After its successful testing and evaluation phase, the aircraft was brought into service with the 800 Naval Air Squadron in late-1938. The type then found its way aboard British Royal Navy carriers heading into 1939 so, when war broke out in September of 1939, the Skua was on hand in useful numbers and pushed into service by the FAA.
Despite their classification as fighters, Skuas performed poorly in the dedicated fighter role due to their design being underpowered and heavy but they excelled in the dive bombing role for which they were also designed. A shortage of modern fighters by the British forced the type to see more combat in the dedicated fighter role despite their being outclassed by German types like the Messerschmitt Bf 109 series. Nevertheless, Skuas were credited with shooting down the first German aircraft of World War 2, this on September 25th, 1939 (a Luftwaffe Dornier 18). Skuas were then pressed into service for the Norway Campaign where their dive bombing capability was put to good use and several enemy ships were claimed (including KMS Konigsberg sunk by three direct hits).
Beyond this action, the series operated in all of the early fronts involving British navy warplanes: the North Sea, Atlantic and Mediterranean. More and more they were pressed into the escort role for other bomber types and it was not until 1941 that better alternatives became available - namely the Fairey Fulmar and the Hawker Hurricane. As such, the Skua was relegated to secondary roles of trainer and target tug until the end of the war in 1945.
A true unsung hero of the early-going for the British in World War 2, no fewer than 27 Fleet Air Arm squadrons were equipped with Skua fighters. The Royal Air Force (RAF) also operated a contingent as part of the Anti-Aircraft Co-operation force.
There were only two variants of the Skua line built, Skua Mk.I and Skua Mk.II. The former covered two prototypes outfitted with Bristol Mercury engines. The latter were production-quality, in-service aircraft carrying Bristol Perseus engines in revised cowlings. The Blackburn "Roc" (detailed elsewhere on this site) was a notable Skua offshoot that introduced a fully-powered, multi-machine-gun turret over the rear fuselage (as in the Bolton Paul Defiant fighter). One-hundred thirty-six of these were made.
Performance-wise, the definitive Mk.II model had a maximum speed of 225 miles-per-hour and cruised near 185 mph. Range was out to 435 miles and the service ceiling reached 20,200 feet. Rate-of-climb was 1,580 feet-per-minute.
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