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by Federoslavia. . 2 reads.

Rhodesian Aviation RA1 Lightning Storm (Republic of Rhodesia)

RA1 Lightning Storm

.

Role

Fighter

Place of origin

Rhodesia

Manufacturer

Rhodesian Aviation

First flight

11 March 1936

Introduction

1938

Primary users

Rhodesian Air Force

Retired

1945

Numbers built

42

The Rhodesian Aviation RA1 Lightning Storm was a 1930s high-wing, single-seat, monoplane fighter aircraft of Rhodesian design built for the Rhodesian Air Force. The RA1 was designed by French-trained engineers Peter Bradsen and Alan Westworth, who saw the desirability of developing a home-grown aircraft industry. A gull-wing design, it was armed with a hub-firing autocannon and fuselage-mounted synchronised machine guns. Just 42 production models were built, as the aircraft was obsolescent at the time it was brought into service in 1938, and only 20 were serviceable at the time of the Zambian invasion of Hurungwe in Spetember 1940.

Operators


Rhodesia

• Rhodesian Air Force

Specifications


General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 7.88 m
Wingspan: 11.4 m
Height: 3.84 m
Empty weight: 1,502 kg
Gross weight: 1,857 kg
Powerplant: 1x Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs liquid-cooled V-12 piston engine, 860 shp
Propellers: 3-bladed adjustable pitch

Performance

Maximum speed: 435 km/h at 5,000 m
Range: 700 km
Service ceiling: 12,000 m
Time to altitude: 5 minutes 25 seconds to 5,000 m

Armament

Guns:

1x 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon with 60 rounds in a spiral drum
2x 7.92 mm Browning/FN machine guns with 250 rounds per gun

Federoslavia

Edited:

RawReport