World War II Database

Contributor: Alan Chanter

ww2dbaseIn the early 1930s the standard British Army co-operation warplanes operated by the British Royal Air Force in overseas theatres were the Fairey IIIF and Westland Wapiti. Both these types were obsolescent, and in its search for a successor type the Air Ministry considered that the new Type 132 Vildebeest torpedo bomber had the potential to be transformed into an effective general-purpose warplane. A tour of RAF stations in the Middle-East and Africa during 1932 and 1933 by a Vildebeest Mk.I converted as a prototype revealed that the type would be a suitable replacement and an initial order for 51 aircraft was placed on 8 December 1933, to Specification 21/33, and named as the Type 266 Vincent.

ww2dbasePowered by a 635-horsepower Bristol Pegasus IIM3 nine-cylinder single-row radial engine, the three-seat Vincent was armed with a single 0.303-inch fixed forward-firing machine gun in the port side of the forward fuselage, plus another flexible rearward-firing machine-gun in the rear cockpit. In addition an 1,100-pound bomb-load could be carried externally. In place of the torpedo, the Vincent carried an auxilliary fuel tank beneath the fuselage, and other special equipment included a message pick up gear hook for the Army co-operation role, and pyrotechnics.

ww2dbaseThe first production Vincent, converted from a Vildebeest MK.II to the revised specification 16/34 was first seen in public at the 1935 RAF display at Hendon in London, England, United Kingdom. However, initial deliveries of production aircraft had been made to No. 8 Squadron at Aden in late 1934, to replace their Fairey IIIF biplanes. Eventually, the Air Ministry would order 196 Vincent Mk.1s from Vickers. These aircraft were completed between July 1934 and October 1938 as either new aircraft or converted from Vildebeest Mk.IIs.

ww2dbaseSome 171 Vincent aircraft would serve with the RAF in twelve 12 squadrons based in Aden, India, Iraq, Kenya and Sudan, and more than 80 were still in service at the beginning of World War II. No. 244 squadron in Iraq kept theirs until 1941, when they were replaced with the Bristol Blenheim, after which they were handed over to the Iraqis. Small numbers were also transferred to the New Zealand Air Force in 1940.

Vincent Timeline

SPECIFICATIONS

Vincent

Machinery	One Bristol Pegasus IIM3 radial piston engine, rated at 635hp
Armament	1x0.303in forward-firing machine gun, 1x0.303in Lewis gun in the rear cockpit, up to 1,000lb of bombs
Crew	3
Span	14.94 m
Length	11.18 m
Height	5.41 m
Wing Area	67.63 m²
Weight, Empty	1,918 kg
Weight, Loaded	3,674 kg
Speed, Maximum	229 km/h
Speed, Cruising	214 km/h
Service Ceiling	5,180 m
Range, Normal	2,012 km

Photographs