Wellington Mk Ic
| This page is about the British bomber Wellington Mk Ic. For the German premium version, see Wellington Mk Ic (Germany). For other versions, see Wellington (Family). |
Contents
Description
The Wellington Mk Ic is a rank II British bomber with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB), 2.3 (RB), and 2.7 (SB). It has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27.
General info
Flight performance
| Characteristics | Max Speed (km/h at 4,572 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 366 | 352 | 6500 | 36.0 | 37.2 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 877 |
| Upgraded | 391 | 378 | 34.1 | 35.0 | 6.5 | 5.3 | ||
Details
| Features | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear |
| ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X | X |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 530 | 264 | 315 | 264 | 223 | ~5 | ~3 |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 275 | < 275 | < 310 | > 320 |
Survivability and armour
The Wellington Mk Ic has no armour protection. The fuel tanks, oil coolers, and engines are all located in the wings. The crew are spread throughout the fuselage. Due to the lack of armour the crew, especially the gunners, are very vulnerable. This could lead to enemy fighters quickly disabling your gunners and leaving you defenceless.
- No armour protection
- Self-sealing fuel tanks
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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The default bomb load is a meagre 10 x 250 lb (117 kg) so upgrading to 18 x 250 or 9 x 500 lb (226 kg) should be task number one. In order: unlock the Turret 7 mm ammo first, then the TC mk.I (torpedo) rack, and then the LBC mk.I. Unlocking the 7 mm ammo gives access to the Universal AP-I belt as one works up to the bomb racks for 18 x 250 or 9 x 500. After that, you can pursue your choice of upgrades.
Upgrades to the turret should also be considered. The different belts do not have a considerable effect, but the upgraded turrets allow for a longer rate of fire. Very important for the small rifle calibre machine guns.
However, speed and climb rate is also a necessity and the unlocks help the sluggish Wellington a lot. The decision should depend on the pilots flying style. When rushing in better armament will help in the retreat, but the better performance will aid even more to get to friendly zones.
The sneaky approach, on the other hand, relies less on speed, but on surviving the random combat encounters. Turret upgrades are the way to go for this playstyle.
Armaments
Suspended armament
The Wellington Mk Ic can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
- 10 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (2,500 lb total)
- 18 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (4,500 lb total)
- 9 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (4,500 lb total)
- 2 x 1,000 lb G.P. Mk.I bombs + 6 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (3,500 lb total)
- 2 x 18 inch Mark XII torpedoes
- 1 x H.C. 4,000 lb Mk.II bomb (4,000 lb total)
Defensive armament
The Wellington Mk Ic is defended by:
- 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns, nose turret (1,200 rpg = 2,400 total)
- 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns, tail turret (2,000 rpg = 4,000 total)
- 1 x 7.7 mm Vickers K machine gun, 2 x beam turrets (483 rpg)
Usage in battles
Air Battles
The Wellington Mk Ic offers great payload options for all types of bomber pilots, however beware of enemy fighters. Enemy fighters are your bane, the Wellington Mk Ic only has four turrets, two turrets in the side of the fuselage then one in the front and rear of the plane. If the rear turret is knocked out, only way to evade enemy fighters is to turn and perform defensive manoeuvres and try to get the enemy fighter with one of your other turrets.
The major weakness of the Wellington Mk Ic is its lack of defence, however it offers good speed, survivability and payload options.
Ground Battles
In ground battles, it is recommended to use the single 4,000 lb "Cookie" bomb. This bomb allows for destruction on a scale which the poor tankers can't comprehend. The Cookie bomb has 1,339 kg of Amatol explosives, allowing for any tanks gathered in a cap zone or (in a close environment) as long as the bomb lands in close proximity, the entire zone will be blown apart and their poor tanks will get knocked out.
The Wellington Mk Ic is a large aircraft, it's not a small fighter bomber or a medium bomber - it's a large heavy bomber. The Wellington Mk Ic is prone to being destroyed in flight by enemy SPAA or tank cannons with HE rounds.
