Thanks lads!
'Kit: This whole thread was inspired by a What-would-Brian-Do notion. I can't match BdB's unbridled creativity but its fun to play in an adjacent field
Greg: Over time, BdB has expanded into being an equal opportunity undercarriage-leg coverer. Trousers are just spats bursting with confidence
Gloster S.S.22 Gorcock IIAt the time that its S.S.21
Goral was abandoned, Gloster was already working on a replacement monoplane fighter design. The S.S.22 retained the
Goral's wing but featured a revised fuselage (thereby losing its final commonality with the Gloster VI racer. This deeper fuselage was required for new powerplants to replace the failed Napier
Lionheart.
Napier had not entirely given up on the
Lionheart design, only on its 'broad arrow' layout. Instead, complete
Lionheart cylinder banks were to be arranged in a horizontal 'H' format. The resulting 2318.5 cid (38 L) brute of an engine would become Napier's
Lion 16. It was hoped that the horizontal 'H' layout would allow for better cylinder air flow and, thus, avoid the
Lionheart's fatal cooling problems.
As with the S.S.21, the S.S.22 prototype airframe was completed long before its intended powerplant. At the A&AEE's suggestion, Gloster substituted a 600 hp Rolls-Royce
Kestrel VIS for the unavailable
Lion 16. With the
Kestrel installed, the prototype S.S.22 flew at Brockworth in March 1935. For cooling, twin radiators were mounted inboard of the new, rearward-retractable undercarriage. Partially buried within the wing, these radiators proved remarkably low in drag.
The G.22 prototype was unarmed but, as the
Gorcock II, armament options were twin, synchronized .5-inch machine guns mounted in the fuselage sides with options of an additional pair of wing-mounted BSA guns or four .303-inch wing guns firing outside the propeller arc. After successful trials at Martlesham Heath, the RAF elected to purchase the
Gorcock II as a four-gunned interceptor.
The first production Gloster
Gorcock Mk.I arrived at Duxford to begin re-equipping No.19 Squadron in October 1935. The
Gorcock II proved fast, rugged, and reliable in service but only ever served with on squadron. The RAF wanted more Gorcocks but, it was claimed, the Brockworth plant could handle production of only one type and outstanding orders existed for the
Gauntlet biplane fighter.
It has been claimed by some that Gloster's new owners, Hawker Siddeley, killed the
Gorcock II to protect their own
Harrier series and its
Harpy derivative. But, as usual, the real story is more complicated. The
Gorcock Mk.II was to have been powered by Napier's new
Lion 16 but that engine was experiencing extended teething problems. With Hawker Siddeley's decision to end
Gorcock production, the Mk.II programme was terminated.
Although the
Gorcock II was built in small numbers, it had a lasting influence. It was not by accident that Hawker's later-production
Harpies had metal-skinned wings with built-in armament. The Napier
Lion 16 proved too heavy as a fighter engine but later came into its own as a fan-cooled bomber powerplant.