Written by
Jonathan Charles

June 22, 1940. Gloster Gladiator N5519 "Charity", flown by Flight Lieutenant George Burgess, intercepts a SM79 over Valetta Harbour, Malta and brings it down. N5519 was one of three Gladiators that defended Malta during 1940 - immortalised as "Faith", "Hope", and "Charity" - and which helped hold the island against Italian attacks until the first Hurricanes became available.

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Overview

In 1930 the British Air Ministry issued specification F.7/30 for a new RAF fighter. Requirements included a 250 mph (402 km/h) top speed and a four-gun armament. This represented a 20% increase in speed and a doubling of armament over existing RAF fighters. Numerous proposals were received from companies including Hawker, Bristol and Supermarine, so after much prevarication a competition was held in 1935 to choose a winning design. The Gloster Aircraft Company was too busy producing their Gauntlet fighter for the RAF to design an all-new design for the contest. Late in the day they entered the private venture S.S.37, which was essentially an updated Gauntlet.

The H.P. Holland designed S.S.37 first flew in September 1934. Like its predecessor its fuselage was a steel tube space frame with wings built up from steel tube spars and duralumin ribs, the whole airframe then fabric covered. Refinements included landing flaps; a cleaner cantilever undercarriage with internally sprung wheels and the deletion of one set of wing struts. A drag inducing but reliable 530 hp Bristol Mercury VIS radial engine drove a wooden two-bladed fixed pitch propeller while armament was two Vickers .303 in (7.7 mm) guns with 600rpg in the fuselage and two similar calibre drum-fed Lewis guns with 97rpg under the lower wings.

Some of the S.S.37’s competition were advanced monoplanes, or had retracting undercarriage or stressed skin construction. However all the designs failed to fully meet the RAF specification except the S.S 37. Most failed in regards to speed, and often this was down to the handicap of the heavy and unreliable steam-cooled Goshawk engine the Ministry had pushed them to use. As the only aircraft fully meeting the specification, the S.S.37 was therefore judged the winner. Development continued with the fitting of a more powerful 830 hp Mercury IX engine and an enclosed cockpit and production finally got underway in late 1935.

By the time the RAF received their first Gladiator Mk I in February 1937 it was fast becoming obsolete. The much faster Spitfire and Hurricane monoplane fighters had already flown and the latter was due to enter service by the end of the year. Despite this, the worsening political situation in Europe meant nine squadrons were reequipped with the Gladiator during 1937. While its performance and armament were far better than the aircraft it replaced, and its handling flawless, service pilots were less enthusiastic about its relatively heavy controls and the restricted visibility from the enclosed canopy. After the first 71 Mk Is had been produced their original armament was replaced by four belt-fed Browning .303 in (7.7mm) guns with 400rpg in the wings and 600rpg in the fuselage.

The Mk II Gladiator appeared in 1938 and was produced until mid 1940. Its principal difference was a three-blade, metal fixed-pitch propeller instead of the old two-blade wooden one. Not only did this cure some high-speed vibration, but it also added 4 mph (6.5 km/h) to the top speed. Other changes included a reflector gunsight and improved instrumentation. To allow for operations from unprepared fields a Vokes dust filter was fitted, as well as an onboard electric starter.

A carrier-borne Gladiator was also developed from the Mk II for the Fleet Air Arm. As well as a landing hook, this had catapult attachment points, a naval radio set and a dinghy carried in a streamlined fairing between the wheels. The Sea Gladiator Mk I became operational on HMS Courageous in May 1939. By late 1940 however, it had been replaced on Britain’s aircraft carriers by more modern fighters, such as the Fairey Fulmar.

 As well as sales to the RAF and FAA, the Gladiator also became a major export success for Gloster. Foreign sales, together with ex-RAF aircraft transfers made it one of the most widely used fighters of its time. Operators included Belgium (22), China (36), Egypt (45), Eire (4), Finland (30), Greece (19), Iraq 14), Latvia (26), Lithuania (14), Norway (12), Portugal (15), South Africa (12) and Sweden (55). The Latvian and Lithuanian Gladiators saw a varied career. They were taken over as war booty, first by the Soviets and then in turn by the Germans. The Luftwaffe used the Gladiators as glider tugs until 1944.

China’s Gladiators were the first to see action, although their poorly trained pilots suffered badly at the hands of their experienced Japanese opponents. The Soviet Union’s invasion of Finland saw both Finnish and Swedish Gladiators in combat in 1940. However, the British machine’s lack of speed rendered it ineffective against many of the Soviet aircraft they faced while its pilots did not appreciate its lack of armour protection.

