Country of origin:

United Kingdom

Description:

Two-seat fighter biplane

Power Plant:

One 418 kw (560 hp) Rolls Royce Kestrel V twelve-cylinder VEE liquid-cooled engine

Specifications:

Armament:

Two 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Vickers machine guns firing forward; one 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Lewis machine gun firing aft; light bombs could be carried under the wings.

History:

The lack of potent fighter aircraft was evident in the United Kingdom in 1930 when, during exercises, the Hawker Hart bombers of the Royal Air Force (RAF) were too fast for the then RAF fighter aircraft, the Armstrong Whitworth Siskin, to intercept. To meet the immediate need for a fighter with adequate performance, two Hawker Harts (J9933 and J8837) were modified as fighters powered by 362 kw (485 hp) Rolls Royce Kestrel IIS supercharged engines, and armed with two fixed forward firing Vickers 7.7 mm (0.303 in) machine guns, and a Lewis machine gun in the rear cockpit.

This aircraft, subsequently renamed the Demon, went into production for the RAF in 1932. The first production aircraft was flown on 10 February 1933, and the initial production aircraft were fitted with the 362 kw (485 hp) Kestrel IIS engine. Subsequent aircraft had the 433 kw (580 hp) Kestrel V or the 477 kw (640 hp) Kestrel VI engine.

In May 1935 production was transferred to the Boulton Paul facility at Wolverhampton in Staffordshire. The first aircraft to be produced there was flown on 21 August 1936, and a further 105 examples were constructed. A total of 304 Demons was built, but the only Demons to see active service were those of the RAF during the Abyssinian campaign of 1935.

The Demon in RAF service served in Malta, Egypt, the Sudan, the Mediterranean area, North Africa and Palestine; but by 1938 its career as a fighter was drawing to an end and thereafter it was mainly relegated to duties at Bombing & Gunnery Schools. By 1944 all had been retired.

A number of Demons, including all those built by Boulton Paul, were fitted with a Frazer-Nash hydraulic turret. This model was known as the Turret-Demon, and had a shield fitted to protect the gunner from the slipstream.

On 26 August 1934 the Australian Government ordered 18 Hawker Demons (serials A1-1 to A1-18) for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Powered by the Rolls Royce Kestrel V engine, these aircraft were for use on general-purpose / fighter duties. The first of the initial batch arrived in Melbourne, VIC on 25 April 1935 and three were erected and issued to A Flight of No 1 Squadron at Laverton, VIC, and a further three to No 3 Squadron at Richmond, NSW, the first public display at Richmond taking place on 25 May 1935. At that time No 1 Squadron was also operating Bristol Bulldogs. Later public exhibitions were held, one occasion being at the opening of the aerodrome at Bute, SA on 29 September 1935, the aircraft later going on to a display at Maylands, WA on 5 October 1935. Demonstrations were also made to Army units.

Subsequently a further order was placed. This was for 24 aircraft and six spare engines, followed by a supplementary order for 12 (A1-19 to A1-54). Later another order was placed for ten (A1-55 to A1-64), along with 24 dual-control conversion kits, the last aircraft being delivered in November 1937.  This last aircraft (A1-64) was factory built as a dual-control trainer and was the only one delivered in this configuration from Hawker. Its fitting out was somewhat different to the conversions carried out in Australia with the kits supplied.

In order to make the Demons more suitable for training, the power of the Kestrel engines on these aircraft was de-rated. The last ten were configured for target-towing and training duties (serials A1-55 to A1-64). Due to the situation in Europe, in the late 1930s the Australian Government decided to expand the RAAF and Citizen Air Force Squadrons, Nos 21, 23 and 25 bring formed. The Demon saw service with Nos 1, 2, 3, 12 and 22 Squadrons, No 1 Communications Unit RAAF,  Nos 1 and 2 Aircraft Depots, No 3 Bombing & Gunnery School at West Sale, VIC,and No 1 Service Flying Training School at Point Cook, VIC. By 1939 the Demons were obsolescent with the first-line squadrons and spent the following years mainly in the training and communications roles.

