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Gloster Gladiator, Sea Gladiator
Last British biplane fighter, a development of the Gauntlet with an enclosed cockpit and cantilever landing gear. The Gladiator was used during WWII in theatres were the RAF could not afford better equipment. The famous story about the three Gladiators called Faith, Hope and Love that defended Malta is incorrect: there were seven aircraft involved, Sea Gladiators from Navy stocks. Gladiators were also sold to Belgium, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway, China, Ireland, Greece, Portugal, Egypt, Iraq, and South Africa.
| General characteristics Gladiator II | ||||
| Primary function | Fighter | |||
| Power plant | One 9cylinder Bristol Mercury IX radial engine | |||
| Thrust | 840 HP | 626 kW | ||
| Wingspan | 32.3 ft | 9.85 m | ||
| Length | 27.5 ft | 8.38 m | ||
| Height | 10.4 ft | 3.17 m | ||
| Wingarea | 323 sq ft | 30.01 sq m | ||
| Weight | empty | Gladiator | 3,450 lb | 1,565 kg |
| Sea Gladiator | 3,730 lb | 1,692 kg | ||
| max. | Gladiator | 4,863 lb | 2,206 kg | |
| Sea Gladiator | 5,400 lb | 2,449 kg | ||
| Speed | Gladiator | 253 mph | 407 km/h | |
| Sea Gladiator | 244 mph | 392 km/h | ||
| Initial climb rate | 2,300 ft/min | 700 m/min | ||
| Ceiling | 33,000 ft | 10,060 m | ||
| Range | Gladiator | 440 mi | 708 km | |
| Sea Gladiator | 423 mi | 680 km | ||
| Armament | 4x 7.7mm machine gun | |||
| Crew | One | |||
| First flight | September 1934 (prototype) | |||
| Date deployed | March 1937 | |||
| Number built | Minimum 756 (480 RAF, 60 RN; 216 export into 13 countries) | |||
Jirka Wagner
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Last updated 01.10.2008