Westland Whirlwind turbinlite?

The Rat · December 02, 2023, 09:24:59 AM

Smaller diameter searchlight, mounted in the nose, and used to illuminate targets for Defiant nightfighters. Alternatively, a second Whirlwind with its impressive nose armament as the attacker.

Thoughts?

EDIT: Radar mounted under the chin of the turbinlite?

PR19_Kit · December 02, 2023, 09:38:56 AM

Sounds like a plan. Two Whirlwinds would make a goof 'hunter-killer' grouping, like the Grumman Guardians were.

The Rat · December 02, 2023, 10:50:19 AM

Quote from: PR19_Kit on December 02, 2023, 09:38:56 AMSounds like a plan. Two Whirlwinds would make a goof 'hunter-killer' grouping, like the Grumman Guardians were.

Now I have to source 2 of the old Airfix examples. Not going to splurge on something that my plans will be inflicted on.

Wardukw · December 02, 2023, 11:05:45 AM

Dave you could make it wing mounted then ya wouldn't have a figther without any guns and to make things worse..2 lights..one on each wing 😉 😀
Or radar on one wing and a light on the other .
As for armaments..30mm cannon will mess up a ship very nicely.

Old Wombat · December 03, 2023, 12:11:43 AM

The Whirlwind's strengths were speed & manoeuvrability, chucking a whopping great Turbinlite under one wing would screw that good & propper.

No, I think the Hunter-Killer duo is a much better idea for these little birds.

A Havoc II fitted with a Turbinlite;

Now, imagine that stuck under the wing of a tiny Whirlwind!

zenrat · December 03, 2023, 02:13:29 AM

There was one Turbinlite Mosquito. It appears to have been converted from a fighter as it retained the belly guns.

https://www.vintagewings.ca/stories/blinded-by-the-light

Ugly fellow isn't it.

Beermonster58 · December 03, 2023, 03:50:55 AM

Thoughts? Well, I appreciate the Turbinlite was real but, I'd have thought that if an aeroplane had the means to intercept a nocturnal target then , it might have been a lot more practical to equip it with something a bit more lethal than a searchlight .......? But, as we're after suggestions, how about a B-25?

PR19_Kit · December 03, 2023, 04:31:32 AM

Quote from: zenrat on December 03, 2023, 02:13:29 AMThere was one Turbinlite Mosquito. It appears to have been converted from a fighter as it retained the belly guns.

And the flat windscreen too.

Yes, it IS ugly!

The Rat · December 03, 2023, 09:47:59 AM

Heard rumours of such a beast, thanks for confirming. But I couldn't do that to a Mosquito. I know that there were even uglier versions, but no, just no. If the Spitfire was the most beautiful single-engine prop fighter of all time, the Mosquito takes that award in the twin-engine category.

Quote from: zenrat on December 03, 2023, 02:13:29 AMThere was one Turbinlite Mosquito. It appears to have been converted from a fighter as it retained the belly guns.

https://www.vintagewings.ca/stories/blinded-by-the-light

Ugly fellow isn't it.

The Rat · December 03, 2023, 09:51:34 AM

Quote from: Beermonster58 on December 03, 2023, 03:50:55 AMThoughts? Well, I appreciate the Turbinlite was real but, I'd have thought that if an aeroplane had the means to intercept a nocturnal target then , it might have been a lot more practical to equip it with something a bit more lethal than a searchlight .......? But, as we're after suggestions, how about a B-25?

Nice idea, but my heart is set on a Whirlwind. Nostalgia is also involved here, as it's one of the first model kits I ever made, waaaaay back around 1961. If someone takes your suggestion, I will definitely follow that thread!

Old Wombat · December 04, 2023, 12:25:17 AM

The Turbinlites were an answer to a problem (the large size & great weight of early airborne search radars) & served their purpose until the development of the centimetric radar (which allowed the carriage of guns & radar on the one aircraft without significantly effecting its combat performance) replaced them shortly after their introduction.

Dizzyfugu · December 04, 2023, 01:04:02 AM

The problem with a Turbinlite in/on a Whirlwind might not be the searchlight itself, but rather the battery packs? Quite heavy, and bulky, too (the Havoc/Boston as well as the Mossie had the bomb bay and respective load capacities).

jcf · December 04, 2023, 10:50:54 AM

The hunter-killer pair of Whirlwinds is an amusing notion but I wouldn't want to be the one tasked with figuring out how to coordinate the operation of the pair. It's likely that the turbinlite equipped aircraft would have different flight characteristics compared to a regular Whirlwind.

jcf · December 04, 2023, 11:30:43 AM

This article on Vintage Wings Canada shows why a Turbinlite type installation would be difficult, and how craptastic the entire project was as a concept.

Blinded by the Light

The Rat · December 04, 2023, 01:42:29 PM

Quote from: jcf on December 04, 2023, 11:30:43 AMThis article on Vintage Wings Canada shows why a Turbinlite type installation would be difficult, and how craptastic the entire project was as a concept.

Blinded by the Light

QuoteThe service searchlights in use by the Army and Navy up to this point consumed 150 amps of current. The Helmore Turbinlite drew 1,400 amps. Specially designed 12-volt batteries were created which could discharge in 120 seconds. The 48-battery array was carried in the fuselage and weighed so much (nearly 2,000 lbs) that the Turbinlite aircraft could carry no offensive or defensive armament. The light burned through its carbon rods at a prodigious rate,

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Hmmm... That seems to put a damper on the idea. Maybe just a radar equipped hunter-killer combo? I wasn't familiar with the actual light, always figured it just ran off a generator from the engine. And, either way, my idea could still turn out to be a failure in the whiffworld!