The first Demon lost was A1-40 on 14 May 1937 when, on pulling out of a dive at 152 m (500 ft), the wings came off the aircraft and it crashed. On 5 December 1937 A1-33 attempted a forced landing, crashed and overturned, bursting into flames. Investigations followed as to the reasons for the crashes and the ability of the RAAF to operate aircraft of the sophistication of the Demon. It was found the aircraft had no structural or aerodynamic problems. By the outbreak of World War II the Demon was in the process of being replaced by the CAC Wirraway and thereafter was only used for training.

The Demon did not see combat but was seen around Australia during its life with the RAAF. Quite a number were lost in accidents and were not repaired, these including A1-1, A1-2, A1-5, A1-7, A1-9, A1-12, A1-14, A1-16, A1-20, A1-22, A1-26, A1-27, A1-29, A1-32, A1-33, A1-36, A1-40, A1-44, A1-45, A1-47, A1-49, A1-51, A1-54, A1-59 and A1-62. Others at the end of their service were retired and broken up.

Quite a number were converted for use as Instructional Airfames, and these included: A1-6 [Instructional airframe No 17], A1-10 [IA No 1], A1-11 [IA No 21], A1-13 [IA Bo 4], A1-19 [IA No 11], A1-21 [IA No 8], A1-24 [IA No 16], A1-25 [IA No 2], A1-28 [IA No 6], A1-30 [IA No 3], A1-31 [IA No 14], A1-38 [IA No 18], A1-41 [IA No 19], A1-43 [IA No 7], A1-48 [IA No 13], A1-50 [IA No 5], A1-55 [IA No 12], A1-57 [IA No 10], and A1-58 [IA No 9].

The Demon was thought to be virtually extinct for many years, but some years ago one (A1-8) was located in Tasmania where it had crashed in the 1930s. On 2 February 1937 two Demons (A1-3 and A1-8) based at Richmond, NSW left to fly to Hobart, TAS to take part in an army co-operation exercise near Glenorchy, and the Royal Hobart Regatta Day celebrations. The first night was spent at Laverton and the next day the aircraft left for Wynyard, TAS where they refuelled. Despite a forecast of clear weather, they ran into fog and cloud and, whilst searching for somewhere to land near Waratah, A1-8 struck a tree on top of a ridge and sustained damage. It remained in the air and continued flying for a short distance until a forced landing was made in a clearing. The crew suffered minor injuries. The second Demon (A1-3) attempted a forced landing on a road and was badly damaged when it hit an embankment. A1-3 was recovered but A1-8 only had some parts salvaged and thereafter the aircraft was burnt and abandoned.

In 1977 A1-8 was discovered by an Army Reserve Unit, lifted out by a RAAF Bell Iroquois and taken to Point Cook where restoration commenced, assistance being obtained from a stockpile of parts located in the United Kingdom. In 1986 the RAAF formally took over the restoration of the A1-8 project to mark the Golden Jubilee of No 2 AD at Richmond. It was rebuilt to display standard in the markings of No 3 Squadron and has been placed on display at the RAAF Museum at Point Cook. It was also displayed at the Australian International Air Show at RAAF Richmond in 1988.

Work on the restoration of another Demon commenced in the 1980s to airworthy condition at Caboolture in Queensland using components of various Demons that were located throughout the country and overseas. It was to be fitted with a Rolls Royce Kestrel engine. However, work on the aircraft ceased for a period until 2014 when a team of restorers re-commenced work, intending to now restore the aircraft to static display standard only, for it to be placed in a museum at Caboolture.

A replica has been built to airworthiness in the United Kingdom by Skysport Engineering in Bedfordshire, using what survived from Demon K8203 with parts from other Hawker aircraft, joining the airshow circuit in 2006 operated by Demon Displays Ltd.