Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft ‘XL196/J' of 43 Sqdr., Royal Air Force, Leuchars

[Dizzyfugu]

New year, new madness - and it is rather easy to copy, if someone feels inspired...  

I present to you my Xmas holidays project, the "Hawker Harpy F.1A", specifically aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Sick? Yes, but so conclusive and almost an OOB build!  


Some background:
The origins of the mighty Hawker Harpy date back until the late 1940ies, when the British MoD issued a specification for "an interceptor fighter with supersonic performance" under the handle F.23/49. In May 1949 OR.268 was prepared and finally issued in April 1950. It called for a twin-engine single-seat supersonic fighter to operate in Europe and desirably any other part of the world.
The initial design requirements were not too demanding: a top speed of at least Mach 1.2 was called for, with climb to 50.000' (15.240m) in no more than 360 seconds. The fighter had to have a rate of climb of at least 1.000'/min (305m/min) and a minimum endurance from take-off to landing of at least 60min. At least two 30mm Aden cannon were to be carried.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


At this stage, two companies submitted proposals: English Electric with the P.1, which should become the eventual winning design as the formidable Mach 2-capable BAC Lightning, and Hawker with the P.1082 and P.1086 designs. P.1082 was a sleek, supersonic development of the Hawker Hunter, which was rejected, as it only featured a single, reheated engine and too little future development potential.
P.1086 vaguely resembled the later Soviet Su-15 interceptor with two engines side by side in the rear fuselage, fed by lateral air intakes and featured a cropped delta wing, paired with swept tail surfaces. P.1086 was rejected, too, as it fell short in performance in comparison with the P.1, even though the range would have been better.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


As the Lightning entered production and service after a long and troublesome development phase until the late 1950ies, technical advances and new threats through supersonic bombers like the Tupolev Tu-22, armed with long range air-to-ground missiles had emerged. While the Lightning was an excellent interceptor with an outstanding rate of climb and a top speed of more than Mach 2.0 at height, it had several shortcomings that could never really be rectified: one flaw was its limited payload of two guided AAMs (initially IR-guided Firestreaks, later radar-guided Red Top AAMs), but its biggest shortcoming was the very limited range that left esp. in the northern regions of Great Britain a defense gap.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


This led in in 1955 to the requirement for a 'Day-Night High Altitude Fighter Aircraft' under OR.239/F.155, which was to be able to operate against enemy bombers coming in at 60.000' (18.288m) altitude and at Mach 1.3, with service entry as soon as possible and not beyond 1963 (the BAC Lightning was considered to be sufficient until about 1960). A new radar was to be developed for the aircraft, operated by a second crew member.

Almost all British manufacturers submitted designs, including Hawker with several proposals like the P.1103, a large aircraft based on the Hunter with a chin air intake and missile rails on its wing tips. There was also the P.1110, a much revised P.1086 design - basically an enlarged and much refined version of the 1950 concept, but now with an area-ruled fuselage and powered by two Sapphire Sa.7LR engines, rated at 11.000lb (48.9kN) dry thrust and at 15.400lb (68.4kN) with full afterburner and optimized for high altitude duty.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The P.1110 was still a single-seater, though, equipped with the same AI.23B radar as the BAC Lightning, which it was to support, not to replace. The Ferranti AI.23 radar supported autonomous search, automatic target tracking, and ranging for all weapons, while the pilot attack sight provided gyroscopically derived lead angle and backup stadiametric ranging for gun firing. The radar and gunsight were collectively designated the AIRPASS: Airborne Interception Radar and Pilot Attack Sight System.