When you spawn in game, descend fast towards a large grouping of enemy tanks and drop your payload, then withdraw to the airfield and rearm. Make sure you have set a bomb delay of 2-3 seconds or the shockwave from the bomb will rip you apart. The other playstyle for this mode is to climb high and circle around the map then wait for the enemies to gather in the cap zones or to group up and drop a 4,000 lb Cookie bomb on them.
In naval battles, either equip yourself with the 9 x 500 lbs, 4,000 lb, or two torpedoes.
The two torpedoes should ideally be used, they are able to sink the biggest of ships from battleships to small coastal boats. Using the the torpedoes, come in from the side and try to predict where the enemy ships will be heading and drop them. The torpedoes do not drop in pairs, but individually, so with good placement and patience two ships can be sunk.
Using the 500 lb or 4,000 lb bombs or other bombs which can be used, either dive on the ship or straight and level then drop them all together on one target, since the ship will be turning hard to port or starboard to avoid your bombs.
Manual Engine Control
| MEC elements | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mixer | Pitch | Radiator | Supercharger | Turbocharger | ||
| Oil | Water | Type | ||||
| Not controllable | Controllable Not auto controlled |
Not controllable Not auto controlled |
Controllable Not auto controlled |
Combined | Controllable 2 gears |
Not controllable |
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent payload - up to 4,500 lbs at max payload weight
- Versatile payload options
- Devastating to enemy bases/airfields when unopposed
- Excellent turret coverage
- Very powerful torpedoes, two are enough to sink an aircraft carrier
- Access to the devastating 4,000 lb bomb
- The aircraft can take a beating thanks to the cross-hatched airframe
Cons:
- Defensive turrets are easy to take out
- Defensive armament is poor
- Extremely slow all-around mobility
- Easy prey for high altitude fighters/try to get near 6,000 m where very little opposition is found
- Having a fighter with good weaponry on your six usually means death
- The crew cannot take a beating due to the lack of armour. The cockpit is particularly vulnerable
History
Developed from the British Air Ministry's Specification B.9/32 in 1932, which called for a long range, twin-engine bomber capable of a range of 720 miles with a payload of 1,000 lbs, Vickers returned to the Ministry with a proposal for an aircraft with four times the range and bombload of the specification. Unsurprisingly, the Ministry ordered a prototype, designated the Vickers Type 271, which took off on its maiden flight on June 15, 1936 with Vickers Chief Test Pilot Joseph "Mutt" Summers at the controls. The aircraft, a mid-wing monoplane fitted with Bristol's Pegasus X engines outputting 915 HP each which drove a three-bladed, variable pitch propeller.
Unfortunately, the prototype crashed on April 19, 1937 after structural failure, throwing the pilot to safety who then deployed his parachute, but the radio operator wouldn't share the same luck. With trials nearly completed at the time, and the aircraft proving more than impressive, the Ministry removed another requirement, Specification B.29/36 to cover a production version as well as an initial order of aircraft. The name of the aircraft, Wellington, derived from the RAF's bomber tradition of naming the aircraft after towns, as well as echoing the 1st Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon.
The Mk.Ic was the second most produced variant of the Wellington, at 2,685 air-frames built between 1940 and 1942, and while virtually identical to the Mk.Ia, featured the removal of the ventral turret and replaced them with two machine gun positions firing from the sides. Initially, Vickers "K" machine guns were used, located in front of the wings, but the majority of Mk.Ic aircraft carried a pair of Browning .303 machine guns located further back on the fuselage. While also featuring improved hydraulics and electrical systems, the aircraft was also the first version of the Wellington to feature Lorenz Blind Landing Equipment. Production of the Mk.Ic proceeded into Autumn 1942, with an entrance into service in April 1940 as a night time bomber as daylight bombing had been ceased at that point.
