Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 3:58:19-4:00:34

Sea Hornet versus Sea Meteor carrier utility

A hypothetical wartime Sea Hornet would offer radar-equipped night interception; the corrected Sea Meteor question receives a more limited endorsement.

Carrier AircraftDe Havilland Sea HornetNaval AviationRoyal NavySea Meteor
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Question

How useful would carrier-capable Meteors have been to the Royal Navy during the Second World War?

Short answer

Sea Meteors could have helped with some strike packages and interception. The initial answer mistakenly addressed Sea Hornets and judged their potential radar-equipped night and all-weather role more useful.

Notes

The initial response assumes Sea Hornets operating from carriers modified to accommodate them, including port-side accelerators. With radar, they would provide night and all-weather interception and are judged potentially very useful to the Royal Navy. Their development took too long for that hypothetical wartime contribution to occur. The question is then recognized as referring to Sea Meteors. Those receive a more limited endorsement for some strike packages and air-defense interception, with a personal preference for the Sea Hornet's usefulness.