The Typhoon's Forgotten Twin Brother: Hawker Tornado

Video Description

In this video, we take a look at the Hawker Tornado, a British single-engine fighter that was designed to replace the Hawker Hurricane, a fighter that was the backbone of the Royal Air Force early in World War II. We first talk about the Hurricane and how it compared to the Supermarine Spitfire, and also why, even though the Hurricane was more prevalent early in the war, and arguably more important, the Spitfire got more attention and prestige. We then talk about the design competition that was to determine the eventual replacement of the Hurricane. We talk about the several failed proposals in the competition, before then moving to the two winners in the Hawker Type R and Type N, also known as the Tornado and Hawker Typhoon. We talk about the key difference in the two planes, that being the Rolls Royce Vulture and Napier Sabre engines, and why this split development path was done. We talk about the early failures of both designs and both engines, before then talking about the failure of the Rolls Royce Vulture and, by effect, the Tornado. We end by talking about the Hawker Typhoon and its successor, the Hawker Tempest.