive-bomber (the cruiser Königsberg) and was a combined dive-bomber (at which it was successful - long before before any US or Japanese type) and a fleet fighter where it did better than might be expected. It's main weakness was that it was developed to a false premise of the nature of a fleet fighter, and that it didn't have self-sealing fuel tanks...

The Barra, an over-complex and late offering to the dive-bomber role (an equivalent to the Sb-2C Helldiver) was offered for a role that was no longer primary by its service entry. It's big weakness was poisoning pilots with carbon monoxide on service entry, causing a spate of unexplained accidents and an obvious loss of aircrew confidence as a result. The other problem was many pilots converted from the Fairey Swordfish, a remarkably successful anachronistic type, but with benign biplane handling and fixed undercarriage, no flaps, fixed pitch prop etc. The Barra wasn't just complex looking, but compared to a low-tech biplane a lot harder to fly.

Military aircraft may or may not be 'pretty' - a subjective judgement in all cases - but they are all tools for a job and killers.

Just a few thoughts,

[Dave Homewood]

It is interesting to see this rebuild is commencing. It will make an interesting tribute to all the Allied aircrews that Barracuda killed. How Fairey could come up with this awful design after successes like the Swordfish, Albacore, Fulmar and Firefly is beyond me. And it is amazing they deployed it to so many theatres of war considering the FAA refused to allow the Curtiss Helldiver to go operational and disbanded their only squadron on that type!

The brave crews of the Barracuda flew not only in the Atlantic and Pacific as James says, but were also involved in several attacks on the Tirpitz with their Corsair escorts. They also made attacks on Sumatra and Palembang.

One of the Barracuda squadrons was an almsot completely New Zealand squadron. Funnily enough it was also a kiwi, Sandy Brunt, who instigated the action that saw the type removed from service, something he's very proud of as he was instructing on the type in Britain and knew they were a deathtrap. he reckons he saved a lot of lives, and I think he's probably right.

[Nathan]

I find it attractive.

Nathan(the dog face)

[Steve Nelson]

Nathan(the dog face)

That term always reminds me of a scene from M*A*S*H..

Klinger: (to a pair of ROK soldiers) "It doesn't matter what army you're in, it ain't easy being a Dogface."
ROK Soldier #1 to #2: "Does he make sense to you?"
ROK Soldier #2: "Yes..he is unhappy because he has the face of a dog."
ROK Soldier #1 "..and the nose of a duck!"
Klinger: "Pride of the U.S. Army..got it's own serial number!"

I may have butchered it slightly..haven't seen that episode in years.

SN

[The Inspector]

It appears to be a shame that FAIREY didn't put more urgency into the 'SPEARFISH' as it appears to be a much better thought out and cohesive design, just too late for the war-Anyone have any info about it other than I understand it's 2800 H.P. CENTAURUS engine made it a bit underpowered.