Country of origin:

United Kingdom

Description:

Single-seat fighter and ground-attack aircraft

Power Plant:

Two 3,600 lbst Rolls Royce Derwent RD8 centrifugal-type turbojets

Specifications:

Armament:

Four fixed 20 mm Hispano cannon in nose; racks for rocket projectiles under wings

History:

The prototype of the Gloster Meteor fighter was flown for the first time on 5 March 1943. It was the first jet fighter to enter service with the Allies, and thus the type was in service during the closing stages of the conflict against Germany. Built in a variety of versions throughout its production life, which concluded in May 1954, the first variant of the Meteor to be manufactured in substantial numbers was the F.4. This was succeeded in production by the F-8 with up-rated Derwent engines, and a re-designed tail assembly. The Meteor T-7 was a two-seat trainer variant employing the basic F.4 components.

The F-8 was bought in substantial numbers by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). A total of 97 Meteor F-8s came on charge, carrying mixed serials in the A77 series. They were flown in first-line service for many years until replaced by the CAC-built variant of the North American F-86 Sabre. Some 3,866 Meteors were built altogether during a twelve-year production life by Gloster, Armstrong Whitworth, and Fokker in The Netherlands. It saw service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the air forces of Argentina, Belgium, Denmark, Egypt, France, The Netherlands, Brazil and Israel.

Following the invasion of South Korea in 1950 by North Korea, No 77 Squadron RAAF flew its Mustangs in Korea escorting American bombers, and strafing ground targets. Soon thereafter, in May 1951, it re-equipped with the Meteor F-8, the first batch arriving on board ‘HMS Warrior’. First Australian Meteor lost was A77-721, the pilot having to bail out. However, the Meteor in the event proved no match for the Russian-built MiG 15 in air-to-air combat, this being shown on 1 December 1951 when 12 Meteors were bounced by 50 MiG 15s, two MiGs being claimed but three Meteors (A77-29, A79-251 and A79-949) being lost, one pilot being killed and two [Australian Sgt Bruce Thomson and New Zealander Sgt Vance Drummond] being captured.

During the following months the unit was used for area and airfield defence at Kimpo and Suwon. In January 1952 the unit took up duties in the ground-attack role, the aircraft being fitted with eight 28 kg (62 lb) rockets or two 240 kg (529 lb) bombs, plus their two 20 mm cannon. By August 1953 the unit had been credited with performing 4,836 missions (18,872 sorties) and had destroyed 3,700 buildings, 1,500 vehicles, 16 bridges, three MiG-15s and three propeller-driven aircraft for the loss of 42 pilots, 32 in the Meteor.

No 77 Squadron continued in service in Korea until 1954 when it returned to Australia on board ‘HMAS Vengeance’. One MiG 15 was shot down by Sgt George Hale (in Meteor A77-851) when, on 27 March 1953, he was credited with the destruction of a MiG 15 and the probable destruction of a second during the same sortie in Korea. Other MiG 15s were claimed by P/O John Surman on 4 May 1952 and on 8 May by P/O W Simmonds.

The Meteor was flown in Australia by Nos 22 (City of Sydney), 23 (City of Brisbane), 75 and 77 Squadrons based at RAAF Williamtown, NSW.

During the 1960s a number of Meteors were converted to pilotless target aircraft, and these were usually painted red and white. Conversions of the F.4 thus became the U-15, and the F-8 became the U-16. Both types were used for some years at Woomera in South Australia. Over 130 F. 4s were converted to U-15 standard and of these at least 61 came to Australia for use at Woomera between 1959 and 1963. All aircraft retained their RAF serials and were owned by the United Kingdom Ministry of Supply.

One Meteor (RA421) was taken to Canada in February 1948 for winterisation trials prior to becoming the first U-15 conversion. Most were scrapped at Wingfield, SA in the 1960s. Ten F-8s were converted to U-16 standard and were later converted to U-21 configuration, and 14 ex-RAF aircraft were modified to U-21A standard. Many of these conversions were carried out by the Fairey Aviation Company at Bankstown, NSW.

Following the return of the RAAF No 77 Squadron Meteors from Korea the 41 survivors were replaced in front-line duties by the CAC-built Sabre. Between 1961 and 1963, as noted above, 15 of the F-8s were converted to U-21 drone configuration by Fairey Aviation of Australasia using kits of parts supplied by Flight Refuelling Ltd of Tarrant Rushton in the United Kingdom. However, the Australian drone program was terminated due to not enough conversion kits being available.

One F-8 (A77-876) was shipped back to the United Kingdom in July 1971, where it was converted to U-16 standard, and later became a D-16 when the “U” for unmanned was changed to “D” for drone. Up until the end of 2004 it was used for training Jindivik controllers on system calibration flights but on 31 October that year the North Wales division of the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Llanbedr in Wales was closed and the Meteor, which had operated as WK800, made the last military flight of a Meteor in the United Kingdom when it was flown on 11 October from Llanbedr to Boscombe Down in Wiltshire for preservation.

A number of Meteors have survived since their withdrawal from service. Surviving F-8s have include: A77-368 held by the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, ACT; A77-867 at the Australian Aviation Museum at Moorabbin, VIC; A77-868 at the Camden Museum of Aviation at Narellan, NSW; A77-870 at the RAAF Museum at Point Cook, VIC; A77-878, which was on a pole at Villawood, NSW for many years, later removed to Dubbo, and currently with the RAAF Museum at Point Cook; A77-875 at RAAF Base, Williamtown, NSW; and A77-271 at RAAF Amberley, QLD. Others have survived at RAAF Wagga WAGGA, NSW (A77-871 and A77-874) and A77-867 at Parafield, SA.

An ex-RAF machine (WA880) recovered from Singapore was painted in 1996 as A77-721 (an RAAF Meteor lost in Korea on 29 August 1951) and has been placed on display at the Queensland Air Museum at Caloundra.

In 2002 an airworthy Meteor F-8 was obtained from the United Kingdom by the Temora Aviation Museum, painted as A77-851 ‘Halestorm’ and has been regularly flown at displays at Temora and other aviation events. The museum has also obtained from the United Kingdom another F-8 WE925 for static display following restoration.

Another F-8, which was built to an RAF order as WK685, was shipped to Korea on board ‘HMS Ocean’ and was transferred to the RAAF, being taken on charge on 20 August 1952. This aircraft operated in Korea with No 77 Squadron and was shipped to Australia in December 1955. It subsequently saw service with Nos 77, 78 and 22 Squadrons. After retirement it was placed on a fire dump at Point Cook but was recovered and put on display for a period at Australian Aviation Museum at Moorabbin. It was later obtained by the Classic Jets Fighter Museum at Parafield, in 1992 and restored, eventually being sold to the Ashburton Aviation Museum in New Zealand, where it has been placed on display.