W5856 in flight over the Humber Estuary. [© Norman Pealing]

The Swordfish evolved from the prototype Fairey TSR.II (Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance), designed by Marcel Lobelle and HE Chaplin of the Fairey Aviation Company Ltd., first flew in 1934 and entered service with No.825 Squadron in 1936. In all, 2391 aircraft were built, the first 692 machines by Fairey Aviation and the remainder under licence by Blackburn Aircraft Company at their works at Sherburn-in-Elmet and Brough, Yorkshire. In service the Blackburn-built aircraft became unofficially known as "Blackfish". Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this very distinguished aircraft was its longevity. Although by all normal standards it was already obsolete at the outbreak of WW2, it confounded everyone by remaining in operational service throughout the whole of the war, and thereby gained the distinction of being the last British bi-plane to see active service. Indeed, it outlasted its intended replacement, the Albacore, which disappeared from front-line service in 1943.

The secret of the Swordfish lay in its superb handling qualities which made it uniquely suitable for deck flying operations and the problems of torpedo or dive bombing attacks. Pilots marvelled that they could pull a Swordfish off the deck and put it in a climbing turn at 55 knots. The aircraft manoeuvred in a vertical plane as easily as it would at straight and level, and even when diving from 1,000ft, the ASI would not rise much beyond 200 knots. The controls were not frozen rigid by the force of the slipstream, and it was possible to hold the dive within 200ft of the water. Even its lack of speed could be turned to advantage. A steep turn as sea level towards an attacker just before he came within range and the difference in speed and tight turning circle made it impossible for a fighter to bring its guns to bear for more than a few seconds. The approach to a carrier deck could be made at extremely slow speed, yet control response remained firm. It is not hard to imagine what that means to a pilot attempting to land on a dark night when the carrier's deck was pitching the height of a house. Swordfish (or "Stringbags" as they were often nicknamed) in addition to sinking more than 300,000 tons of German/Italian Axis shipping, were responsible for the destruction of over 20 U-Boats. Operating from adapted merchant vessels, the Merchant Aircraft Carriers (MAC Ships), Swordfish aircraft could be carried with the convoys, providing both a deterrent to submarines and a boost to the merchant sailor's morale.

Amongst their many battle honours, those which stand out above the rest are the Battle of the Atlantic, the attack on the Italian Fleet at Taranto in November 1940, the operation to seek, pursue and destroy the German Battleship Bismarck in May 1941, and the ill-fated operation against the German Battlecruisers Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Heavy Cruiser Prince Eugen as they made their famous 'Channel Dash' in February 1942. But above all, the Swordfish carved its name in the history books by its exploits in protecting convoys. From August 1942 they sailed on the Russian convoys. On one such convoy, Swordfish embarked in the escort carriers Vindex and Striker flew 1,000 hours on anti-submarine patrol in the space of 10 days, and in September 1944 Vindex's Swordfish sank four U-Boats in a single voyage. Such feats were accomplished despite frequently experiencing the most appalling weather conditions, often at night and with all the additional arctic hazards of snow and ice on the decks. Of the Atlantic convoys, it was Winston Churchill himself who said that "..the Battle of the Atlantic was the only one I feared about losing..", and the sheer magnitude of this battle can be appreciated by recognising that the Allies lost more than 4,600 ships, and that the Germans lost 785 submarines. It was the introduction of air power at sea which turned the tide in the Allies' favour, and the contribution made to this battle by Swordfish aircraft was very substantial.

W5856 over Somerset.

Fairey Swordfish Mk.I W5856

This aircraft, a "Blackfish" built by Blackburn Aircraft at Sherburn-in-Elmet, first flew on Trafalgar Day (21 October) 1941. She served with the Mediterranean Fleet for a year and was returned to Fairey's Stockport factory for refurbishment. Used for advanced flying training and trials, the aircraft was sent to Canada where it was again used in a training role and stored in reserve after the war's end. Passing through the hands of at least two civilian operators after disposal, she was purchased by Sir William Roberts and brought to Scotland to join his Strathallan Collection. Bought by British Aerospace for presentation to the Swordfish Heritage Trust, the partly-restored airframe went to BAe Brough for complete restoration to flying condition, the work being completed in 1993.

W5856 is painted in the pre-war colours of 810 Squadron embarked in HMS Ark Royal. The horizontal stripes on the fin denote the Commanding Officer's aircraft, and the blue and red fuselage stripes are the colours for Ark Royal with the letter code 'A' being for the ship, '2' for the second squadron and 'A' for the first aircraft of that squadron. The long yellow fuselage strip identified 810 as Yellow Squadron in the summer air exercises held in 1939.

In September 1996 W5856 was adopted by the City of Leeds and now proudly wears the City's coat of arms and name on her port side just forward of the pilot's cockpit.

LS326 takes to the skies over Somerset. [© Lee Howard]

Fairey Swordfish Mk.II LS326

This aircraft, also a 'Blackfish', was built in 1943 at Sherburn-in-Elmet. Later that year she was part of 'L' Flight of 836 Squadron (the largest ever Fleet Air Arm Squadron) on board the MAC ship Rapana, on North Atlantic Convoy duties. Following her active service she was used for training and communications duties from the Royal Naval Air Station Culham near Oxford and Worthy Down near Winchester.

In 1947 Fairey Aviation bought LS326 and displayed her at various RAeS Garden party displays. The following year she was sent to White Waltham for storage and remained there getting more and more dilapidated until Sir Richard Fairey gave orders for the aircraft to be rebuilt. The restoration work completed in October 1955 and thereafter she was kept in flying condition at White Waltham registered as G-AJVH and painted Fairey Blue and silver.

In 1959 LS326 was repainted for a starring role in the film 'Sink the Bismarck!'. In October 1960 she was presented to the Royal Navy by the Westland Aircraft Company and has been flown ever since. For many years she retained her "Bismarck" colour scheme and in 1984 D-Day invasion stripes were also added for the 40th Anniversary celebrations when she overflew the beaches of Normandy. Since 1987 she has worn her original wartime colour scheme for North Atlantic convoys with 'L' Flight of 836 Squadron. Following extensive work by BAeS Brough to her wings, LS326 flew again on 1 July 2008 for the first time in nine years.

LS326 was adopted by the City of Liverpool, the name she proudly wears on her port side.