The RAF entered the war with Germany still with eight Gladiator squadrons, four in the Middle East and four in Britain, two of which were soon sent to France. In April 1940, Germany’s invasion of Norway quickly overwhelmed the Norwegian Air Force, including its handful of Gladiators. To help, an RAF squadron of Gladiators, No 263, was ferried over the North Sea by the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious. Things didn’t start well, after only three days in Norway all of 263’s aircraft were lost when the Luftwaffe bombed the frozen lake they were operating from, smashing the ice. After ferrying new aircraft over, they resumed operations two weeks later. The enemy’s bombers though, generally flew at high altitude making interception difficult and could usually escape by diving away. Poor cockpit heating in the Gladiator didn’t help matters either, particularly as it made the canopy prone to misting up in the cold air. Despite these difficulties 263 put up a spirited defence until they were withdrawn on June 7^th. Sadly most of their surviving pilots were lost when their ride home, HMS Glorious, was sunk the next day.

The two RAF Gladiator squadrons in France had scored a few kills over the winter and were being reequipped with Hurricanes when the Germans attacked on May 10. Both these and the single Belgian Gladiator squadron could do little more than fight for survival against the hordes of far faster German fighters. Those few that survived the attentions of the Luftwaffe were destroyed as the RAF fled France.

When Italy declared war on Britain on June 10, 1940, the island of Malta had no fighter defence. So three Sea Gladiators left on the island as spares for the Navy’s carriers were hastily assembled and pressed into service. Later dubbed “Faith”, “Hope” and “Charity” by the press, these aircraft famously provided Malta’s sole air cover against Italian air attacks for 18 days in June until Hurricane reinforcements arrived. Although they only shot down three enemy aircraft, they were often able to disrupt enemy formations during their bomb runs and helped boost morale.

In North Africa Italy’s far larger army and air force in Libya posed a serious threat to Britain’s forces guarding the Suez Canal in Egypt. When Italy invaded in September, fierce fighter versus fighter engagements were fought over the Western Desert. The Gladiator or CR42 biplane fighters in use were only rarely able to intercept their opponent’s Blenheim or SM79 monoplane bombers. The CR42’s 10 mph (16 km/h) speed advantage gave it a tactical advantage over the Gladiator, although both aircraft proved evenly matched in manoeuvrability and firepower. In combat the RAF and RAAF pilots enjoyed a crucial edge in aggressiveness and teamwork, as the Regia Aeronautica pilots had been given less time in the air for training. By January the RAF had complete air superiority; the Italian army had been routed and much of their North African air force destroyed as their airfields were overrun.

When Italy attacked Greece from Albania in October 1940, the Greek Government asked the British for assistance and by November two Gladiator and three Blenheim squadrons had been transferred from the Desert. The Italians though, had 140 fighters on hand including two Gruppi of their latest G50 monoplane fighter. Weather conditions during the Greek winter were awful, often causing operations to be suspended for weeks. Constant rain turned airfields into quagmires, while low cloud combined with high mountains were a constant menace.  As in the Desert most engagements were between fighters and as before the RAF pilots usually had the upper hand. The Gladiators were still only rarely able to destroy the fast SM79 bombers, which could pull away easily in a dive.

One pilot who did manage to down a number of Italian bombers was the South African ace “Pat” Pattle. An exceptional shot, he liked to attack from head on and knock out one of the bomber’s engines to slow it down. He then picked off his victim’s rear gunner, and after holing a fuel tank, ignited the escaping fuel with incendiary bullets. Pattle scored 16 of his 41 kills in a Gladiator, most of which were against fighters.

On February 28 the RAF in Greece had its best day, a combined force of Hurricanes and Gladiators form 33, 80 and 112 Squadrons accounted for 27 enemy aircraft for the loss of one Gladiator, with Pattle downing five. Over the next month as the RAF squadrons in Greece at last received Hurricanes their Gladiators were transferred to the Greek Air Force. Most of these were destroyed on the ground by Luftwaffe bombs when the Germans overran Greece in April.

Throughout 1941, as the British, Italians and the newly arrived Germans introduced monoplane fighters to the North African theatre; the RAF’s Gladiators were gradually replaced by Hurricanes. The last RAF Gladiator kill was scored there in September, a few weeks before it was finally withdrawn from frontline RAF service.

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Variants

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Specifications

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