W.H.Tildesley was a well-known producer of forged components during the war effort and worked with Blackburn Aircraft Ltd from 1941.

Given the age and lack of archived material relating to the original customer part numbers it is difficult to determine what forged parts were used on which aircraft, however, the approved WHT production drawings and job route cards match that of  Blackburn’s recorded production dates of the Firebrand.

The Firebrand was a powerful and nimble carrier-based (naval) aircraft, both single-seated and engined, designed for short-range fleet protection. The first flight was in February 1942 albeit an unarmed version of the aircraft. In July of the same year, two armed prototypes were tested.

Sadly, due to Blackburn’s troubled and delayed development of the Fireband, the first production of the aircraft was not delivered until after the end of the Second World War, 220 built plus 3 prototypes.

For more information on the Blackburn Firebrand please visit the dedicated BAE Systems Heritage page here: https://www.baesystems.com/en/heritage/blackburn-b37-firebrand