With great confidence, the RAF accepted the Gloster Meteor into service late in W.W. II. It was hoped their first jet fighter would be a successful counter to the German Me-262. Unfortunately, things did not go exactly as planned.
The Meteor suffered catastrophic structural failures after flying for only a few hours. When one crashed in the London suburb of Grimesley (luckily no one was hurt), the Air Ministry grounded the new jet.
This left the RAF without a jet fighter. An answer had to be found and fast.
Fortunately, Whittle Power Jets LTD. engineer Hank Spittle came up with a solution. His radical new Little Spittle jet engine had been rejected for production by Sir Frank Whittle even though it was an improvement over the Whittle jet. The Little Spittle jet engine had been flight-tested on a clapped-out, war-weary Hawker Hurricane which, with minor modifications, could serve as an interim replacement for the Meteor. Thus the Hawker Hurry Jet was born.
Powered by the slim and powerful Little Spittle jet engine and armed with two 40 m.m. cannon in the nose, two 20 m.m. cannon and four .303 machine guns in the wings, the stop-gap jet fighter seemed just what the doctor ordered to counter both the Me-262s and V-1 Buzz Bombs. After a crash (no pun intended) flight test program, the Hawker Hurry Jet entered service.
The Hurry Jet's heavy armament made mince-meat of any foe. On September 14th, 1944, one flown by Flying Officer Frederick Headrick exploded a Buzz Bomb in mid-air as it headed for the houses of Parliament. This feat was witnessed by the Prime Minister and the Lord Privy Seal and F.O. Headrick was awarded the Air Cross.
A squadron of Hurry Jets was sent to Europe in October, 1944 and it was here where the new fighter's shortcomings became apparent. While a fast, maneuverable, heavily armed and solid gun platform, the Hurry Jet consumed fuel like a bum drinks Sterno. This could have very bad consequences if one did not keep a constant eye on the fuel gauge.
Even when pilots were mindful of the Hurry Jet's poor gas mileage, their heavy fuel consumption caused logistical problems as the increase in tanker trucks bottle-necked an already stressed supply chain.
Fortunately, the cause of the Meteor's structural failures was found to be a lack of Unobtanium in the air frame. Once this was corrected, Hurry Jets were phased out of service as quickly as they could be replaced.
While Hank Spittle and his Hurry Jet are completely forgotten today, there was a time when the stop-gap fighter held the line in defense of democracy.
Brian da Basher