Buccaneer S.2B
| This page is about the strike aircraft Buccaneer S.2B. For other versions, see Buccaneer (Family). |
Contents
Description
Following the defeat of the British forces during the Aden Emergency, and seeing other conflicts happening at that time near the Suez, the RAF (Royal Air Force) saw the need to update their anti-shipping capability vastly during the turn of the '70s. This saw the joint development of the AJ-168 Martel anti-ship missile between Britain and France. However, the problem of carrying it still existed and, strapped on budget and time, the RAF decided to simply modify a selection of their existing Buccaneer S.2 aircraft with the required avionics and data bus to use the AC-226 HS datalink pod, allowing for terminal "Man-in-the-loop" TV guidance for the Martel missiles. 49 of this new variant, called the Buccaneer S.2B, were built between 1973 and 1977, with three going to the Ministry of Defence for weapons trials and testing, and the rest (46) entering active service. While the Royal Navy's Buccaneers had a long and fruitful service life, the RAF's Buccaneer's sat collecting dust mostly for nearly two decades, with their most interesting deployment being to be on station in Germany to laser-designate targets in case the Cold War went hot. The RAF Buccaneers were seemingly finally going to face their trial by fire during the Gulf War in the early '90s, when 12 RAF Buccaneer S.2Bs were deployed at short notice to the Gulf during Operation 'Granby'. However, these Buccaneers' mission was only to laser designate targets for Royal Air Force Tornados and Jaguars, with almost no real strike missions flown by the Buccaneers.
The Buccaneer S.2B was introduced in Update "Alpha Strike". Being a direct upgrade to its predecessor in the tree, the Buccaneer S.2, the S.2B variant not only has access to the powerful AJ 168 Martel missiles, but various new hardware and avionics upgrades over the older S.2. For starters, the S.2B has access to built-in countermeasures and the all-aspect AIM-9L missile, a major upgrade over the external countermeasures pod and the AIM-9B of its predecessor. More importantly for a strike aircraft, the S.2B has access to the Pave Spike laser targeting pod alongside Paveway laser guided bombs, or alternatively, the AJ-168 Martel TV guided anti-ship missile, which due to its TV guidance, can also be used against ground targets in mixed ground battles, where it proves its potency thanks to having one of the highest TV lock ranges in-game and a very powerful warhead. Players must still be aware of the usual shortfalls of the Buccaneer family, being its large size and weight resulting in cumbersome flight performance, along with the lack of any built-in cannon armament.
General info
Flight performance
Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.
| Characteristics | Max speed (km/h at _,___ m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | ___ | ___ | 15000 | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | ___ |
| Upgraded | ___ | ___ | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | ||
Details
| Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear | Drogue chute |
| _ | _ | _ | _ | _ | _ |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 1181 | 416 | ___ | ___ | ___ | ~__ | ~__ |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < ___ | < ___ | < ___ | - |
Engine performance
| Engine | Aircraft mass | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine name | Number | Basic mass | Wing loading (full fuel) | |||
| _____ | _ | _,___ kg | ___ kg/m2 | |||
| Engine characteristics | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) | Max Gross Weight | ||||
| Weight (each) | Type | _m fuel | __m fuel | __m fuel | ||
| ___ kg | ___ | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | |
| Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB) | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (___%/WEP) | |||||
| Condition | 100% | ___%/WEP | _m fuel | __m fuel | __m fuel | MGW |
| Stationary | ___ kgf | ___ kgf | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ |
| Optimal | ___ kgf (_ km/h) |
___ kgf (_ km/h) |
_.__ | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ |
Survivability and armour
Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armaments
| Ballistic Computer | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCIP (Guns) | CCIP (Rockets) | CCIP (Bombs) | CCRP (Bombs) | EEGS |
 |
 |
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Offensive armament
The Buccaneer S.2B is armed with:
- A choice between two presets:
- 30 x countermeasures
- 90 x countermeasures
Suspended armament
The Buccaneer S.2B can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 lb H.E. M.C. Mk.II bombs | 6 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | |
| 540 lb Mk.M2 bombs | 6 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | |
| 1,000 lb H.E. M.C. Mk.13 No.117 bombs | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1,000 lb H.E. M.C. Mk.13 bombs | 2, 3 | 2, 3 | 4 | 2, 3 | 2, 3 | |
| 1,000 lb L.D H.E. M.C. Mk.1 bombs | 2, 3 | 2, 3 | 2, 3 | 2, 3 | ||
| 546 kg Mk.13 bombs | 1* | 1* | 1* | |||
| RP rockets | 36 | 36 | 36 | 36 | ||
| AIM-9G Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | ||||
| AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | ||||
| AJ.168 missiles | 1† | 1† | 1† | |||
| Data link pod | 1† | |||||
| Pave Spike targeting pod | 1* | |||||
| 440 gal drop tanks | 1 | |||||
| * Pave Spike pod must be equipped when carrying Mk.13 guided bombs † Data link pod must be equipped when carrying AJ.168 missiles | ||||||
| Default weapon presets | |
|---|---|
| |
Usage in battles
Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).
