Gloster Gorcock
Gloster Aircraft Company · United Kingdom · first flew 1925 · fighter
The Gloster Gorcock was a single-engined, single-seat biplane fighter built to a United Kingdom Air Ministry contract completed in 1927. Only three were built.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Mid-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | Radiator mounted on the fuselage underside between the undercarriage legs |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Single-bay biplane with strong stagger and unequal span wings
- Longer, more pointed nose than the Gamecock, housing a Napier Lion inline engine
- Radiator mounted on the fuselage underside between the undercarriage legs
It strongly resembles the Gamecock but has a longer, more pointed inline-engine nose and a ventral radiator.
Specifications
- The Gloster Gorcock has a length of 7.94 m (26 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 8.68 m (28 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 263 km/h (163 mph).
- Typical crew: 1.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
Gloster received the contract in May 1924 for three experimental fighters to develop metal-framed aircraft. The third was Gloster's first all-metal aircraft.
Variants
The first Gorcock had a geared 450 hp Lion IV and the second an ungeared 525 hp Lion VIII. The third, all-metal, aircraft had the geared Lion IV and reached 174 mph.
Where you'll see it
All three were delivered by June 1927. Gloster and RAE Farnborough used them for research, including propeller and radiator experiments, though they flew armed with two Vickers guns.
Related aircraft
- Gloster Gamecock
- Gloster III
- Gloster II
- Gloster Goral
- Armstrong Whitworth Siskin IIIA
- Avia BH-21
- Beardmore W.B.XXVI
- Bernard SIMB AB 14
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