Bristol Bombay

Bristol Bombay

Company type	Military transport aircraft, Medium bomber
Industry	Aerospace
Predecessor	Vickers Valentia
Founded	1935
Founder	Bristol Aeroplane Company
Defunct	1944 (withdrawn from service)
Fate	Withdrawn from service
Successor	None
Headquarters	Filton , United Kingdom
Area served	United Kingdom, British Empire, Royal Air Force Middle East Command
Products	Aircraft
Parent	Bristol Aeroplane Company

The Bristol Bombay served as a British military transport aircraft capable of carrying troops and adaptable for use as a medium bomber, operated by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

Design and development

Developed in response to Air Ministry Specification C.26/31, the Bristol Bombay was intended as a monoplane bomber-transport to succeed the Vickers Valentia biplane, which was deployed in regions such as the Middle East and India. The specification demanded an aircraft able to transport 24 soldiers or an equivalent cargo load while also fulfilling bombing missions with defensive armaments. This concept of a dual-role aircraft was typical among British designs prior to the war. Other contenders for this specification included the Armstrong Whitworth A.W.23 and the Handley Page HP.51.

Bristol's submission, designated Type 130, featured a high-wing cantilever monoplane layout constructed entirely from metal. A previous Bristol monoplane, the 1927 Bagshot, had encountered wing torsional rigidity problems that caused control reversal issues with the ailerons. This prompted extensive research at Bristol, culminating in a wing design employing stressed metal skin riveted over an internal framework of multiple spars and ribs. The Bombay’s wing incorporated seven spars with high-strength steel flanges and alclad webs. The aircraft was equipped with twin vertical stabilisers and a fixed conventional tailwheel undercarriage.

The crew complement included a pilot seated within an enclosed cockpit, a navigator/bomb-aimer positioned in the nose section, and a radio operator/gunner who alternated between his station behind the cockpit and a nose-mounted gun turret. When configured for bombing missions, an additional gunner manned the tail gun position. The prototype featured a Lewis gun on a Scarff ring at the tail; however, production models replaced this with hydraulically operated turrets at both nose and tail positions, each armed with Vickers K machine guns. The Bombay could carry up to eight bombs weighing 250 lb (113 kg) each on racks beneath the fuselage.

A prototype of the Type 130 was commissioned in March 1933 and completed its maiden flight on 23 June 1935, powered by two Bristol Pegasus III radial engines rated at 750 hp (560 kW), driving two-bladed propellers. Following successful trials, an order for 80 production units was placed in July 1937 under the designation Bombay. These production models differed from the prototype by incorporating more powerful engines delivering 1,010 hp (750 kW) each and three-bladed Rotol variable-pitch propellers; they also omitted the wheel spats fitted to the main undercarriage wheels on the prototype.

Due to Bristol’s Filton facility prioritising construction of the more urgent Bristol Blenheim light bomber, manufacturing of the Bombay was assigned to Short & Harland—subsidiaries of Short Brothers and Harland and Wolff—located in Belfast. The intricate wing design caused delays in production at Belfast; consequently, deliveries did not commence until 1939, and orders for the final thirty units were ultimately cancelled.

Operational history

The initial production model of the Bombay took to the skies in March 1939, with deliveries commencing in September of the same year to No. 216 Squadron RAF stationed in Egypt. While it was no longer competitive as a bomber in the European theater, it did serve briefly with the British-based 271 Squadron, transporting supplies to the British Expeditionary Force in France during 1940. In June 1940, French aviator Jean Demozay utilized an abandoned Bombay to transport himself along with 15 soldiers from France to England, later achieving ace status within the RAF.

The Bombay’s primary deployment was concentrated in the Middle East, especially with 216 Squadron, which operated the majority of these aircraft at various times. Following Italy's entry into the war in June 1940, and faced with a shortage of modern planes, 216 Squadron employed their Bombays not only for transport but also as night bombers. The aircraft’s designed bomb capacity of 250 lb (110 kg) suspended beneath the fuselage was augmented by manually tossing improvised bombs out of the cargo door. These sorties targeted locations across the Western Desert, including Benghazi and Tobruk, as well as Italian Somaliland. Once sufficient numbers of Vickers Wellington bombers were deployed in Egypt, Bombays were relieved to concentrate solely on transport duties.

In their role as transports, Bombays delivered supplies and evacuated injured personnel during the Siege of Tobruk. On 2 May 1941, aircraft from 216 Squadron facilitated the evacuation of the Greek Royal Family from Crete to Egypt. Later that month, Bombays were instrumental in moving troops during the Anglo-Iraqi War. The nascent SAS employed five Bombays for their inaugural official mission in the Middle East—a parachute assault on five forward German airfields on 17 November 1941.

Lieutenant General William Gott, noted as the highest-ranking British officer killed during the conflict, perished when a Bombay piloted by Hugh James was downed over the Western Desert on 7 August 1942. Gott was en route to assume command of the Eighth Army, succeeding General Claude Auchinleck, who had been removed as Commander-in-Chief Middle East and had been directly overseeing the Army after dismissing its commander, Neil Ritchie. Gott’s death paved the way for General Bernard Montgomery to assume command.

During the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943, Bombays evacuated more than 2,000 wounded personnel. One particular crew was credited with transporting approximately 6,000 casualties from Sicily and Italy before this aircraft type was withdrawn from service in 1944.

Variants

• Type 130 : Initial prototype model.
• Type 130A Bombay Mk I : A twin-engine medium bomber also capable of transporting troops. Initially identified as Type 130 Mark II.
• Type 137A : Planned civil transport variant that was never constructed.
• Type 137B : Combination version based on Type 137A, also not built.
• Type 144 : Proposed advancement featuring retractable landing gear, intended for Specification B.4/34 (which was ultimately awarded to the Handley Page Harrow). Not realized.

Operators

Template:AUS

• Royal Australian Air Force
  • No. 1 Air Ambulance Unit RAAF operated the aircraft.

Template:UK

• Royal Air Force
  • No. 117 Squadron RAF originated from C Flight of 216 Squadron in April 1941, employing the Bombay until November 1941 at Khartoum.
  • No. 216 Squadron RAF utilized the Bombay from October 1939 through May 1943, stationed in Egypt at locations including Heliopolis, El Khnaka, and Cairo West.
  • No. 271 Squadron RAF operated the Bombay between May 1940 and February 1941 at RAF Doncaster, England.