The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the sβ40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. The Hurricane originated from discussions between RAF officials and aircraft designer Sir Sydney Camm about a proposed monoplane derivative of the Hawker Fury biplane in the early s. Despite an institutional preference for biplanes and lack of interest by the Air Ministry , Hawker refined its monoplane proposal, incorporating several innovations which became critical to wartime fighter aircraft, including retractable landing gear and the more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine.
The Air Ministry ordered Hawker's Interceptor Monoplane in late , and the prototype Hurricane K performed its maiden flight on 6 November Its manufacture and maintenance were eased by using conventional construction methods so that squadrons could perform many major repairs without external support. The plane was rapidly procured prior to the outbreak of the Second World War; in September , the RAF had 18 Hurricane-equipped squadrons in service.
It was relied upon to defend against German aircraft operated by the Luftwaffe, including dogfighting with Messerschmitt Bf s in multiple theatres of action. The Hurricane was developed through several versions: bomber-interceptors, fighter-bombers , and ground support aircraft as well as fighters.
Versions designed for the Royal Navy known as the Sea Hurricane had modifications including an arrestor hook near the tail, enabling operation from ships. Some were converted as catapult-launched convoy escorts.
By the end of production in July , 14, units [ 1 ] had been completed in Britain and Canada, with others built in Belgium and Yugoslavia. During the early s, when Hawker Aircraft company developed the Hurricane, RAF Fighter Command had just 13 squadrons, equipped with the Hawker Fury , Hawker Demon , or the Bristol Bulldog , all biplanes with fixed- pitch wooden propellers and non-retractable undercarriages. Earlier, during , British aircraft designer Sydney Camm had conducted discussions with Major John Buchanan of the Directorate of Technical Development on a monoplane based on the existing Fury.
