Pilots Report - Hurricane P3351

It is a pleasure and privilege to fly any Warbird, but seldom is the opportunity given to fly one that is so rare and so different. From the moment you walk towards the Hurricane and notice its fabric covered fuselage and large wing and tail sections, until the final dying crackle of the Merlin, it oozes nostalgia and character. As well, it is large and sits surprisingly high off the ground, high enough that it requires assistance in the form of a retractable step, aft of the trailing edge, to mount it. Then again another step is imbedded in the side of the fuselage above the wing to prevent a final indignity.

After checking undercarriage locked down, switches off etc, the walk round is typical, apart from a few peculiarities. The wheels sit at an unusual angle; normal I'm assured. The radiator is a work of art and is checked carefully for leaks, a coolant leak being the demise of many of these fine aeroplanes. A quick tap on those beautiful exhaust stubbs for the reassuring 'ting', and the rest is pretty typical for this type of aeroplane. Remount the beast again, and it is difficult to do with dignity, and settle into the cockpit. 
 
The cockpit sides are about chin high giving a surprisingly snug feeling of security until you realise that there are only a few millimetres of plywood between you and the 20mm bullet! The cockpit is a bit of a mishmash with bits and pieces attached wherever a space could be found on the tubular frame work and it certainly reflects the period when little thought was given to who would fly it. The electrics are on both the left and right side panels, and the instrument panel, the RPM lever is on a different quadrant to the throttle and mixture, which in turn are close together and of a similar confusing size. The undercarriage and flap selector is the same lever, an H pattern operated in similar fashion to a car gear lever, and that in itself is a marvel of design or a masterpiece of confusion. A prominent large brass switch, 1920's vintage, operates the landing lights, which in turn are pilot adjustable, up or down, by means of a cable and lever arrangement. I'm not sure how one would manage to find the time or even manage to operate this adjustment on finals to land at night. However this is all part of the character, and it certainly is a refinement on the Polikarpov I-16 which was designed during a similar period. The standard of workmanship on this Hurricane is simply superb and everything works exactly as advertised, surprising for an aircraft of this vintage, but it certainly adds to the pilots' confidence. 
 
After strapping in, things generally flow from left to right until it is time to start the engine. Fuel ON, on the left side of the cockpit, battery switch ON, right side, the DC master ON, left side, the start master and booster coil ON, right side, fuel pump ON, front instrument panel, and then back to the left for the start and prime switches. The starting procedure adopted by the Alpine Fighter Collection, is a little different to the way I have started Merlins in the past, and on the other Hurricane that I have flown. I am assured that it prevents stack fires, and has something to do with 'top dead centre' and saving the starter motor! From cold this Merlin requires six good one second primes, and when hot no primes. Brakes parked, and with the right leg holding the control column hard back, press the start button. The engine fires almost instantaneously, a quick dab of prime keeps it running as the magneto switches are turned on, a few more dabs of prime as the mixture is opened to auto rich, with your third hand, and it should settle down to idle at about 800 RPM. This sequence does take some practice to ensure a good clean start, but it works, and my attempts at the more common procedure have produced some wonderful fireworks and delightful expressions of momentary horror from the faces of the assembled spectators. 
 
After start the normal tidying up is done, temperatures and pressures, flaps checked, start master off, radio etc. As power is increased for taxi one of the distinct characteristics of the Hurricane becomes apparent, vibration, and a loud engine harmonic. Without prior warning of this the novice would probably return to dispersal requesting some severe remedial action. However it is normal and one soon gets used to it, but it is harsh and unlike all other Merlin installations. Taxiing presents the normal problem of reduced visibility over the nose, although it is better than most other W.W.II fighters, but the required weave is easily managed by the hand operated pneumatic brakes. On concrete it wants to bound away at idle. With the oil temperature at 15 degrees and radiator at 40 degrees C it is time to commence the run up. The Hurricane will, and has, tipped onto its nose if care is not taken with the application of power. Never use the park brake of course and slowly increase boost to -2 pounds, of the +12 available, any more and the tail will start to lift off the ground. Check the prop CSU a couple of times and the magnetos, looking for around a 100RPM drop, but as with all these old gauges, fluctuations of the mechanical drives are a problem and a fair bit of the information is transmitted by feel and noise! 
 
