A Gander at the Gannet (Fairey Gannet AEW.3) at Pima Air and Space Museum

it’s a handsome beastie… in… you know, its own way. I will not apologize for my taste in aircraft and neither should you 😂

Follow the museum:

[nimrod]

Would love to see the insides (cockpit/crew positions) of some of these aircraft if possible.

[joeshmoe]

This is a good move on Sophie's part, since many of us are interested in both armor AND aircraft. 👍🏅

[MrHwsmp]

Good video Sofi: I like the way you let the experts talk themselves rather than "interpreting" it and thereby introducing a source of error (Chinese Whispers and all that).
Some extra points about the Gannet :

1. The choice of co-axial props was mainly due to it being the most compact arrangement for a twin-engined aircraft, however another huge side benefit was that it eliminated asymetric thrust in the event of an engine failure. Powerful conventional twin-engined aircraft are hard enough to handle trying to land them on runways: trying to do it on a pitching, rolling carrier deck that might need last-minute corrections is a nightmare.

2. The reason for the double-fold wing was that all British post-war carriers had been designed and built (or at least laid down) during WWII and so had hangars sized for WWII aircraft. Because it was Royal Navy policy to have armoured hangars and flight decks, and in some cases double-deck hangars, the individual hangars were kept as low as possible to minimise topweight. The rapid growth in the size of aircraft post-WWII made this a thorny problem and some later, "lower-mileage" carriers were actually retired earlier than older ones due to thier particularly low hangars. Why not just rebuild them? Well the armour made this a much more expensive and complicated job than it would have been had the armour been at hangar deck level (as in US carriers) than at flight deck level, because the armour was also a load-bearing component of the ship's structure. It was tried on one carrier (HMS Victorious) but that project turned into a long-drawn-out, over-budget, over-timescale nightmare, and although the resultant ship was decent enough, the experience put the RN and the UK goverment off the idea of carrier rebuilds forever. Brand new carriers were planned in the 1960s, but then changing government policy and sheer lack of money saw them cancelled in 1966.

3. The extra fins on the tailplanes were added late in the development of the ASW version (which came first) due to the addition of a third crew member and a bigger radar. The ASW version was originally supposed to have two crew in tandem up front and a small radar under the rear fuselage. However it was then found that a third crew member was needed to handle the workload and a bigger radar, in a retractable "dustbin" radome, was specified. The third crewman's canopy and the bigger radome (when extended) increased side area and thus decreased yaw stability. On a land plane you'd just increase the fin area to compensate, but on a carrier aircraft, particularly one that needed to fit in the low hangars with which British airccraft carrier were cursed, that wasn't an option, hance the addition of the extra fins instead.

[veritasvincit]

I enjoyed this. Thanks.
This man knows his job. Ive visited certain air museums and the management don't know their backsides from their elbows but this chap is very knowledgeable.

[SeanH-xjzo]

i love the obscure aircraft that support and help the fighter and attack aircraft do their job! great video! it's been 40+ years since i visited pima. watching these videos has put visiting back on the top of the bucket list. thanks for the great work!

[dankingjr.]

Nice. First vid in the new series. Gannet seems an odd start, but it's a cool bird and I'm looking forward to the series.

[adrienroy]

Went to Pima when I was a teenager with my dad and uncle. That was 30 years ago. My uncle was a retired air force colonel who flew b17s in ww2 and many other bombers after, the b36, b47 b52. I got to listen to his stories on the way to the museum, then get my mind blown when I get there. One of the best memories I have.

[chrisvandecar]

Two thumbs up Sofi! A warning though, if you spend too much time around the airplanes you might start thinking “target, land, slow moving” when you see a tank! You’ll know then it is time to step back😎

[MilitantOldLady]

The Gannet has always been one of my favorites. I have a soft spot for odd looking ugly planes that just do their job really well.

[Robert-xyxi]

Great channel! Was a nice surprise, featuring a Gannet. I remember seeing a AEW Gannet as a gate guard at Royal Naval Air Station Prestwick AKA HMS Gannet, adjacent to Prestwick International Airport on the south west coast of Scotland. Was also a USAF C-5 Galaxy on HMS Gannet apron at the time.

[Zajuts]

There are some remarkable aircraft designed for the Royal Navy. Some good, some not so good. My favourites are the Swordfish and the Buccaneer.

[johnbarnes]

Thumbs up ! Nice to see a forgotten aircraft that's not usually covered-great start to the series.

[gordonwallin]

Keep heading north and go to Oregon. The Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum, at McMinnville. It's got WW2, WW1, and Space exhibits; the Spruce Goose, SR-71, two huge pavillions. You'll love it. Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.

[VulcanDriver]

There is a story that a US pilot saw it with a stopped prop and couldn't understand why it was still flying.

[garyneilson]

Scott is a very knowledgable man and it was nice to listen to him. I am hoping you can do videos on the Shackelton which also has contra rotating propellers and also the Bristol Bolingbroke and the EE Lightning.Sorry my choices are UK biased 😆

[chrislong]

"It's so ugly it circles back around" - Perfect!

[StevenG]

I looked the place up after the last video...that place is awesome and so many different aircraft! Has to be a cool place to hangout and walk around!!

[woesiohans]

Pima is amazing! I was blown away by just how GIGANTIC the B-36 was, that is one big boy.

[tigertanktoo]

That’s a great museum. They have one of every aircraft that has ever been at Davis Monthan AFB next door. If you get a chance to tour that place you should. It’s just as amazing as The Pima Air Museum. Thanks for sharing.

[gooseland]

A plane only a mother plane could love. The Avro shackleton on the other hand is beautiful, and there's is even more beautiful would love to see it!