Hawker Siddeley Nimrod

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Siddeley_Nimrod

The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod was a maritime patrol aircraft developed and operated
by the United Kingdom. It was an extensive modification of the de Havilland
Comet, the world's first operational jet airliner. It was originally designed by
de Havilland's successor firm, Hawker Siddeley; further development and
maintenance work was undertaken by Hawker Siddeley's own successor companies,
British Aerospace and BAE Systems, respectively.

Designed in response to a requirement issued by the Royal Air Force (RAF) to
replace its fleet of ageing Avro Shackletons, the Nimrod MR1/MR2s were primarily
fixed-wing aerial platforms for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) operations;
secondary roles included maritime surveillance and anti-surface warfare. It
served from the early 1970s until March 2010. The intended replacement was to be
extensively rebuilt Nimrod MR2s, designated Nimrod MRA4; however due to
considerable delays, repeated cost overruns, and financial cutbacks, the
development of the MRA4 was abandoned in 2010.

In addition to the three Maritime Reconnaissance variants, two further Nimrod
types were developed. The RAF operated a small number of the Nimrod R1, an
electronic intelligence gathering (ELINT) variant. A dedicated airborne early
warning platform, the Nimrod AEW3 was in development from late 1970s to the
mid-1980s; however, much like the MRA4, considerable problems were encountered
in development and thus the project was cancelled in 1986 in favour of an
off-the-shelf solution in the Boeing E-3 Sentry. All Nimrod variants had been
retired by mid-2011.

The Nimrod was the first jet-powered maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) to enter
service, being powered by the Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan engine. Aircraft in this
role had been commonly propelled by piston or turboprop powerplants instead to
maximise fuel economy and enable maximum patrol time on station; advantages of
the Nimrod's turbofan engines included greater speed and altitude capabilities,
and it was more capable of evading detection by submarines, as propeller-driven
aircraft are more detectable underwater by standard acoustic sensors. The
Nimrods had a flight endurance of ten hours without aerial refuelling; the MR2s
were later fitted to receive mid-air refuelling in response to demands of the
Falklands War.

Role
Maritime patrol, ELINT, AEW

Manufacturer
Hawker Siddeley
BAE Systems

First flight
23 May 1967

Introduction
2 October 1969

Retired
28 June 2011

Status
Retired

Primary user
Royal Air Force

Number built
49 (+2 prototypes)

Developed from
de Havilland Comet

Variants
Nimrod R.1
Nimrod AEW.3
Nimrod MRA.4

Afghanistan and Iraq War

Nimrods were again deployed to the Middle East as part of the British
contribution to the US-led invasion of Afghanistan; missions in this theatre
involved the Nimrods performing lengthy overland flights for
intelligence-gathering purposes. On 2 September 2006, 12 RAF personnel were
killed when a Nimrod MR2 was destroyed in a midair explosion following an
onboard fire over Afghanistan, it was the single greatest loss of British life
since the Falklands War. The outbreak of the Iraq War in March 2003 saw the
RAF's Nimrods being used for operations over Iraq, using the aircraft's sensors
to detect hostile forces and to direct attacks by friendly coalition forces.

The Nimrod was most often featured in the media in relation to its
search-and-rescue role, such as in the reporting of major rescue incidents. In
August 1979, several Nimrods were involved in locating yachting competitors
during the disaster-stricken 1979 Fastnet race and coordinated with helicopters
in searches for survivors from lost vessels. In March 1980, the Alexander L.
Kielland, a Norwegian semi-submersible drilling rig, capsized whilst working in
the Ekofisk oil field killing 123 people; six different Nimrods searched for
survivors and took turns to provide rescue co-ordination, involving the control
of 80 surface ships and 20 British and Norwegian helicopters. In an example of
the search capabilities, in September 1977 when an attempted crossing of the
North Atlantic in a Zodiac inflatable dinghy went wrong, a Nimrod found the
collapsed dinghy and directed a ship to it.

Specifications

General characteristics
Crew: 13
Capacity: 24
Length: 38.65 m (126 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 35.00 m (114 ft 10 in)
Height: 9.14 m (31 ft)
Wing area: 197.05 m² (2,121 sq ft)
Empty weight: 39,009 kg (86,000 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 87,090 kg (192,000 lb)
Powerplant: 4 × Rolls-Royce Spey turbofans, 54.09 kN (12,160 lbf) each

Performance
Maximum speed: 923 km/h (575 mph)
Cruise speed: 787 km/h (490 mph)
Range: 8,340–9,265 km (5,180–5,755 mi)
Service ceiling: 13,411 m (44,000 ft)

Armament

Guns: None
Hardpoints: 2× under-wing pylon stations and an internal bomb bay with a
capacity of 20,000 lb (9,100 kg) and provisions to carry combinations of:
Rockets: None
Missiles:
Air-to-air missile: 2× AIM-9 Sidewinder (non-standard in RAF service, only
mounted on the MR2 during the Falklands War)

Air-to-surface missile: Nord AS.12
Martel missile
AGM-65 Maverick
AGM-84 Harpoon

Bombs:
Depth charges: 2x US-owned B57 nuclear depth bombs (until 1992)
WE.177A nuclear depth charges (10kt)

Other:
Air-dropped Mk.46 torpedoes
Sting Ray torpedoes
Naval mines
Sonobuoys





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