Normal pre take off checks are completed with particular emphasis on the rudder trim, full right, the temperatures and pressures, and setting of the radiator flap fully open. I open the throttle reasonably slowly checking that all is stable and set +8 inches and 3000RPM. This power setting is ample at the light weights we are flying and allows for a much more controlled affair. By this time the tail wheel has come up and the swing to the left is easily held with right rudder. At 80 mph she wants to fly and accelerates quite quickly. Care must be taken not to exceed the gear limiting speed of 120mph so quite a steep climb out is required, none of the hold it down airshow stuff. At the same time the left hand is taken off the throttle and crossed to the control column, and returned rapidly if the throttle friction has not been adjusted firmly enough. The right hand is then used to release the gear safety latch and select first gear, on the gear/flap selector quadrant. This raises the undercarriage. The hands are then reversed to select climb power 2650 RPM and +6 for a climb rate of around 2500feet per minute at 150mph. After checking the all-important temperatures and resetting the radiator, it is time to initially notice some of the characteristics of the Hurricane. Vibration levels are reasonably high and it is noisy, not that nice V12 sound you hear from the outside, but as you are sitting 6 feet directly behind an un-silenced Merlin, more of an earth shattering roar. As well it is getting warm as the pipes carrying engine oil and the radiator glycol between the engine and radiator, pass down the outside of your legs. This heat can become a real problem on a very hot day, but what a blessing during the English winter. This Hurricane is fitted with louvres and vents, which do help, thanks to our thoughtful Air New Zealand engineers. The coolant pipes are lagged and of course they give off an appropriate odour, and when mixed with the various fumes from the engine, it all becomes a very distinctive concoction. Very soon a slight haze has appeared, yes I am definitely in a Hurricane. 
 
At cruise power, 2000RPM and +0 she gets along nicely at around 180mph, max lean cruise of 2150RPM and +4 gives a healthy 235mph. The flight controls are lovely and light and reasonably well harmonised, and it is surprisingly stable, a good gun platform! The elevators lack a bit of feel as they are still quite tight on this aeroplane, making formation flying difficult, but it is a known problem with the Hurricane and they will free up. Power up for some manoeuvring to say 2650/+6 and it really comes alive. The large thick wing allows good tight turns, good enough to out turn all of the contemporaries, and there is a characteristic tightening and tuck in pitch, to watch and control, as things tighten up. However drag is relatively high and she runs out of steam a little quicker than other WWII fighters. The ailerons are light but rate of roll is relatively poor, slightly better than the P51, but behind the Spitfire. Loops and rolls are fine but acceleration is slow. At Vne of 390mph it is perfectly trimmed but care must be taken with the lightness of the controls, even changing the radiator gills at this speed provides a marked pitch change. In the previous Hurricane that I have flown, as the nose was lowered to accelerate to around 250mph for a loop, the cockpit became noticeably warmer and the haze increased. Through the inverted portion of the loop it got cooler and clearer, and down the other side, warmer and smellier again. This aeroplane is just starting to develop these tendencies as flying hours build up; yes it sure has character. 
 
Stalling presents no problems with the usual wing drop, vicious with the under carriage and flap down, but is easily controlled. Stalling speeds are surprisingly slow varying from 75mph clean to 55mph in the landing configuration. Spinning is for a maximum of two turns only and exit is rapid with standard recovery technique. There is little else to do but get on with savouring the delights. 
 
The only problem with the landing is slowing it down to 120mph limiting speed for both flap and undercarriage lowering. It is surprisingly slick and as the throttle should not be fully closed, it takes most of the downwind to slow after breaking at even a modest speed of around 250mph. Landing presents few problems into wind. First of all select second gear for undercarriage down, and then fourth gear for a few moments, for half flap. A curved base turn almost onto the ground is recommended to ensure good visibility over the nose. 100 mph around base with half flap is comfortable, reducing to 95 with full flap crossing the fence, a slight flair and hold off gives a reliable three-point landing. On the ground there is a tendency for the Hurricane to wander a little but it is quite easily controlled. Cross winds provide the normal interest associated with a tail dragger but I prefer a three point landing because the flare required is less, generally, than other aircraft of this type. Remember however, these aeroplanes were designed to operate off big square grass fields into wind! 
 
Every flight in this type of aircraft is something to remember and savour, but somehow there is something special to me about the Hurricane. Sure it lacks the charisma of the Spitfire and some later WWII fighters, but it did win the Battle of Britain. It also lacks the handling qualities of the Spitfire and others but then it was designed a lot earlier than all of them, and then not developed to the same extent. Compare it to designs of a similar era, Polikarpov I-16, Spitfire Mk1, the very early Me109s, and it could certainly hold its own. Remarkably it then went right through WWII being used successfully in every conceivable role and theatre, still virtually as a 1936 model, while all the rest were subject to huge modification. So as I step out of the cockpit with that huge satisfied grin, am I dismounting the most capable of them all?