Brief History

While it isn't unusual for a lumbering, outmoded anachronism to continue in service (such as fifty year old B-52's soldiering on in U.S. service), few of these had as successful a career as the Fairey Swordfish.

The design dated back to the early thirties when the British Air Ministry issued specification S.9/30 for a "fleet spotter reconnaissance aircraft". The Fairey Aviation Company submitted a privately financed design. Later design improvements led to the designation "Torpedo spotter reconnaissance".

It was a large, slow biplane with a low wing loading, ideal for actions off carrier decks. The structure was largely metal, covered with fabric. The first machine was powered by a Bristol Pegasus IIM air-cooled, nine cylinder radial, developing 635 hp. These were severely underpowered. The next, much improved, prototype used a Pegasus IIIM3 with 775 hp. First flown in 1934, this aircraft exceeded the governments demands, so an order was placed for the first 86 production examples in 1935. The first deliveries were made in the following year, further orders continuing well after the beginning of the war.

The versatility of the Swordfish was immortalised in its moniker, the Stringbag. The planes became famous for the attack on Taranto, where the battleship Littorio was sunk and two others were heavily damaged.

In May 1941, Swordfish planes from HMS Ark Royal crippled the Bismarck - a most impressive success for such an old-fashioned aircraft.

The three seater airplane could easily lift off a carrier deck with a standard 18 inch 1,610 lb. torpedo slung between the wheels under the fuselage. It's ungainly looks gave it the nickname "Stringbag", after a type of shopping bag used to carry all manner of things by old English ladies.

In spite of it's seeming lack of sophistication, the Swordfish was to prove excellent in its intended role. Although highly vulnerable to attack by fighter planes, it's low speed and stable stance made it easy to line up for a torpedo attack, coming in from abeam of a hostile vessel, while staying below the level the enemy ships could fire their guns. It's slow flying speed made landings much safer on carriers.....into the wind, the closing speed could be as little as 30 knots.

Because they were helpless against fighters, these airplanes were usually only operated far out sea, where land based opposition could not reach. Swordfish based at Malta were operated at night and were all but invulnerable to the opposition. Starting in 1940, squadrons of Swordfish stationed here had sunk more than a million and a half tons of enemy shipping....a record never to be equalled. Maintenance was a breeze on such a simple design.

Restoring the Aircraft

On Thursday 16 September 2004 a forty foot long container arrived at the Malta Aviation Museum in Ta' Qali. Inside was the skeletal fuselage and wing parts of Swordfish HS491, which had been purchased by the Foundation from Mr Bob Spence of Canada. Bob is the proud owner of a functional Swordfish Reg No HS554.

The Fairey Swordfish, one of the rarest World War II airplanes is awaiting restoration as another long-term project to be undertaken the museum as soon as the restoration of the Hawker Hurricane MkIIA is completed.

The restoration of the Swordfish would take about 10 years and cost close to half a million liri. The museum is extremely grateful to its volunteers who carry out painstaking restoration which commercially costs about Lm30 an hour.

The aircraft parts were purchased for 50,000 Canadian dollars, or Lm13,000. The money came mainly from a hefty donation by David Dalton, a British flying enthusiast. The proceeds from the sale of a 1982 Cadillac donated by the late Charles Puglisevich, former honorary consul general of Malta in Newfoundland, also went towards the purchase.

Only 12 of this plane remain worldwide and the Aviation Museum will give its plane pride of place with other aircraft at the Battle of Malta Memorial Hangar which the museum is planning to build by September 2005.

Out of the 12 surviving Swordfish in various stages of restoration, one is in flying condition in Canada, two are in the UK with the Fleet Air Arm and there is another also at the Fleet Air Arm which is being restored to flying condition.

The Swordfish, HS491, which the museum bought, was made in February 1943 for the Royal Canadian Air Force. It had been dumped in a scrap yard after it was written off in 1946. Mr Spence bought it in the 1970s, cannibalising it to restore another Swordfish.

The Swordfish the museum will restore had not operated in Malta. The third model ever produced in Britain, the K5934, was delivered to the anti-aircraft cooperation unit in Malta, along with another good number of Swordfish planes.
 

Dimensions				Performance
Span		45 feet 6 inches		Max. Speed		139 mph
Length		36 feet 4 inches		Climb TO 5000 Ft		19 minutes
Height		12 feet 10 inches		Service Ceiling		15,000 feet
Wing Area		607 sq. ft.t		Crusing Speed		104-129 mph
Power Plant				Weights
Type	one 690 hp. Bristol PegasusIIIM.3 or one 750hp. Pegasus XXX Vee piston engine			Empty	5200 lbs
				Max. take-off	9,250 lbs
Armament & Equipment
One fixed .303 Browning mg and/or one flexible .303 Lewis or Vickers mg aft. OFFENSIVE: one 18" 1,650 lb under slung torpedo, or, one 1,500 lb mine, or, three 500 lb bombs, or, two 550 lb and two 250 lb bombs, or, three Mk. VII depth charges, or, eight 60 lb rockets.