For #TyphoonTuesday we are going to briefly look at the most enduring of Typhoon myths: that the tail 'always' fell off.

That is a line I used to hear a lot at airshows and still do online. But, what does the data show? /1 #Thread #WW2# AVGeeks Thomas and Shores went into detail outlining Typhoon losses for their must own Typhoon and Tempest Story (which is not ever going to be reprinted, sadly).

Their research pointed to 26 aircraft lost due to a tail failure with 24 pilots killed. /2

Today's #TyphoonTuesday is going to take a high-level look at the thorny issue of Typhoon casualty numbers.

The traditional number of pilots killed operating Typhoons is the memorable 666, but is this correct? Does it matter? 1/15 #Thread #WW2 #Data So where does this number crop up? The main reference is in the forward to Norma Franks' superb Typhoon Attack written by W/C Kit North-Lewis DSO DFC*.

Kit states that 666 pilots of the Allied nations were killed in the 4 years of the Tiffy's service. /2

#TempestThursday today looks at one of the great Tempest drivers of #WW2, S/L David 'Foob' Fairbanks DFC***. An American from Ithaca, NY who had the good sense to later become a fully-fledged Canadian. /1 #Thread #WW2 #AVGeeks Aged 18 and with his schooling complete, aviation nut Foob crossed the 49th and tried to join the RCAF but ran out of cash. He tried again in Feb 1941 and was successful. He was assigned to pilot training and stayed on as an instructor for a further year. /2

For #TyphoonTuesday today, we are going to look at the interoperability of the fighter-bomber concept and its limitations.

The Typhoon is an interesting case study due to its strapping on of Bombs and RP.

So, if a Squadron 'could' use both, why not? #Thread #WW2 #AVGeek 1/22
The development of ground attack aircraft inter-war was a tortured one. The bomber doctrine took priority and in the tactical space, the dive-bomber started to be developed with the most famous example being Junkers' Ju 87. /2

For #TyphoonTuesday we are going to look at the supply situation of Hawker Typhoons in late 1943/early 1944.

I've been fascinated by a breakdown that Chris 'Mr Typhoon' Thomas included his ace @OspreyBooks Typhoon Wings of 2TAF 194-45. /1 #Thread #WW2 The supply of Typhoons was looked into by Trafford Leigh-Mallory's command in Dec '43 and they found the following Typhoon situation:

ADGB/2TAF = 412
41 Group MU = 56
Under Repair = 36
Experimental = 34
Broken Down = 701
Purgatory Store = 289
Lost (Ops/Accidents) = 228

/2

For #TyphoonTuesday we are going at the importance of training.

As OVERLORD loomed, the importance of the RP Typhoon was clear for the planners so more squadrons were being fitted with rockets. By D-Day, only 137 and 263 Sqn would remain 'clean' with ADGB. /1 #Thread #WW2 RP equipped Typhoons were making themselves known through the early months of 1944, but with the 'Radar War' looming, the effectiveness of the weapons system still had question marks and ORS were desperate for decent film footage to review. An issue that persisted till D-Day. /2

It is Thursday, which means it is #TempestThursday time!

The history books show that the air-to-air score for the Typhoon and Tempest was pretty even. Let's look into that and at what the Tempest encountered. /1

#WW2 #Thread #history #AvGeek The score for the Typhoon vs Tempest is:

Typhoon - 246 1/2:27P in around 30 months service
Tempest - 240:13P in around 13 months service

Does this mean that the Typhoon was the worse aircraft? No, just that in the Fighter-Bomber role, it was used more heavily as the latter. /2

For #TempestThursday we are going to look at a vital part of the Tempest's armoury, her Hawker-designed drop tanks which caused some 'fun' bureaucracy.

Which began with the Typhoon... /1

#Thread #WW2 #AvGeek #History The original, rather inelegant, Typhoon drop tanks were a central design from the Ministry of Aircraft Production. These 44-gallon tanks increased the Typhoons range from 600 miles to 1,090.

The tank, originally designed for the Hurricane, lacked baffles initially too... /2

So for #TyphoonTuesday today, I'm going to expand on the 'kick in the balls' analogy I used in Saturday's Mortain thread.

Because accuracy and effectiveness are variables as Close Air Support and Interdiction do slightly different things. #WW2 #History #avgeeks #thread /1

https://twitter.com/BoneyAbroad/status/1424022352573177860

So let's look at Close Air Support (CAS).

The Army have a love/hate relationship with this as there is a high chance of friendly fire and finding a target from the air is rather tricky. So, let's think of the battlefield as the school playground.

The bully is the Germans. /2

Today is an important and misunderstood #OTD for the Hawker Typhoon.

The 7th August 1944 saw the launch of von Kluge's Operation Lüttich to try and cut off the Cobra advance. The 7th of August became immortalised as The Day of the Typhoon. Why? #Thread #WW2 #Normandy #History /1 If you want to get into the weeds of Operation Lüttich, I cannot recommend @WW2TV's two-part examination of the battle highly enough. It is vital viewing to understand an important battle in the breakout. /2

Part 1:
Part 2:

It is that time again, it is #TyphoonTuesday! Or, more specifically today, #TornadoTuseday because we are going to have a look at the Typhoon's stablemate, the Hawker Tornado.

#Thread #AvGeek #History #WW2 /1 Sydney Camm was never one to sit on his laurels. With Hurricane ramping up in production, in 1936 his eye turned to what was next. And what was next was an aircraft powered by an engine nearly twice as powerful as the Rolls Royce Merlin. /2

You asked for it, so you get it. #TempestThursday is here!

So, why the Hawker Tempest?

#History #WW2 #AVgeek #Thread /1 Well, it wasn't because the Typhoon was a design cul-de-sac (hello @almurray 😉) but she was on the boards as the "thin-wing Typhoon" and designated Typhoon MkII by early 1941.

Hawkers were intending to reuse the Typhoon fuselage and the new tail that was being refined. 2/

It is #TyphoonTuesday time and once again, I'm stealing from the incomparable @rgpoulussen (how are you not following him?!). Today we are going to chat about the RP-3 Rocket with the 60lb SAP warhead.

An artillery shell on a scaffold pole full of cordite.

A #Thread. /1

https://twitter.com/rgpoulussen/status/1377139575580106753

The RP-3 part of the name refers to the 3in rocket motor developed in 1941/2.

The rocket could have multiple heads, but for the Typhoon, the standard load was with the 60lb Semi-armour piercing warhead which was found to be the best all-rounder.

/2

I had hoped to get a special @hack_history episode out today for the commemoration of the sinking of the Cap Arcona, Deutschland, Thielbek and Athen, but circumstances...

But some of the takes in response to Marina's tweet need addressing. Here we go. #OnThisDay #Thread /1

https://twitter.com/marinamaral2/status/1389154778031312898

Did 2TAF know that the 4 ships in Lubeck Bay had prisoners from @GedenkstaetteNG on board?

No. The information that was being sped back through the RAF's rather clunky intel apparatus meant that the target-rich environment of Lübeck Bay was seen for what they thought it was. /2

So thanks to the font of all knowledge, my Mom, and the wonderful family history a distant cousin Heather Hallet compiled, Children of the Rivers, I can correct the below tweet about my family at Hong Kong in 1941. @WW2TV @mike_bechthold @okeefehistorian @AlexFitzBlack #Thread /1

https://twitter.com/BoneyAbroad/status/1333780530882506755

The Matthews brothers tale I told is correct, as I had looked them up in the past. They are very loosely related as my Grandmother Nellie was a Matthews too and that is how I got my name. But the closer relations were the Stodgells and their cousins, the Lands, Métis all. /2