| Sturgeon | |
|---|---|
| |
| Sturgeon Mk.1 torpedo bomber prototype | |
| Role | Torpedo bomber Reconnaissance bomber Target tug Anti-submarine aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Short Brothers |
| First flight | 7 June 1946 |
| Primary user | Fleet Air Arm |
| Number built | 28 |
The Short Sturgeon was a planned British carrier-borne reconnaissance bomber whose development began during Second World War with the S.6/43 requirement for a high-performance torpedo bomber, which was later refined into the S.11/43 requirement which was won by the Sturgeon. With the end of the war in the Pacific production of the aircraft carriers from which the Sturgeon was intended to operate was suspended and the original reconnaissance bomber specification was cancelled.
The Sturgeon was then redesigned as a target tug which saw service with the fleet for a number of years. Later, the basic Sturgeon design was reworked as a prototype anti-submarine aircraft. The many modifications that resulted turned the promising design into a "hapless and grotesque-looking hybrid."[1]
- ^ Winchester 2005, p. 50.