The P.1110's selling point was its long range (the combat radius exceeded the Lightning's maximum range), coupled with a top speed of more than Mach 2 and the ability to carry up to six (normal payload would be four) AAMs, plus two internal cannons. Another factor that made the Hawker aircraft attractive was that it was a simple design, bearing no visible development risk, and that the bigger radome offered the option to install not only a larger antenna, but also offered the possibility to install an overall much more powerful radar system that would be more suitable for the primary long-range interception task of the type.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Even though Fairey's (based on the famous Delta research aircraft) and Armstrong Whitworth's designs were officially favored, things went in a totally different direction: in early 1957 the MoD issued its infamous White Paper that basically rang the death knell to all new fighter developments - axing the F.155 program in favor of ground-based missile defense systems – the manned fighter was considered obsolete over night!

Anyway, things would not change that fast in real life, and this gave way for the "last manned fighter" for the RAF: the P.1110. It was clear that it was just a stopgap solution, as the Lightning would, if any interceptor development was cut down, be the only operative interceptor for Great Britain in the near future, leaving the aforementioned weak spots esp. at the northern borders. A foreign potential option for the required aircraft, the mighty CF-105 'Arrow' from Canada, had also been recently cancelled, so the modified P.1110 was seen as the most cost-efficient domestic solution.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Work started fast and at good pace: the first P.1110 prototype (a total of four were to be built, one of them only a static airframe for ground tests) already made its maiden flight in September 1959. As it relied on proven avionics the type became ready for service in early 1961. The new aircraft was christened 'Harpy F.1' and it served alongside the BAC Lightning interceptors on long range patrol flights, high altitude interceptions and in QRA service. It partly replaced older Gloster Javelin versions in the all-weather fighter role.

Beyond the primary missile-toting interceptor role the Harpy could also carry an impressive load of up to 10.000 lb (4.540 kg) of other ordnance, including Matra rocket pods and iron or cluster bombs of up to 1.000 lb (454 kg) caliber.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The Harpy was a big aircraft and not really suited for dogfight scenarios, but it had - in contrast to the Lightning - a spacious cockpit which made long flights agreeable. Take-off and landing speeds were comparatively high, though, with a take-off speed of 231 mph (370 km/h). While the controls were responsive and precise, the aircraft was unforgiving of pilot error. Indeed, the type's attrition rate was high: 18 aircraft would be lost through accidents.

As only 65 were built, operating the type was costly, and towards the late 1960s already a more economical solution was searched for. The aging Lightning fleet also started to call for a replacement. The pure missile air defense had quickly turned out to be a political error, but in its wake it had caused severe consequences for Britain's aircraft industry, as aircraft development had been cut back. Eventually, as domestic types were lacking, the Spey-engined McDonnell F-4 Phantom II entered RAF service (after having been bought for the Royal Navy in the first place) in 1969.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Both Lightning and Harpy suffered in service under the high work load for the pilot, who had not only to engage a potential enemy at high speed but also had to operate the radar and weapons system at the same time. Another limiting factor for both types' effectiveness was the more and more obsolete Firestreak and Red Top missiles, which only had an effective range of up to 7.5 miles (12 km) and relied on IR homing.
Plans to outfit the Lightning with American Falcons, Sparrows or even Sidewinders in 1958 were fruitless (either necessitating an altogether new fire control system or limiting the aircraft's performance), so that the Harpy would not benefit from more capable weapons, too - even though it offered the better development basis with its bigger radome, range and payload.

Only few hardware updates were actually made during the Hawker Harpy's active service period, including the addition of a removable, fixed in-flight refueling probe, an improved escape system along with additional room for more electronic counter-measures equipment. By 1973 all machines were modified accordingly and re-designated F.1A.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Both Harpy and Lightning were hard to replace, though, as the RAF Phantoms initially also had to fill out an attack and reconnaissance role (a gap which was to be filled with the SEPECAT Jaguar), so both interceptors soldiered on until the early 1980ies. Both were replaced by the Phantoms, the large Harpy made its final flight in May 1982 while the last Lightning was retired in 1988, as the Tornado ADV was under development and would unite what even the couple of Harpy and Lighning never achieved in their service career.



