Bristol Buckingham

The Bristol Type 163 Buckingham was a British Second World War medium bomber for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Overtaken by events, it was built in small numbers, and was used primarily for transport and liaison duties.

Design and development
In early 1939 Bristol suggested a bomber variant of the Beaufighter with their Hercules engines. British policy at the time was for medium bombers to be provided from the US allowing British industry to concentrate on heavy bomber designs but a design was requested preferably based on an existing design which effectively meant working with the Beaufighter or Beaufort. Bristol worked on their design first as the Bristol Type 161 then the Type 162 Beaumont.

Air Ministry specification B.7/40 called for a medium bomber to replace the Blenheim. The specification stipulated a speed of at least 300 mph with a normal load of 1,000 lb of bombs and a turret armed with at least two machine guns of 0.50 inch calibre. Only one manufacturer tendered a full design, but it did not meet with approval. Bristol then brought their Type 162 to the Air Staff, which was fortunately well matched to B.7/40 and which led to a request for a completed mock-up and then a contract for three prototypes in late 1940. The Beaumont was based on the rear fuselage and tail of a Beaufighter with a new centre and front fuselage. The armament was a mid-upper turret with four machine guns, four more machine guns firing forward and two firing to the rear.

Construction began in late 1940, with a new Air Ministry Specification B.2/41 to be written around it. However changes in the requirements - removing dive bombing and "direct army support" which incoming US bombers were expected to be capable of - and increasing the performance requirement to allow for the future meant the Beaumont would no longer suffice. The changes in performance (requiring a bomb load of 4,000 lb, a speed of 360 mph and a range of 1,600 miles) meant a redesign by Bristol to use the Bristol Centaurus engine.

The Bristol redesign with a larger wing and the more powerful engines was the Type 163 Buckingham. It had gun installations in the nose, dorsal and ventral turrets. Generally conventional in appearance, one unusual feature was that the bomb-aimer/navigator was housed in a mid-fuselage ventral gondola, resembling those on the earlier German Heinkel He 111H and American Boeing B-17C and -D in appearance. This was part of an attempt to give all the crew positions unobstructed views and access to each other's positions. The bomb bay could hold a single 4,000 lb, two 2,000 lb, four 1,000 lb or six 500-lb bombs. The rear of the gondola had a hydraulically powered turret with two 0.303 Browning machine guns. The dorsal turret of Bristol's own design carried four Brownings. A further four fixed, forward-firing Brownings were controlled by the pilot.

Following more changes specification B.2/41 was subsequently replaced with B.P/41. The first flight took place on 4 February 1943. During testing, the Buckingham exhibited poor stability which necessitated the enlargement of the twin tails, along with other modifications.

Operational history
By the time the design entered production, the requirements had already changed, with attacks against German industry being covered by the US by day and by RAF Bomber Command's de Havilland Mosquitos by night. The Buckingham was not considered suitable for unescorted daytime use over Europe, and in January 1944, it was decided that all Buckinghams would be sent overseas to replace Vickers Wellingtons.

Once the Buckingham's handling problems were revealed, it was realised that the Buckingham was of little use and the Buckingham bomber was therefore cancelled in August 1944. However, in order to keep Bristol's workforce together for later production of the Brigand and the Hawker Tempest, a batch of 119 had to be built. Uses for the aircraft were sought and a conversion to a communications aircraft was devised.

After the first 54 had been built as bombers, the remainder were converted for high-speed courier duties with RAF Transport Command. The gun installations were removed and four seats and windows fitted in the fuselage. The aircraft were designated Buckingham C.1. Despite its 300 mph (480 km/h) speed and superior range to the Mosquito transports, with only room for four passengers, the Buckingham was rarely put to use. A total of 65 Buckingham bombers were unfinished on the production line and ended up re-built as the Buckmaster a trainer for the similar Brigand. Considered the "highest performance trainer in the RAF," the Buckmaster continued to serve as a trainer until its eventual retirement in the mid-1950s.

Variants

 * Type 163 Buckingham
 * Prototypes with two Centaurus IV engines, four built.


 * Type 163 Buckingham B1
 * Production variant first flown 12 February 1944 with Centarus VI or XI engines, 400 ordered but reduced first to 300 then to 119, with only 54 built as bombers.


 * Type 163 Buckingham C1
 * Residual production completed as fast courier transport with four-passenger seats and removal or armour and armament and increased fuel tankage, 64 built.


 * Type 164 Brigand
 * Torpedo bomber variant using Buckingham wings and tails and new fuselage.


 * Type 165 Brigand II
 * Trainer variant of the Brigand, not built.


 * Type 166 Buckmaster
 * Trainer variant of the Buckingham.


 * Type 169
 * Proposed photo-reconnaissance variant of the Buckingham, not built.

Operators

 * Royal Air Force
 * Royal Air Force