British WWII's fighters

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Gloster Gladiator, Sea Gladiator

Last British biplane fighter, a development of the Gauntlet with an enclosed cockpit and cantilever landing gear. The Gladiator was used during WWII in theatres were the RAF could not afford better equipment. The famous story about the three Gladiators called Faith, Hope and Love that defended Malta is incorrect: there were seven aircraft involved, Sea Gladiators from Navy stocks. Gladiators were also sold to Belgium, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway, China, Ireland, Greece, Portugal, Egypt, Iraq, and South Africa.

General characteristics Gladiator II
Primary function	Fighter
Power plant	One 9cylinder Bristol Mercury IX radial engine
Thrust	840 HP			626 kW
Wingspan	32.3 ft			9.85 m
Length	27.5 ft			8.38 m
Height	10.4 ft			3.17 m
Wingarea	323 sq ft			30.01 sq m
Weight	empty	Gladiator	3,450 lb	1,565 kg
		Sea Gladiator	3,730 lb	1,692 kg
	max.	Gladiator	4,863 lb	2,206 kg
		Sea Gladiator	5,400 lb	2,449 kg
Speed	Gladiator		253 mph	407 km/h
	Sea Gladiator		244 mph	392 km/h
Initial climb rate	2,300 ft/min			700 m/min
Ceiling	33,000 ft			10,060 m
Range	Gladiator		440 mi	708 km
	Sea Gladiator		423 mi	680 km
Armament	4x 7.7mm machine gun
Crew	One
First flight	September 1934 (prototype)
Date deployed	March 1937
Number built	Minimum 756 (480 RAF, 60 RN; 216 export into 13 countries)

Jirka Wagner