Stirling was originally designed with the Sunderland wing for ease of manufacture but the Air Ministry was concerned about it’s weight and ordered the wing cut back. The tale about ensuring it fitted existing hangars is a myth.
Sir John Valentine Carden Survives. Part 2.
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It probably would have been a better bomber with it. The changes demanded by the Air Ministry required the angle-of-attack of the wing to be changed as well. This also increased drag.
This supposed flaw was a result of the pre-war Air Ministry doctrine that bombers be capable of doubling as long-ranged troop and cargo transports, so it would thrive in the Far East as the multi-role bomber transport it was designed as IF it had its original wing. It would also be great in European service as another long-range maritime patrol bomber, aerial refueling or even a 1st generation AWACS if fitted with the appropriate radar.
ITTL it looks as if Japan isn't going to be able to seize either Borneo or the DEI. If they don't, then the IJN and the Japanese merchant marine will be pretty much restricted to whatever remains in their storage tanks, since they've just pissed off virtually every possible supplier of oil on the planet. Even without a submarine warfare campaign, it wouldn't be long before all those pretty warships, cargo transports and fishing boats are just rusting away in port. Those sea-lanes would be very quiet, even without Allied subs stalking them.
IIRC the angle of attack was changed rather than lengthen (also increasing the weight) of the already long undercarriage.
The Stirling would be a good complement to the Bristol Bombay. The Short Stirling carrying loads over strategic distances with the Bristol Bombays taking them to forward landing grounds.
We will see how far they get on coal. They just need to get to Vietnam and Korea.
The angle of attack was changed in an attempt to compensate for the shortened wing, which led to the lengthened undercarriage.
Ah yes, the smokier coal-fired ships. Just what Allied sub skippers would love.
Possible problem with use of the Short Stirling in Southeast Asia seems to me to be the limit on how high it can fly. (Wikipedia claims at the time of this post the 'Short Stirling I' has a service ceiling of only 5,000 metres.)
Even assuming a bit of rounding up or down on wikipedia's part, some routes (Edit: e.g. going into China; possibly travel across some of the more mountainous parts of Burma) a Short Stirling would basically be not so much flying as trundling across the ground.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_Stirling#Specifications_(Short_Stirling_I)Wikipedia said:
Even assuming a bit of rounding up or down on wikipedia's part, some routes (Edit: e.g. going into China; possibly travel across some of the more mountainous parts of Burma) a Short Stirling would basically be not so much flying as trundling across the ground.
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Ramp-Rat
Monthly Donor
There is no question in my mind, that had the Stirling been built with ether the 114 feet wing of the Empire C Class flying boat or the 112 feet wing of the Sunderland. As apposed to the 99 feet wing it had, it would have been an excellent aircraft, instead of being just a reasonable one, that didn’t shine at any role unlike the Avro Lancaster.
RR.
RR.
Bit of a stretch but a Stirling V with the Skyraider AN/APS 20 radome in the Temperate Sea Scheme and British Pacific Fleet markings?
What was the expected performance of the propsed Super Stirling with the larger wingspan and Centarus engines.
According to Tony Buttler, max speed 311mph at 20,000ft, max height 29,300ft. Max bomb load 23,000lbs.
I believe the Wellington was the first British AEW aircraft. Modified to hunt the He111s and their air-launched V1s off the Belgian Coast.
I agree the Stirling would be a good fit for SEA/China, or a “Proto-Tiger Force”. I just wonder how long it would be before the fact Japanese cities were primarily built of matchwood and paper worked itself through to Bomber Command HQ. BC were used to dropping mines, which I think would be the logical “easy first step”.
And if range is an issue, a certain Mr Alan Cobham has an idea…
I think it maybe earlier than OTL the Americans are going to need a few gut punches to the Japanese of their own done by American forces and not ones just comming from DUKE and Dutch forces.
It would be intresting to see an earlier Tiger Force basing would be an issue unless you could get them close enough British Bases and given what I remembered you can't with what could get sent out east. Though if they could get some air Bases inside China it would allow for it though bot sure since I think the ROK would need to retake areas and that rotting cult leader Mao and his followers would no way allow it since he has that nodding relationship with Japan and will in no way shape or form want anything to draw their ire the cretin.
Logistics mayb tricky as well as airbase security as well though in Terms of home island air defence for the Japanese it's a bit of a mess so intial operations if done should be easier than Europe.
With MacArthur out of the way, I suspect there will be some in the army who want to “do something” in the Far East. There is also the sizeable China Lobby in Washington demanding FDR “Do Something”, and given the news from Nanking etc, we can’t blame them either.
That means the US Army will likely be in South China. I don’t think Wuhan will have fallen yet, and I doubt it will of the Burma Road is open and the amount of resources devoted to “Over The Hump” ops are spent on the road. Now someone wiser than I can figure out if a Stirling based out of Wuhan could drop mines off Hong Kong. Being seen to be doing something to “strike back” and retake parts of the Empire would be right up Churchill’s street. ight up
Hmm also enough of them could drop much needed supplies to Chinese forces or ferry them to nearby airfields.
Wikipedia (at the time of this post) quotes 'the official history of the Army Air Forces' as having this to say about the original timeline 'Hump'.
Any aircraft trying to do India to China without good mechnical reliability and a sufficiently high service ceiling is going to splat itself and its crew plus contents on those ridges.
Edit:
If the Allies can capture/liberate Thailand, I'm not sure if things might look better trying to fly into China from Thailand.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hump
Any aircraft trying to do India to China without good mechnical reliability and a sufficiently high service ceiling is going to splat itself and its crew plus contents on those ridges.
Edit:
If the Allies can capture/liberate Thailand, I'm not sure if things might look better trying to fly into China from Thailand.