Fairey Spearfish

The Fairey Spearfish was a British carrier-based, single-engined torpedo bomber and dive bomber ordered from Fairey Aviation for the Fleet Air Arm during the Second World War. It was designed to Admiralty specification for the large Malta-class aircraft carriers, which were cancelled after the war, and it was much larger than earlier naval bombers. Power came from a Bristol Centaurus 18-cylinder radial engine of about 2,825 horsepower. Seven prototypes were ordered but only five were built, of which four flew. The first, RA356, built at Hayes, flew from Heston Aerodrome on 5 July 1945 and the other two did not fly until 1947. Production orders for 150 aircraft were placed for Heaton Chapel but cancelled with the carriers. The prototypes were used mostly for experimental work, including de-icing trials by Napier and carrier trials, and the last aircraft was scrapped in 1952.