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by Federoslavia. . 3 reads.

Rhodesian Aviation RA2 Fire Tornado (Republic of Rhodesia)

RA2 Fire Tornado

.

Role

Fighter

Place of origin

Rhodesia

Manufacturer

Rhodesian Aviation

First flight

7 February 1938

Introduction

1939

Primary users

Rhodesian Air Force

Retired

1945

Numbers built

28

The Rhodesian Aviation RA2 Fire Tornado was a 1930s Rhodesian monoplane single-seat fighter, designed by Peter Bradsen, Alan Westworth and Thomas Horris as a successor to the RA1 Lightning Storm fighter. Its armament consisted of a hub-firing 20 mm autocannon and two fuselage-mounted synchronised machine guns. It was considered comparable to foreign aircraft such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109E or Edrissa TE-03 and was rushed into service in 1939. The prototype crashed during testing; 28 production aircraft had been delivered by September 1940.

Operators


Rhodesia

• Rhodesian Air Force

Specifications


General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 8 m
Wingspan: 10.3 m
Height: 3.25 m
Empty weight: 2,048 kg
Gross weight: 2,630 kg
Powerplant: 1x Rolls-Royce Merlin 45 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 1,470 hp
Propellers: 3-bladed adjustable pitch

Performance

Maximum speed: 580 km/h at 5,000 m
Range: 785 km
Service ceiling: 11,000 m
Time to altitude: 5 minutes to 5,000 m

Armament

Guns:

1x 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon with 60 rounds in a spiral drum
2x 7.92 mm Browning/FN machine guns with 250 rounds per gun

Federoslavia

Edited:

RawReport