General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 21.52 m (70 ft 7 in)
Wingspan: 9.34 m (30 ft 8 in)
Height: 5.41 m (17 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 42.2 m² (454 ft 3 in)
Empty weight: 10,371 kg (22,864 lb)
Loaded weight: 15,288 kg (33,704 lbf)
Max. take-off weight: 18,879 kg (41,621 lbf)

Powerplant:
2× reheated Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire Sa.7LR engines, rated at 11.000lb (48.9kN) dry thrust and at 15.400lb (68.4kN) with afterburner

Performance:
Maximum speed: Mach 2.1
Combat radius with 5 min combat: 647 nmi (746 mi, 1,200 km)
Ferry range: 1.403 nmi (1.615 mi, 2.600 km) with 3 external fuel tanks
Service ceiling: 18.100 m (59.383 ft)
Rate of climb: 83 m/s (16.405 ft/min)
Wing loading: 447.4 kg/m² (MAX T-O Weight) (91.63 lb/ft² (MAX T-O Weight))
Thrust/weight: 0.5; 0.91 with afterburner (MAX T-O Weight)

Armament:
2× Aden 30mm (1.18") cannons under the air intakes with 120 RPG
7× hard points (6 under wing and one centerline hard point) for air-to-air missiles (Firestreak or, from 1965 on, primarily Red Top), fuel on three wet pylons, or bombs, Matra pods with 18 unguided 68mm SNEB rockets, for a total maximum load of 10.000 lb (4.540 kg)



The kit and its assembly:
Hopefully royalists will forgive me for this... but did you ever see an aircraft and get the spontaneous idea what it actually could be or have been? Well, the Chinese J-8II is such a case. In fact, the J-8 was born as a scaled-up MiG-21F with two engines, and it was later modified to carry a nose radome and lateral air intakes. Somehow this large jet fighter had IMHO a British look about it... I couldn't help, it HAD to become an RAF aircraft! Totally anachronistic, but worth the try .

Anyway, it is still SO retro that I had to put even the modernized version back in time by about 20 years, when it would have been up to date. Just for reference: imagine that the real J-8II entered service in China when the Harpy was retired after 20 years of service in my fictional background story...

Well, to be honest I have had this one on my idea list for a long time, but as it would 'just' be an almost OOB build I always held in back, favoring more complicated works. Anyway, as I had a Trumpeter J-8II kit in store AND appropriate decals I decided to work the Harpy out as the first kit in 2014.

As already mentioned, this is an almost OOB build of the Trumpeter J-8II (NATO code 'Finback B'), with only minor modifications. The kit is very nice: Fit is good, you get recessed panel lines, as many details as you can ask for – just some fit issues with the fuselage halves and slight sink holes at the air intakes. While you need some putty, anyway, the thing goes together very easily.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Personal mods to create the Hawker Harpy include a Matchbox pilot figure for the cockpit, two fins ('Finback A' style) instead of the J-8II's single MiG-23 style folding fin, new drop tanks (from a Matchbox Hawker Hunter, with fins added) and four Red Top missiles (from an Eastern Express Sea Vixen) – all for a convincing RAF look.

Other small mods include e. g. getting rid of some typical Soviet-style antennae (even though I kept the almost iconic anti-flutter weights on the tailplane) and the GSh-23-2 cannon fairing under the fuselage, which was replaced by two single gun fairings for 30mm Aden cannons under the air intakes.


Painting and markings:
Classic RAF colors from the Sixties, with Dark Slate Gray/Dark Sea Gray from above and Light Aircraft Gray below (Humbrol 163, 164 and 166, respectively). The aircraft received a light black ink wash in order to emphasize the kit's fine engraved panel lines, as well as some dry-painting with lighter shades (including Dark Slate Gray/Dark Sea Gray from Modelmaster – these tones are a tad lighter than the Humbrol counterparts, and Humbrol 196, RAL 7035).