Pros and cons
Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".
Pros:
Cons:
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Devblog
Initially intended for the Royal Navy, the RAF showed little interest in the Buccaneer until the cancellation of both TSR-2 and the RAF’s own version of the Aardvark, the F-111K, led to a decision to adopt the Buccaneer into service to fill a gap in capabilities. This coincided with the gradual retirement of Aircraft Carriers from the Royal Navy freeing up aircraft that could be provided to the RAF, as well as new build aircraft to the S.2B standard. This variant would initially see an enlarged “bulged” bomb bay and the capacity for Martel Anti-Ship missiles.
Operation Pulsator, supporting British forces in Lebanon in 1983, would see a further significant upgrade for the Buccaneer, introducing internal countermeasures to the aircraft for better self defence. AIM-9G and AIM-9L capability was also added, a notable improvement over earlier AIM-9Bs on earlier S.2s.
Despite its age, the Buccaneer would however still prove its worth as late as the 1991 Gulf War, acting as a laser designator aircraft for Tornado GR.1s to deliver their laser guided bombs before early TIALD pods became available for operations. Later in the conflict, Buccaneers would themselves take part in direct bombing attacks.
Initially not planned to take part in “Operation Granby”, a handful of Buccaneer S.2Bs from No.12, 208 and 237 OCU were rushed over to the Gulf, hastily repainted in “Desert Pink” and equipped now with AIM-9Ls and Pave Spike pods. The pilots that would operate them dubbed themselves the “Sky Pirates” and were famous for their skull and crossbones flag and colourful nose art adorning many of the aircraft that took part.
The Tornado would however fully replace the last Buccaneers in service shortly after the Gulf War, covering all roles that it had previously maintained. The last Buccaneers would bow out of service with the RAF in 1994, 36 years after the first Buccaneer took to the skies.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the aircraft;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
| Blackburn Aircraft Ltd. | |
|---|---|
| Fighters | Firebrand TF Mk IV · Firecrest |
| Strike aircraft | Buccaneer S.1 · Buccaneer S.2 · Buccaneer S.2B |
| Britain jet aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Blackburn | Buccaneer S.1 · Buccaneer S.2 · Buccaneer S.2B |
| British Aerospace | Harrier GR.7 · Sea Harrier FRS.1 (e) · Sea Harrier FRS.1 |
| British Aircraft Corporation | Strikemaster Mk.88 |
| English Electric | Canberra B Mk 2 · Canberra B (I) Mk 6 · Lightning F.6 · Lightning F.53 |
| Gloster | Meteor F Mk 3 · Sea Meteor F Mk 3 · Meteor F Mk 4 G.41F · Meteor F Mk 4 G.41G · Meteor F Mk 8 G.41K · Meteor F Mk.8 Reaper |
| Javelin F.(A.W.) Mk.9 | |
| de Havilland | Vampire F.B.5 · Venom FB.4 · Sea Venom FAW 20 · Sea Vixen F.A.W. Mk.2 |
| Hawker | Sea Hawk FGA.6 · Hunter F.1 · Hunter F.6 · Hunter FGA.9 · Harrier GR.1 · Harrier GR.3 |
| Panavia | Tornado GR.1 · Tornado F.3 |
| SEPECAT | Jaguar GR.1 · Jaguar GR.1A · Jaguar IS |
| Supermarine | Attacker FB 1 · Attacker FB.2 · Scimitar F Mk.1 · Swift F.1 · Swift F.7 |
| Foreign | Phantom FG.1 (USA) · Phantom FGR.2 (USA) · F-4J(UK) Phantom II (USA) |
| JAS39C (Sweden) | |
