1945 Hawker Tempest II

Caractéristiques

Cellule

Moteur & hélice

Description

MW 404 is a surviving World War II-era Hawker Tempest Mk.II fighter aircraft, powered by a 2590 Horse Power Bristol Centaurus radial engine.

Built in 1945, it served in the Royal Air Force before being sold to the Indian Air Force, and is currently undergoing a long-term restoration in the United States.

**SERVICE HISTORY**

**RAF Service:** Built in 1945, MW404 originally served with No. 247 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, stationed at Chilbolton in Hampshire, England. Indian Air Force (IAF): After a few years in the UK, the aircraft was refurbished by Hawker and sold to the Indian Air Force, where it entered active duty in 1948.

Decoy Duties: Following its retirement from the IAF’s front lines in 1954, MW404 (along with around a dozen other Tempest IIs) was placed at Pune Air Force Base in India to serve as a ground decoy.

The Hawker Tempest was originally known as the Typhoon II and was a significantly improved derivative of the Hawker Typhoon, intended to address the Typhoon’s unexpected deterioration in performance at high altitude. This was done by replacing its wing with a thinner laminar flow design. Since it had diverged considerably from the Typhoon, it was renamed Tempest. The Tempest emerged as one of the most powerful fighters of World War II ...

**Current Status:**

The airframe was eventually recovered from India by famed warbird collector Doug Arnold and brought to the UK.

Current Location: In 2012, the MW404 project was purchased by its current owner and shipped to Houston, Texas, for a comprehensive restoration to airworthy condition. The airframe has been undergoing extensive rebuilding, including the replacement of older panels with new aluminium skins.