General Aircraft Hotspur

General Aircraft Hotspur

infobox Aircraft
name = GAL.48 Hotspur
type = training glider
manufacturer = General Aircraft Ltd



caption =
designer =
first flight =
introduced =
retired =
status =
primary user = British Army
more users = Royal Air Force
produced =
number built = more than 1000
unit cost =
developed from =
variants with their own articles =
The Hotspur was a military glider of the Second World War designed and built by the British company General Aircraft Ltd.

History

The use of assault gliders by the British was prompted by Germany's use of the DFS 230, which was first used in May 1940 to successfully assault the Eben Emael fort in Belgium. Their advantage compared to parachute assault was that the troops were landed together in one place, rather than being dispersed.

The Hotspur was small, seating only 8 troop seats; the more famous Horsa was much bigger. While the Hotspur Mk 1 was intended for combat use, its performance with a full load was not adequate for operational use, and subsequently all Hotspurs were used for training duties only.

The Hotspur Mk I had a hinged upper fuselage section, designed to allow the rapid exit of the onboard troops. The Hotspur Mk II had its wings clipped by 16 ft (4.88 m) and a larger cockpit canopy, making it more suitable for training flights. Cabin doors replaced the hinged fuselage section. The Hotspur Mk III had completely duplicated flying controls, reflecting its use as a training version.

A Twin Hotspur was also produced, where two airframes were joined by a wing stub, allowing 16 troops to be moved. The craft was not developed further.

Combat History

There is no record of the Hotspur being used in combat as the larger glider types overtook them in functionality.

On training operations they were usually towed by Miles Master Mk II aircraft.

A reproduction of a Hotspur Mk 2 can be seen at the Army Museum of Flying at Middle Wallop in Hampshire.

Operators

;UK
*British Army
*Royal Air Force

Specifications (Hotspur Mk 2)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=neither
crew=2
capacity=8 troops
length main=39 ft
length alt=11.89 m
span main=45 ft 10¾ in
span alt=13.99 m
height main=10 ft
height alt=3.05 m
area main=272 ft²
area alt=25.3 m²
empty weight main=1,660 lb
empty weight alt=755 kg
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main=3,598 lb
max takeoff weight alt=1,632 kg
max speed main=130 mph
max speed alt=209 km/h)

  • Landing speed: 56 mph (91 km/h)
    range main= 83 miles from a 20 000 ft release
    range alt= 134 km from a 6000 m release
    ceiling main=
    ceiling alt=
    climb rate main=
    climb rate alt=
    climb rate main=
    climb rate alt=
    loading main=lb/ft²
    loading alt=kg/m²
    power/mass main=hp/lb
    power/mass alt=kW/kg

    ee also

    aircontent
    related=

    similar aircraft=
    * Waco CG-4A
    * General Aircraft Hamilcar
    * Airspeed Horsa
    * Slingsby Hengist

    lists=
    *List of aircraft of the RAF
    *List of aircraft of the Army Air Corps


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