Hurricane

The Hawker Hurricane is one of the classic fighters of all time, designed and built for war. It was at the forefront of Britain’s defence in 1940 and it played a major part in achieving the victory of 1945.

Sir Sydney Camm CBE commenced the design work for the Hurricane in 1934 (Camm went on to design the Typhoon, Tempest, Hunter and Harrier). The prototype Hurricane (K5083) made its maiden flight on 6th November 1935 and deliveries to the RAF commenced just before Christmas 1937 to 111 Squadron at Northolt (8 months ahead of the Spitfire).

The Hurricane was the first British monoplane eight-gun fighter, the first RAF aircraft to exceed 300 mph in level flight and the first production fighter with a retractable main undercarriage.

During the Battle of Britain, RAF Fighter Command fielded more Hurricanes than Spitfires, and Hurricanes achieved a similarly greater proportion of combat kills during the Battle.

A remarkable total of 14,533 Hurricanes were built and the aircraft served operationally on every day throughout hostilities, in every operational theatre and in many roles. At the end of World War Two in 1945, Hurricanes were still in the front-line helping to ensure final victory in the Far East.

The early Hurricane was painted in "A" and "B" schemes, alternating every other airplane down the production line.  The "B" scheme is the "mirror" of the A-scheme, reading from right-to-left instead of left-to-right.  Since the first production Hurricane had an odd-number serial, it is very easy to figure out which scheme applies:  odd-number serials are "A" scheme, with even-number serials in "B" scheme.  Thus, the 151 Squadron airplane, which had its serial painted out, can be the "A" scheme shown in the diagram, as can L1555 and L1599 from 111 and 56 Squadrons respectively; however, the 1 Squadron Hurricane, L1842, should be done in a "B" scheme for historical accuracy.

With the end of the war, Hurricanes were quickly retired from service as the rapid progression of aircraft design and capabilities had effectively rendered them obsolete and the aircraft’s job was done. The vast majority were simply scrapped and broken up. Sadly, today, there are only 12 Hurricanes still airworthy worldwide; only 6 of those in UK. Of the 432 Hurricanes operational during the Battle of Britain only r4118 is still airworthy.

• • Full size

    • Airframe index

    • Air History - Hurricane

    • Books

      • Hawker Hurricane Camo & Markings

      • Grub Street

        • Hurricane R4118: The Extraordinary Story of the Discovery and Restoration of a Battle of Britain Survivor

      • Osprey

        • Hurricane: Hawkers fighter legend (published May 2017)

    • British Museums (etc.) with a Hurricane

      • BBMF

      • Duxford

      • Old Warden, Shuttleworth Collection

    • Canadian, RCAF 5389 @ Calgary Mosquito Society

    • Classic Warbirds

      • Miscellany

    • Czech aircraft ,P 3351 (donor), carrying the colour and code markings of  P 3143. Currently ( January 2024) being restored by Hawker Restorations workshop at Elmsett, Suffolk, Battle of France veteran Hawker Hurricane I P3351 is being refurbished and repainted into a No 310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron scheme following its acquisition by the Letecké Muzeum Tocná, an association of historic aircraft owners based at Prague’s Tocná Airport.

    • Experience flights, with Hurricane Heritage @ White Waltham in R4118

    • Hurricane Information

      • 35 Hurricane facts

    • Hurricanes on Film, details of Hurricanes used in film, part of the Wings on Film database 

    • The Guide Book to the World's Surviving Hawker Hurricanes -- around the World

    • Aviation history Aircraft profile

    • Unusual Hurricanes

      • Air Despatch Letter Service, No. 1697 (Air Despatch Letter Service) Flight was a unit of the Royal Air Force that was formed at Hendon in April 1944 for the purpose of providing secure communications between Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force and unit commanders in the Normandy beachhead during the 1944 Allied invasion of France. Operating mainly modified (internal 11-cubic foot fuselage container behind the pilot’s seat + 2 external 45 gal tanks) Hawker Hurricanes (later also Avro Anson and Douglas Dakota), it continued to deliver mail and small packages close to the front line during the Allied advance into France and Belgium. Unit identity code - DR. It was disbanded in March 1945.

      • Hawker "Dodo", a Hurricane I modified (third main wheel under engine and addition seats either side of the pilot, on the outside of fuselage one for instructor the other for second trainee) in the field for training pilots ground handling.

