Vickers Wellington

Medium Bomber Aircraft

United Kingdom | 1938

"The Vickers Wellington was the primary medium bomber of the Royal Air Force at the start of World War 2."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 03/19/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Vickers Wellington was the primary bomber of the Royal Air Force at the start of World War 2, serving up until late 1943 when it was relegated to second line roles. The Wellington saw production numbers exceed 11,400 and found its mark as a night bomber. Outlasting many of its 1930s-designed contemporaries, the Wellington proved a vital and successful additional to the Royal Air Force's offensive reach early in the war.

The Wellington was designed as early as 1932 to meet a RAF requirement for a medium-class, two-engined bomber. The resulting prototype first flew in 1936 and joined Bomber Command in production form for 1938 - in time for the opening phases of World War 2. Still utilizing construction and design technology that would prove obsolescent by the middle years of the war, the Wellington nonetheless soldiered on. The series would go on to be powered by a mix of Hercules, Pegasus and Merlin engines throughout her career, these powerplants mounted on the monoplane wings which straddled the streamlined fuselage. The whole crew complement reached up to six personnel. An internal bomb load capacity was limited to 4,500 lb of conventional drop ordnance while defensive armament became a mix of 7.7mm machine guns - two fitted to a forward turret, four at a rear turret, and an additional two machine guns mounted at beam (waist) positions. Despite the defensive-minded network of machine guns, this array was soon found to be inadequate as Wellingtons suffered from large defenseless angles about her design. As such, early daylight bombing raids proved disastrous for the type.

It would not be until the Wellington was featured as a night time bomber that the aircraft shined. Wellingtons would go on to form a powerful addition to Bomber Command plans going forward, the primary mission being to derail German war capabilities during hard-to-defend, low-light hours. As much as the Wellington progressed throughout its time in the war, it was nonetheless becoming outclassed by the addition of new bombers to the Allied cause along with new Axis fighters used in interception sorties. The Wellington would fly its last offensive mission in October of 1943. Even so the type would go on to serve in other forms such as that of maritime patrol - this version armed with two torpedoes and specialized equipment. Other Wellingtons served in the dedicated transport role, as crew trainers, and even as research platforms concerning development of turbojets.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Vickers Wellington Mk III Medium Bomber Aircraft.

2 x Bristol Hercules XI radial piston engines developing 1,500 horsepower each.
Propulsion

255 mph
411 kph | 222 kts
Max Speed

18,996 ft
5,790 m | 4 miles
Service Ceiling

1,540 miles
2,478 km | 1,338 nm
Operational Range

930 ft/min
283 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Vickers Wellington Mk III Medium Bomber Aircraft.

5 or 6
(MANNED)
Crew

64.6 ft
19.68 m
O/A Length

86.2 ft
(26.26 m)
O/A Width

16.4 ft
(5.00 m)
O/A Height

18,971 lb
(8,605 kg)
Empty Weight

34,000 lb
(15,422 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Vickers Wellington Medium Bomber Aircraft .

STANDARD:
2 x 7.7mm machine guns in nose turret
4 x 7.7mm machine guns in tail turret
2 x 7.7mm machine guns in beam positions

OPTIONAL:
Up to 4,500 lb of internally-held conventional drop bombs.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Vickers Wellington family line.

Mk I - Initial Production Model Series; fitted with Pegasus radial engines.

Mk IA - Fitted with Nash & Thompson type nose and tail turrets.

Mk IC - Ventral turret replaced by lateral position guns.

Mk II - Fitted with Merlin powerplants.

Mk III - Fitted with either Hercules III or Hercules XI type powerplants.

Mk IV - Fitted with Twin Wasp powerplants.

Mk V - Pressurized cabins for high-altitude operation; fitted with Hercules powerplant; did not see combat service.

Mk VI - Pressurized cabins for high-altitude operation; fitted with Merlin powerplant; did not see combat service.

Mk X - Fitted with Hercules XVIII; final production version of bomber type; last flown in 1943.

DW.Mk I - Maritime Variant; anti-mine equipment

DW.Mk IC - Dedicated Mine Layer

GR.Mk VIII - Fitted with ASV radar system and Pegasus powerplant.

GR.Mk XI - Torpedo Bomber; fitted with Hercules engines.

GR.Mk XII - Torpedo Bomber; fitted with Hercules engines.

GR.Mk XIV - Torpedo Bomber; fitted with Hercules engines.

T.Mk XVII - Trainer Variant

T.Mk XVIII - Trainer Variant

C.Mk XV - Transport Conversion Models of the Mk IC model.

C.Mk XVI - Transport Conversion Models of the Mk IC model.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Vickers Wellington. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 11,461 Units
Contractor(s): Vickers - UK

[ Australia; Canada; Czechoslovakia; France (Free French); Nazi Germany; Greece; New Zealand; Poland; Portugal; South Africa; United Kingdom ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 300mph

Lo: 150mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (255mph).

Graph Average of 225 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

11461

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

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Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

GROUND ATTACK

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2

Going Further...
The Vickers Wellington Medium Bomber Aircraft appears in the following collections:

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