Bristol Brigand

Bristol Brigand was also a car produced by Bristol Cars from 1982 to 1994.

The Bristol Brigand was a British anti-shipping/ground attack/dive bomber attack aircraft developed as a replacement for the Bristol Beaufighter. A total of 147 were built, and they served in Malaya during the Malayan Emergency and Kenya until replaced by the Canberra jet bomber.

Design and development

The Bristol Type 164 was the outcome of the 1942 Air Ministry specification H.7/42 calling for a faster edition of the Bristol Beaufighter for long range torpedo work and anti-shipping strikes.

The design produced by Bristol used the wings, tail and undercarriage of the Buckingham with a new fuselage of oval cross-section. The three crew - pilot, navigator/bomb aimer and radio-operator/gunner were grouped together in the forward cockpit. In spite of the official change in its role to a bomber, the first 11 Brigands off the production line were completed as torpedo-bombers. These initial aircraft served with the RAF Coastal Command from 1946-1947 before being converted to bombers.

Operational history

The first unit to convert from Beaufighters to the Brigand was No. 45 Squadron RAF, then based at RAF Station Tengah on the Island of Singapore and flying operations in support of British forces against the Communist Terrorists (CTs) then engaged in an insurgency uprising in Malaya. The first Brigand was flown to Tengah from Singapore in November of 1949, a 16-day trip. After test flights, the first combat operation was conducted by this single Brigand, Piloted by Flt. Lt. Dalton Golding and crewed by radio/radar operator Peter Weston, together with four Beaufighters of No. 45 Squadron against CT targets in jungle west of Kluang, Malaya on 19 December 1949. On this flight the Brigand carried three rockets, one 500lb and two 1000lb bombs. The operation was successful and No. 45 Squadron soon completed its transition to the Brigand as more aircraft arrived.

Thereafter Brigands of No. 45 and, soon thereafter, No. 84 Squadron RAFs were routinely engaged in strikes against Communist Insurgent targets throughout Malaya, both direct and in close support of ground forces, as well as providing air cover as needed to convoys on the ground against possible ambushes.

Problems with the Brigand became apparent during its operations in Malaya. Among these was a tendency for loss of aircraft during strafing runs with the four 20 mm cannon. It was speculated that the explosive shells then in use were exploding in the aircraft, and their use was discontinued. The Brigand also had a propensity to shed a propellor which would cause torque that would cause the engine to fall away, an event which would cause the plane to crash.

Another design flaw were the leather bellows used to deploy air brakes during dives. In the tropical climate in which the Brigand found itself in Malaya, the leather would rot away, causing the brakes to fail. This led to Brigands losing wings in dives due to excessive airspeed or rotation as only one brake deployed. When this problem was discovered, the air brakes of all Brigands were wired shut, decreasing the aircraft's dive bombing capabilities.

Variants

The first to be built was the Brigand I or Brigand TF 1 and these entered service with RAF Coastal Command No. 36 Squadron and No. 42 Squadron). They were subsequently rebuilt to become the Brigand B 1, notable as both the first purpose-built multi-role strike aircraft built for the RAF, and its last piston-engined bomber. It could carry either a torpedo under the fuselage with two 500 lb (220 kg) bombs beneath the wings, one 2,000 lb (900 kg) or two 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs beneath the fuselage and had under-wing racks for 16 RP-3 rocket projectiles.

• Brigand Met 3 was a meteorological reconnaissance aircraft of which 16 aircraft were built.

• Brigand T 4 trainer version, which was used to train airborne interception (AI) radar operators. Nine were built
• Brigand T 5 was an improved training version, which like the T 4 before it, was used to train airborne interception (AI) radar operators.

Operators

• United Kingdom: Royal Air Force
  • No. 8 Squadron RAF
  • No. 45 Squadron RAF
  • No. 84 Squadron RAF
  • No. 1301 (Met) Flight
  • No. 228 Operational Conversion Unit
  • No. 238 Operational Conversion Unit

Specifications (Brigand)

General characteristics

• Crew: 3

Performance Armament
4 x Hispano 20 mm cannon, 0.5 in (12.7 mm) Browning machine gun, 16 RP-3 rockets, 22 inch (559 mm) torpedo, 1,000 lb (450 kg) or 2,000 lb (900 kg) bombs

References

• Taylor, John W.R. "Bristol Brigand." Combat Aircraft of the World from 1909 to the present. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1969. ISBN 0-425-03633-2.
• Trimble, Robert L. "Bristol's Multi-mission Bomber." Air Classics, Vol. 18, no. 8, August 1982.

External links

• Bristol Brigand Collection of Peter Weston, 45 Squadron, RAF
• British WWII's bombers: Bristol Brigand
• Bristol Brigand

See also

Related content
Related development
Similar aircraft
Designation series	Type 156 (Beaufighter - Type 160 (Blenheim) - Type 163 (Buckingham) - Type 164 (Brigand) - Type 166 (Buckmaster) - Type 167 (Brabazon) Type 170 (Freighter and Wayfarer) Type 172 (Sycamore - Type 174
Related lists	List of aircraft of the RAF