      • Hillson FH.40 Slip Wing Hawker Hurricane, designed to test the idea of "slip-wings", where the aircraft could take off as a biplane, jettison the upper, disposable top wing with integral fuel tanks, and continue flying as a monoplane. Designed to reduce take-off distance with heavy loads, and to improve ferry range. The Hurricane aircraft used for this experiment was an early Mk I, one of 20 originally transferred to Canada in 1939 and then returned to UK in 1942 (originally it carried RAF serial (L1884) on the fuselage, but when it returned it kept its newer RCAF serial 321 for slip wing trials). First taxi trials and flights were conducted at RAF Sealand (traditionally a training base), 25–28 May 1943. On 15 September 1943, Hurricane 321 was ferried to the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at RAF Boscombe Down for further trials with the Performance Testing Squadron.

      • Hurricane Mk IIB (Z3687), painted in an all white colour scheme, would be used during 1944 and 1945 to test a laminar flow wing designed by Armstrong Whitworth.

      • Rotol 4 bladed propeller, Mk V Hurricanes

        • NL255, built as new

        • KX405

        • KZ193

      • Russian Hurricanes

      • Ski equipped Hurricane. The aircraft is a Canadian built airframe 1362 with a Fairey Battle engine & propeller. These are often known as ‘Battle Hurricanes’. The Canadians built the airframes but couldn’t get the engines until Packard started manufacturing the Merlin 29. This aircraft was later converted to a mkXII with a Merlin 29, Hamilton Standard propeller & changed it’s serial to 5624.

      • ? Twin Hawker Hurricane. Reportedly it did really exist but only as a prototype! No further details, similar to Twin Mustang? two images of models (one with a cockpit in each fuselage, the other with only one). Unsure if this is genuine ( very little detail, limited sources).

      • Two seater, Russian in field conversion

      • Two seater (modern conversion). BE505, was finally completed in January 2009,  and this rare Hurricane was rolled out in fighter-bomber.

    • Walk around of Sea Hurricane

    • Wikipedia

Surviving Hurricanes (UK)

Flight Experience (1), also included below in Airworthy

• Hurricane Heritage @ White Waltham

  • Hurricane Mk IIb (2 seater), BE505 (registered G-HHII)

• FlyASpitfire, Warbird Experiences Ltd,Building 204/205, Churchill Way, Biggin Hill Airport, Biggin Hill,  Westerham, TN16 3BN

  • Sea Hurricane Mk.X, AE977, currently painted to represent Hurricane Mk.I P2921 ‘Blue Peter’ 

  • Hurricane Mk XII, V6748

Airworthy (10)

• • • • • Hurricane Mk I, R4118, (registered G-HUPW), Hurricane Heritage @ White Waltham

        • Hurricane Mk I, P2902, (registered G-ROBT) Anglian Aircraft Restorations

        • Hurricane Mk I, P3717, (registered G-HITT) Bygone Aviation

        • Hurricane Mk I, V7497, (SD-X 501 Squadron, registered G-HRLI) due to fly again soon,  update:  V7497 has made it's first flight in 78 years on 30 August 2018.

        • Sea Hurricane IB, Z7015, (registered G-BKTH) Shuttleworth Collection

        • Hurricane Mk IIb (2 seater), BE505 (registered G-HHII), Hurricane Heritage @ White Waltham

        • Hurricane Mk IIc, LF363 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire.

        • Hurricane Mk IIc, PZ865 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire.

        • Hurricane Mk XII, P3700 (registered G-HURI) Duxford. Cambridgeshire.

On display

• • • • • Hurricane Mk I, L1592, Science Museum, London.

        • Hurricane Mk I, P2617, RAF Museum Hendon, London

        • Hurricane Mk I, P3175, displayed as a wreck, RAF Museum Hendon, London

        • Hurricane Mk II, LF738, RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire.

        • Hurricane Mk II, LF751 painted as BN230 of No. 43 Squadron RAF, Hurricane and Spitfire Memorial Museum at the former RAF Manston.

        • Hurricane Mk IIa, Z2389, Brooklands Museum, Weybridge.

        • Hurricane Mk IIb, Z2315, Imperial War Museum Duxford

        • Hurricane Mk IV, KX829, Birmingham Science Museum, painted as P3395

Stored or under restoration

• • • • • Hurricane Mk IV KZ191, privately owned in Berkshire.

        • Hurricane Mk IIb Z5207 (registered G-BYDL), is privately owned and stored in Gloucestershire.

        • Hurricane Mk XII (registered G-CBOE), privately owned in Hampshire.

        • Hurricane Mk IIb BH238, privately owned and stored on the Isle of Wight.

        • Hurricane Mk I L1639 being restored to airworthy condition by Cambridge Bomber and Fighter Society at Little Gransden Airfield in Cambridgeshire.

        • Hurricane Mk I V7497 (registered G-HRLI), recovered wreck that crashed 28 September 1940 operating with No. 501 Squadron RAF.