Nimrod

The Hawker Nimrod was a single‑seat biplane fighter developed in the late 1920s by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. Emerging from the successful Hawker Fury, the Nimrod incorporated a more robust fuselage, enlarged radiator and a strengthened lower wing to meet the demanding conditions of carrier operations. First flown on 9 March 1929, the type entered service with No. 3 Squadron RAF in 1930 and was quickly adopted by several overseas squadrons, including the Indian Air Force and the Royal Egyptian Air Force. Powered by a Rolls‑Royce Kestrel V12 engine delivering up to 525 hp, the Nimrod could reach 190 mph at sea level and sport a climb rate of 1,800 ft/min, making it one of the fastest biplanes of its era. Armament consisted of two .303‑inch Vickers machine guns, and later versions were fitted with optional provisions for bomb racks. Though its operational life was short—being superseded by monoplane designs in the mid‑1930s—the Nimrod demonstrated the adaptability of biplane construction for naval use and helped refine carrier‑based tactics that informed later Hawker successes such as the Hurricane. Its legacy lies in bridging the gap between the open‑cockpit biplane age and the modern fighter era.

Hawker Aircraft

Classification

Production & History

Design & Classification