80 RAF CENTENARY CELEBRATION PATROLLERS AND AIRLIFTERS
1918 2018Type: 12-crew long-range maritime patrol aircraft
First fl ight: March 23, 1967, entered service October 1, 1969
Powerplant: Four 12,160lb st (54.09kN) Rolls-Royce Spey turbofans
Dimensions: Span 114ft 10in (35.00m), length 129ft 1in (39.35m)
Weights: Empty 86,000lb (39,010kg), all-up 192,000lb (87,091kg)
Max speed: 575mph (925km/h) at 36,000ft (10,973mm)
Range: 5,755 miles (9,262km)
Armament: Nine homing torpedoes. Bomb load: 1,000lb (454kg) of bombs or
nuclear depth charges. Temporary provision to carry up to four
AIM-9 Sidewinders
Replaced: Avro Shackleton MR.2
Taken on charge: 50 (four R.1 and 46 MR.1 – 35 of which later converted to MR.2/
MR.2P)
Replaced by: To be replaced by Boeing P-8 Poseidon from 2020HAWKER SIDDELEY NIMROD MR.2
B
y the early 1960s RAF Coastal
Command’s need to replace
its ageing Shackleton MR.2/3
patrol bombers was desperate, and
a request for proposals was issued in
July 1963.
Among the companies interested
in the contract to provide a fleet
of “sophisticated jet aircraft to
replace the Shackleton by 1972”
was Hawker Siddeley (HS), which
launched a feasibility study in
October that year.
By April 1964 the company was
ready to submit its HS.800 long-
range maritime patrol aircraft,
based on the HS.121 Trident
airliner. However, two months later
the Ministry of Supply issued an
amended requirement calling for a
cheaper and more rapid replacement
for the Shackleton.
This new demand led HS to
abandon the Trident plan and start
work on the HS.801 based on the
de Havilland Comet 4C. The new
design was ready to be submitted in
July 1964 and an initial order for
the ‘Maritime Comet’ was placed in
February 1965. Almost a year later
a fixed-price contract was agreed
for 38 examples, by now dubbed
Nimrod MR.1.
These were to fulfil the following
roles: maritime patrol, search and
rescue, and hunting Soviet ships
and submarines. Two prototypes
were constructed using incomplete
Comet airframes– these would be
the only Nimrods to employ Comet
parts, as all subsequent machines
would be built from scratch.
The Comet was heavily modified
to include a pressurised fuselage,
complete with a weapons bay for
torpedoes, mines, bombs and
other stores. The aircraft also
gained a bulbous nose to house
radar, a magnetic anomaly detector
(MAD) boom at the rear (to detect
submarines) and electronic
warfare sensors.
The first two aircraft – Rolls-Royce
Spey-powered XV147, and XV148fitted with Rolls-Royce Avons –
were assembled at Hawker Siddeley’s
Woodford site; XV148 became
the first example to fly on March
23, 1967, and XV147 followed
eight days later. The Spey provided
better fuel efficiency compared to
the Comet’s original Avon engines,
particularly at low altitudes
where Nimrod would spend most
of its time.
The Spey was also in use in the
BAC One-Eleven, HS Buccaneer and
newly delivered Phantom, but the
variant chosen to power the Nimrod
was the RB.168 Mk.250 producing
12,160lb st (54.09kN) each.
In fact, the aircraft had so much
extra power, it was common to shut
down two engines after take-off
and loiter on the remaining pair to
conserve fuel.
The first production Nimrod
MR.1 (XV226) flew on June
28, 1968 and was delivered to
Boscombe Down for trials and
development; as did the next three
aircraft off the production line.
The honour of being the first
Nimrod in operational service fell
to XV230, delivered to 236 OCU
at RAF St Mawgan, Cornwall onHAWKER SIDDELEY
NIMROD
1968 TO 2011
October 1, 1969. Six weeks later,
XV230 flew in formation with
nine Shackletons to mark the
disbandment of Coastal Command
and the creation of 18 Maritime
Group as part of the new RAF
Strike Command.OPERATIONAL
Less than a year later the Nimrod
detected its first submerged
Soviet submarine – a role it fulfilled
until its final days. The aircraft was
such a success that an additional
eight airframes were ordered in
January 1972.
A year later, the Nimrod got its
first taste of semi-hostile operations
during the ‘Cod Wars.’ The dispute
between Britain and Iceland
over fishing rights had Nimrods
protecting British fishermen by
keeping an airborne watch on the
North Sea.
Famed for its anti-submarine
warfare role, Nimrod equally earned
its ‘Mighty Hunter’ nickname
during search and rescue (SAR)
missions, the first being flown
by 201 Squadron in November- From that point, at least one
Nimrod would be on a ‘24/7’ one-
Top right
Nimrod MR.2 XV244
served in the Falklands
campaign. Today it is
stored at RAF Kinloss in
Scotland. ANDY HAY/WWW.
FLYINGART.CO.UKNIMROD