Richards, L G (Naval Airman)

British Dive Bomber, Balckburn Skua.

The Blackburn B-24 Skua was a carrier-based low-wing, two-seater, single-radial engine aircraft by the British aviation company Blackburn Aircraft. It was the first Royal Navy carrier-borne all-metal cantilever monoplane aircraft, as well as the first dive bomber in Fleet Air Arm (FAA) service. The aircraft took its name from the sea bird which 'divebombs' any potential predators that come too close to its nest.

The Skua was designed during the mid-1930s to Specification O.27/34, and was a radical design for the era, combining the functions of a dive bomber and fighter. Its enclosed cockpit and monoplane configuration were obvious shifts from preceding FAA aircraft such as the Hawker Nimrod and Hawker Osprey biplanes. On 9 February 1937, the first prototype performed its maiden flight; it was ordered straight off the drawing board to accelerate its development. In November 1938, the Skua was introduced to FAA service; 33 aircraft were operational by the outbreak of the Second World War. Wikipedia