One such aircraft they pointed to was the Hawker Hurricane Mk IV, a ground attacker version of the famous fighter which was performing successfully in the role and had started production in March of 1943. They concluded that, at the time, developing and producing an entirely new ground attack aircraft would impede the current war programs and that the submissions were too specialized in design compared to modifying aircraft already being produced for ground attack duties. Near the later days of April 1943, the Air Staff brought the program the Tankbuster was designed for to an end. On April 15th, 1943, Air Marshall F J Linnell (who was a good friend of James Martin, a founder of the company) advised Martin-Baker to drop development of the Tankbuster in favor of continuing work on the more successful MB.5 project going on at the same time. The Tankbuster didn’t meet the armament expectations and fell under the expected speed by 10mph (16 km a h). The gun itself couldn’t be removed from the airframe and an aircraft going into battle with a single weapon would be inefficient for resources. The main feature of the aircraft was the root of its problems, its gun. Attempts to add more ordnance such as additional guns, rockets or bombs to the wings would have added too much stress on the airframe. The aircraft lacked any other offensive or defensive armament and would rely on its armor alone to protect itself, a gambit that other designs in the program resolved by following the armaments listed by the Air Staff. Its single large-caliber gun extremely limited its target range and it would only have been able to attack one of six predicted target types the program requested. The project wasn’t very impressive nor reasonable in the eyes of the Air Staff, especially compared to the other designs in the program. The armor itself weighed 4,900Ibs (2,200kg). The aircraft was armed with a single 6-pounder (57mm) cannon, and the aircraft would be completely encased in 1/2-inch armor. Martin Baker’s concept was for a twin boom design that deviated extensively from the given requirements. Their design for the ground attacker was submitted several months after the order was given by the Air Staff and was only named the “Tankbuster”. Perhaps the most interesting of the designs was the submission by Martin-Baker.ģD artist impression of the Tankbuster At the time of its submission, Martin Baker had been working steadily on their MB.5 project, which would eventually become one of the best performing piston aircraft built by Britain, but this wouldn’t be completed until 1944. Boulton-Paul also submitted a canard design labelled P.100 and a biplane design labelled P.101, the latter being seen as a safe alternative to the radical canard and twin boom designs prevalent through the program. Armstrong-Whitworth (AW.49) and Boulton-Paul (P.99) both created twin boom designs. A majority of them were of unorthodox design. Over 10 different designs by several aircraft companies were subsequently created for this program. The programs would be overseen by the Air Staff. Full production was to be expected by 1944. Visibility was also a necessity and forward view had to be unobstructed and clear. The expected speed for the design had to reach at least 280mph (450 km/h) at 3,000ft (900 m). Alternative weapon arrangements included: three 40mm Vickers S cannons, four 20mm Hispano Mk.V cannons, a combination of two 20mm with two 40mm cannons, six unguided rocket (RP) racks with two 20mm cannons or one 47mm Vickers gun with two 20mm cannons. To accomplish the destruction of the aforementioned targets, the aircraft was meant to use more heavier guns than the Hurricane Mk.IID. An order was officially placed on March 7th for a specialized ground attacker that would be used against a multitude of targets including ground units, enemy aircraft, transports/shipping, and a main focus on destroying tanks. Historyĭrawing of the Martin-Baker Tankbuster In early 1942, the Royal Air Force began seeking a new ground-attack aircraft that would replace the 40mm-armed Hawker Hurricane Mk.IID. With the program being canceled in early 1943 and Martin-Baker working on more important projects, all work stopped on developing the Tankbuster any further. Compared to its competitors, the Tankbuster was strictly limited to exactly what it was named for busting tanks, and would find itself having trouble against other ground targets or even defending itself. The aircraft had a twin-boom, pusher design and was only armed with a 6-pounder (57mm) cannon, most likely a Molins M-Class Gun. 3D artist impression of the Tankbuster in flight The Martin-Baker Tankbuster was a concept British anti-tank aircraft that was designed according to an order in 1942 for a specialized ground attacker.
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