MPM 72518 Hudson Mk.I/II Patrol bomber

The Lockheed Hudson is a British twin-engine light bomber and naval patrol aircraft with an all-metal structure, mid-wing double-tail configuration from the Second World War. The Hudson was a modernization of the Lockheed Model14 airliner. It was ordered by the RAF from the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation facilities in 1938. The prototype flight took place on December 10, 1938, and the first planes were delivered to the recipient as early as February 1939. The first versions, marked as Mk.I and Mk.II, flew with 1100HP each Wright Cyclone engines, while the Mk.III version already had engines of the newer version with 1200HP each. Finally, the Mk.IV, Mk.V and Mk.VI versions used Pratt-Whitney Twin Wasp engines. In total, approximately 2,900 Lockheed Hudson machines were built. Aircraft of this type on a massive scale were used by the RAF in the first half of the war. Hudson bombers were also exported to Australia, arriving in the late 1940s. and they were used in the fighting against the Japanese during their invasion of Malaya. These planes were non-escorted flights and suffered heavy losses in clashes with enemy fighters. At the end of 1943 they began to be replaced with newer machines, both in the RAF and in the RAAF. Technical data (Mk.II version): length: 13.51m, wingspan: 19.96m, height: 3.62m, maximum speed: 397km / h, climb speed: 6.2m / s, maximum range: 3,150km, ceiling maximum 7470m, armament: fixed - 4 Browning 7.7mm machine guns, suspended - up to 340 kg of bombs.