In-game description
In May 1940, the Vickers Wellington bomber was included in the list of aircraft declared a high priority by Great Britain's Ministry of Aircraft Production. The Wellington was built around Barnes Wallis' geodetic structure concept, maximising airframe strength for minimum weight. Powered by two Bristol Pegasus engines, the Wellington was first test flown in May 1936 and entered service with RAF Bomber Command in 1938. Full-scale production of the Mk.IC (Type 415) model started in April 1940; the most numerous of the Mk.Is, the Mk.IC differed from previous variants by replacing the ventral turret with guns fitted to the aircraft's beams. In place of the Frazer-Nash FN-25 turret, the Mk.IC featured two side blisters consisting of 0.303 inch Vickers Class K machine guns with 483 rounds each (7 flat pan magazines, standard capacity). The Mk.IC bombers of later series were fitted with Colt-Browning Mk.II .303 inch belt-fed machine guns with 600 rounds each. The standard bomb capacity was 4,500 lbs (2,041 kg); this was normally made up of nine 500-lb (227-kg) bombs or two 2,000-lb (907-kg) bombs. A special model, the Type 423, was based on the Wellington Mk.IC; it was able to deliver one 4,000-lb (1,816-kg) extra-heavy Cookie Mk.I or Mk.II bomb to the target. To accomplish this, the central bomb bay doors were removed and the bomb bay itself was modified. The defensive armament remained the same.
On the night of July 7th 1941, Sgt James Ward became the only Wellington crewman to win a Victoria Cross when his Mk.IC was hit by a German night fighter and its starboard engine set on fire. With a rope attached to him, Ward crawled out onto the wing and tearing holes in the aircraft's fabric for hand holds, reached the fire to extinguish it.
The Wellington served not only as a bomber, it was also modified for use in the maritime role for RAF Coastal Command. In January 1941, the Mk.IC began to be used as an anti-submarine patrol aircraft, although no design changes were made. In December 1941, the first torpedo bomber conversions were made.
The Wellington Mk.IC (TB) torpedo bomber was identical to the Mk.IC in terms of its engines and defensive armament but could carry up to two Mk.XII torpedoes.
The first special anti-submarine model designed for the RAF Coastal Command was the Type 428 Wellington GR Mk.VIII (TB). Its structure had the airframe of the later Mk.IC series. The GR Mk.VIII (TB) reconnaissance/torpedo bomber began production in the spring of 1942 in three versions: one version with radar, one version with a retractable searchlight (in place of a nose turret), and the last variant developed as a long range reconnaissance aircraft with extra fuel tanks installed in the bomb bay. All three, starting with the 66th production aircraft, were equipped with the same torpedo mount as the Mk.IC (TB) model.
The Wellington torpedo bombers were used for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea at the end of December 1941; anti-submarine models began to patrol the North Sea in May 1942. The first German submarine destroyed by these aircraft was sunk on July 6, 1942.
2,547 Mk.IC aircraft were produced, including 138 Mk.IC (TB) torpedo bombers and 271 GR Mk.VIII (TB) torpedo bombers.
Media
- Skins
- Videos
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
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
- other literature.
| Vickers-Armstrongs Aircraft Limited | |
|---|---|
| Bombers | Wellington Mk Ic · Wellington Mk Ic/L · Wellington Mk III · Wellington Mk X |
| Captured | ▀Wellington Mk Ic |
| Britain bombers | |
|---|---|
| Torpedo | Swordfish Mk I · Swordfish Mk II · ▄Avenger Mk II |
| Dive | V-156-B1 |
| Hydroplanes | ▄Catalina Mk IIIa · Sunderland Mk IIIa · Sunderland Mk V |
| Light | Blenheim Mk IV · Beaufort Mk VIII · ▄Hudson Mk V · Brigand B 1 |
| Based on A20 | ▄Havoc Mk I · ▄Boston Mk I · ▄DB-7 |
| Hampden | Hampden Mk I · Hampden TB Mk I |
| Wellington | Wellington Mk Ic · Wellington Mk Ic/L · Wellington Mk III · Wellington Mk X |
| Halifax | Halifax B Mk IIIa |
| Stirling | Stirling B Mk I · Stirling B Mk III |
| Lancaster | Lancaster B Mk I · Lancaster B Mk III |
| Lincoln | Lincoln B Mk II |
| Shackleton | Shackleton MR.Mk.2 |
