Sandbagging Solutions - the Story of the 46th

There’s always a first for everything. For the British Royal Air Force’s No. 46 Squadron, their time spent patrolling the Narvik area in June of 1940 would afford them two ‘first for everythings.’

In early June of 1940 Allied forces arrived to support Norwegians against charging Germans. This was no ordinary deployment. The British Royal Air Force’s No. 46 Squadron was tasked to patrol the skies. First though, they had to get their Hurricane biplanes off the HMS Glorious - a feat that had never been done.

Surprisingly, the pilots succeeded and immediately set to hunting the skies around Narvik. Their time in support of the Norwegains was short-lived. A week into their mission and the Germans had advanced westward. German progress unnerved the British back home. To reinforce homeland defenses, British military leaders requested withdrawal from Norway.

Easier Said Than Done

Codenamed ”Operation Alphabet,” the pilots of the 46th found themselves in a tight spot. Despite their short-term success in Norway, their planes went from weapon to obstacle.

Having only lost three of the thirteen Hurricane biplanes used, they determined what to do with the remaining ten. If they left the planes, surely the Germans would use them. They could destroy them and waste perfectly fit fighting planes. Or they could find a way to get them home. . 

The challenge for the pilots was the Hurricane’s lack of range. The option to fly directly back to England was out of the question. Having arrived on a carrier, naturally they wondered if they could hop a carrier back to England. One problem - the planes were not designed to land aboard an aircraft carrier.

With little options, orders were issued to destroy the Hurricanes to prevent  them from falling into German hands. The 46th’s squad leader hated the prospect of destroying functioning aircraft. He rallied his men and they began working to find a solution.

The Lesser of Two Evils

Off the coast sat two British carriers, the HMS Glorious and the HMS Ark Royal. The men began assessing the viability of the two ships as a landing option.

While the Ark Royal was the bigger of the two, the forty-foot wingspan of the Hurricane planes would not fit into her elevators. This left them no option to clear the deck once landed.

The Glorious possessed a shorter runway deck. Shorter decks meant coming to a stop sooner. But, the elevators aboard had the space to take the Hurricane’s wingspan.  

A shorter deck with less traffic was more preferrable. The men began lobbying their case to gain permission to attempt the landing. It would take five attempts to leaders before they would get the green light. 

The reason for leadership’s hesitation was not unfounded. Pilots in the 46th, eager as they were, possessed no carrier flight training. Landing planes not meant for carrier operations with zero carrier flight training meant these men would be attempting the near impossible.

After evaluating the risks of landing the Hurricanes, the men identified a conundrum. Should they apply their brakes upon landing, they experienced carry-forward momentum. This meant the plane’s propellers would hit the ship’s deck.

The need to immediately apply the brakes was critical. Hurricanes were infamously known for their long stopping distance. Opting for the shorter-decked Glorious, there was no margin for error.

Stop too soon and the plane’s nose would open forward sending the propellers into the deck. Stop too late and the planes were likely to slide off the flight deck and into the ocean.

Never Underestimate a Soldier’s Ingenuity

As is often the case, an effective solution can be a simple one. For the men of the 46th, their simple solution came in the form of a lowly sandbag.   

Realizing the power of a counterweight, the men proposed placing sandbags in the tails of their planes. The extra weight would prevent the plane from tipping too far forward when they applied the brakes.

With counterweight it would prevent the propellers from slashing into the deck. And as an added bonus, the extra weight also helped shorten the stopping distance. 

Solution in hand, the pilots set out to execute their plan. On the evening of June 7th, the men of the 46th dramatically landed their Hurricane airplanes one by one on the deck of the HMS Glorious. Their goal of preserving their planes, was for the moment, a success.

Disaster Strikes Where They Least Expected 

Sadly, this amazing tale of ingenuity and creativity quickly turned tragic. Less than twenty-four hours after this incredible accomplishment, the HMS Glorious would encounter the German battleships Schamhorst and Gneisenau. 

The two German ships would sink the Glorious, two of her escort destroyers, 1,500 men, and those ten saved Hurricanes to the ocean floor. Of the men in the 46th, the ones who crafted such a daring and creative landing strategy, only two would survive.  

History for the Hurried:

May 21, 1881: The American Red Cross was founded by Clara Barton.

May 22, 1947: Congress approves the Truman Doctrine, assuring U.S. support for Greece and Turkey to prevent the spread of Communism.

May 25, 1787: The Constitutional Convention began in Philadelphia with delegates from seven states.