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The cockpit interior was painted in dark gray, while the landing gear wells and the other interiors were left in Aluminum. The landing gear was painted in Steel, the wheel discs white and the air brakes in red from the inside.

Decals/markings come from an Xtradecal sheet for RAF Phantom FG.1/FGR.2s, "XL196" is, AFAIK, a 'free' (never used) RAF serial number that fits around 1962. Some additional stencils and markings were painted onto the fuselage by brush.

After decal application the kit received an overall coat of semi-gloss Tamiya acrylic varnish.


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The Hawker Harpy is/was simple kit travesty, but IMHO the resulting 'British product' looks very convincing and late-1950ies style?
It has an epic aura...   I am actually inclined to build another one - if it was not such a big bid(!) - and give it an all-grey low-viz paint scheme for the early 80ies?

[andrewj]

Ooh ! , I do look like that , it just looks so right . Excellent build and idea , well done indeed.

Andrew

[Rheged]

This post is what makes this site so fascinating.  Believeable backstory,  superb modelling  and remarkable photography.   Definitely a potential Whiffie 2014

[Dizzyfugu]

it just looks so right .

Andrew

Doesn't it? Thanks a lot, my pleasure! 

[Sticky Fingers]

Weren't you tempted to mount some over-wing fueltanks or rockets for that British Jet look? 
What a great build! And as usual I love the photos

[Dizzyfugu]

Ah, no. Overburgers would not make sense - as sick as they are, on a Lightning they are even plausible! The Red Tops are enough RAF make-up here - sublety rules...

Many thanks, BTW 

As a side note, the Leuchars idea gave so many nice picture motivs, like the Tu-95 interception scene, the starting/landing sequence (yes, this shoudl actually be Leuchars' runway) or the flights scene over the Scottish coast. There are also some pics from RAF Gütersloh (the Bucs and the Phantom), for a continental visit of that thing. 

[deathjester]

Wonderful work Sir!  Really like the look of this bird!! 

[Devilfish]

Love it! Love it! LOVE IT!!!!  Funnily enough I have been looking at this kit in the Wonderland sale and thinking along similar lines to you. Seems I can save my money now, as you have done a tremendous job!!!

[Dizzyfugu]

Nah, there's rooom for more of them! As mentioned before, I'd like to see an RAF low-viz aircraft (maybe with four Skyflash?), and one in NMF but with flashy Lightning-style colors should also look cool. Even an all-green/aluminum like those of RAF Germany for low altitude interception could/would work?

[tc2324]

Another classic Dizzy     and well worthy of a whiffie nomination 

[Dizzyfugu]

Another classic Dizzy     and well worthy of a whiffie nomination 

Your Intruder, too! Thanks a lot. RAF seems to be "in" this winter - I was amazed when Spinner posted the 43rd Sq. Lightnings last week, another weird conincidence! Sometimes ideas seem to be universal and condensate at the same time...? 

[James]

Fantastic work! Looks just right as well.

[NARSES2]

Amazing work and as has been said it just looks right 

[ChernayaAkula]

Damn, that looks right.  You're absolutely right, it just screams "1960s British design"! Absolutely brilliant idea and execution.  We need more Hawker Harpy whifs. Different camos, different load-outs, a twin-seater...

This in-progress pic got me thinking: a tailless delta aircraft? Maybe chop a little section out of the fuselage to shorten it. I suppose that would make it look sorta Fairey Delta III-ish. Maybe even some canards for a Shenyang version of the Chengdu J-9?

<...>

1:72 Hawker Harpy F.1A; aircraft 'XL196/J' of 43rd Squadron, Royal Air Force; RAF Leuchars, 1969 (Whif/Kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr <...>

[kitbasher]

Gorgeous. 

Absolute stunner.   

Congratulations, sir.   

The only thing I'd have done differently were it my build would have been to have had it a two-seater, but that's personal preference not a criticism.