Special Hobby 1/48 Fairey Fulmar MK.I/MK.II “Over the
Mediterranean and Indian Ocean” by Huw MorganI
n the 23 months from
September 1940 to August
1942, the Fairey Fulmar wrote
itself into the history books as
the Fleet Air Arm’s (FAA) most
effective fighter of WW II. It was
credited with destroying 112
enemy aircraft and damaging 80
more, amounting to nearly 30% of
the FAA’s total score for the period.
Not bad for an aircraft designed
in extreme haste, and using what
was pretty outdated technology!
In late 1937, it became clear
that the Royal Navy’s future
options for an effective fleet
fighter were severely limited – the
Blackburn Skua/Roc duo were
suffering development problems,
already showing signs that their
performance would fail to impress.The alternatives – navalised land-
based fighters – were perceived as
too fragile and, as single-seaters,
went against Navy doctrine.
Fortunately, as it turned out,
a solution was at hand. A few
years earlier, the RAF had issued
Specification P.4/34, for a high-
speed light bomber to complement
the Fairey Battle then in service.
Fairey, Hawker (with the Henley),
and later Miles (with the M.9
Kestrel) responded. With Miles
falling by the wayside, due to the
M.9’s limitations on range and
payload, and Hawker being heavily
committed to Hurricane production,
the Fairey P.4/34 was a shoo-in,
helped by Fairey’s demonstrated
success with the Battle, on whose
design the new fighter drew heavily.FULMAR
Fleet Air Arm Supremo
26 • FEBRUARY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL
BY SACCO DE VRIES
FULMAR MK.I/MK.II
BY HUW MORGAN
1/48026-31-FEAT-Fulmar-0218.indd 26 12/01/2018 12:41