Bristol-Fairchild Bolingbroke Mk III. Medium bomber. Manufactured in Canada under license from Bristol.

Bristol-Fairchild Bolingbroke - British Blenheim, manufactured under license in Canada by Fairchild Aircraft Limited under the designation " Bolingbroke ".

Most of the built aircraft in the Mk IV modification served as patrol bombers on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Canada from 1940 to 1944. Two squadrons of these aircraft also served in Alaska during the Aleutian campaign.

The disgusting weather in the Aleutian Islands proved to be a worse enemy than the Japanese, and many Bolingbrokes were lost in the thick Alaskan fogs. The usual combat load of the aircraft consisted of three 136-kg depth charges, and two machines were always at the airfield in full readiness for departure. Squadron 8, together with the US Navy, destroyed one Japanese submarine. Bolingbroke, piloted by Flight Sergeant P.M.G. Thomas, attacked and damaged the submarine, after which the arriving warships sent it to the bottom.

Mk IVT trainers have been used extensively in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP).

A total of 626 aircraft were built.

Armament. Five 7.7mm machine guns (.303 in Browning) (1 in the left wing console, 2 in a mechanically controlled dorsal turret and 2 remotely controlled on a support under the nose for shelling of the rear hemisphere); up to 454 kg of bombs in the bomb compartment and 145 kg on external suspensions.

Modifications

• Bolingbroke Mk I Marine patrol bomber powered by two Bristol Mercury VIII radial piston engines, with British equipment. 18 aircraft were built.
• Bolingbroke Mk II Bolingbroke Mk I with American equipment.
• Bolingbroke Mk III Bolingbroke Mk I with floats. The order for mass production of the Bolingbroke Mk III was not followed, and in 1942 the aircraft were returned to their usual landing gear.
• Bolingbroke Mk IV Marine patrol bomber, with US and Canadian instruments and equipment. Power plant - radial piston engines Bristol Mercury XV, built 134 aircraft.
• Bolingbroke Mk IVW An additional version of the Mk IV equipped with two 825hp Pratt & Whitney SB4G Twin Wasp Junior engines, as a measure in case of a possible shortage of Mercury XV engines. Because British engine supplies were retained and production reverted to the Mk IV after 15 were built.
• Bolingbroke Mk IVC Mk IV version with American 900 hp Wright R-1820 Cyclone engines that do not require high-octane fuel. One aircraft was built.
• Bolingbroke Mk IVT Multipurpose trainer aircraft. A total of 350 aircraft were built with Mercury XV engines and 107 with Mercury XX engines that do not require high-octane gasoline. Six Mk IVTs were converted to dual-control aircraft, another 89 were converted to Mk IVTT (Tugt Tug) with the addition of a winch mechanism in the rear cockpit and target storage in the bomb bay.

Bibliography

• Encyclopedia of Military Equipment / Aerospace Publising /
• War Planes of the Second World War / Green, William /