Talk:Armstrong Whitworth Whitley

This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley article.
This is not a forum for general discussion of the article's subject.

Put new text under old text. Click here to start a new topic.
New to Wikipedia? Welcome! Learn to edit; get help.

Article policies

Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs) · FENS · JSTOR · TWL

Archives: 1

Aviation: Aircraft

This article is within the scope of the Aviation WikiProject. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the project and see lists of open tasks and task forces. To use this banner, please see the full instructions.AviationWikipedia:WikiProject AviationTemplate:WikiProject Aviationaviation

This article has been checked against the following criteria for B-class status:
Referencing and citation: criterion met Coverage and accuracy: criterion met Structure: criterion met Grammar and style: criterion met Supporting materials: criterion met

This article is supported by the aircraft project.

Military history: Aviation / British / European / World War II

This article is within the scope of the Military history WikiProject. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks. To use this banner, please see the full instructions.Military historyWikipedia:WikiProject Military historyTemplate:WikiProject Military historymilitary history

This article has been checked against the following criteria for B-class status:
Referencing and citation: criterion met Coverage and accuracy: criterion met Structure: criterion met Grammar and style: criterion met Supporting materials: criterion met

Associated task forces:
/
	Military aviation task force
	British military history task force
	European military history task force
	World War II task force

First aircraft with variable-pitch propellors?

The Whitley was most certainly NOT the first aircraft to fly with variable pitch propellors. The Douglas DC-2, which first flew on May 11, 1934 (two years before the Whitley), had them. Douglas DC-2 Jdoniach (talk) 16:34, 23 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]

The source cited for that statement says "...was the first aircraft to fly with de Havilland tree-bladed two-position variable-pitch airscrews." which suggests that the claim is specifically restricted to de Havilland vp-props rather than those by other companies - experiments were made with variable-pitch propellers as far back as WW1.Nigel Ish (talk) 18:39, 23 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Medium or Heavy?

The article is plagued with inconsistent descriptions, with the introduction alone informing us that the Whitley was a British heavy bomber, and at the same time the first of three medium bombers to be introduced.

Because of the pace of development, even in the peacetime run-up to WWII, something that was conceived as a cutting-edge replacement for a biplane bomber such as the Handley Page Heyford, could rapidly find itself outclassed within a very short time from the day it arrived in service. What was considered heavy in 1937 was definitely closer to medium by the time it saw action in 1940.

To be fair, the later Whitley Mk.V did seem to have the largest bomb capacity of the three medium bombers introduced in response to Specification B.3/34, probably aided by engines that were 50% more powerful compared to the original Whitley introduced in 1937.

As always of course, what I think is largely irrelevant, but what Flight described as "heavy" in 1937 is not necessarily a valid commentary here in 2025. In context, the Whitley saw service in WWII as a medium bomber, unless there is a source that specifically contradicts this. FYI - a quick glance around various sources today reveals that the smart money is on not categorising it one way or the other. The majority of dissenters are sites that are blatantly copying this article on Wikipedia, complete with our mistakes.

WendlingCrusader (talk) 18:42, 21 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]