Hawker Hurricane

Updated: October 2026 – A hump behind the cockpit, a thick wing and landing gear so wide that the aircraft looks almost comfortable on the ground: the Hawker Hurricane is the fighter that scored the most kills for the RAF in the Battle of Britain in 1940 – and yet almost always stands in the shadow of the more famous Spitfire. For warbird fans it is a special sighting today, because only a few examples still fly. Here you will learn how the Hurricane came about, what versions there are, how to identify it with certainty and where to get airworthy examples in front of your lens.

What is the Hawker Hurricane?

The Hurricane is a single-seat, single-engine fighter with an enclosed cockpit and retractable landing gear. It was designed in the mid-1930s at Hawker Aircraft in Kingston upon Thames under chief designer Sydney Camm. Hawker had made a name for itself with biplanes like the Hart, Hind and Fury, and the Hurricane took over a lot of proven technology from these types – above all the fuselage made of a bolted steel-tube frame, covered in the rear section with wooden formers and fabric. New, by contrast, were the cantilever monoplane wing, the enclosed cockpit, the retractable landing gear and the Rolls-Royce Merlin as the powerplant.

The prototype with the serial K5083 flew on November 6, 1935, with Hawker test pilot George Bulman at the controls. The aircraft had been assembled at Brooklands in Surrey, where the Brooklands Museum now commemorates the site’s aviation history. In December 1937, No. 111 Squadron at Northolt received the first production aircraft. That made the Hurricane the Royal Air Force’s first monoplane fighter – and it was in production before the Spitfire was available in large numbers.

In total, depending on the source, about 14,500 Hurricanes were built. Hawker itself built the lion’s share, with Gloster, Austin and, in Canada, Canadian Car and Foundry adding about 1,450 examples.

The Hurricane in the Battle of Britain

In the summer and fall of 1940, the Hurricane bore the brunt of Britain’s air defense. Fighter Command had considerably more Hurricane than Spitfire squadrons. According to Fighter Command figures, 55 percent of the 2,739 counted German losses were credited to Hurricane pilots, 42 percent to Spitfires. Such kill figures must always be read with caution in research, but the ratio clearly shows what role the Hurricane played.

The division of labor often described: the faster Spitfires were supposed to tie up the escort fighters wherever possible, while the Hurricanes went after the bomber formations. Its opponent was mainly the Messerschmitt Bf 109. Against the 109 the Hurricane was inferior in speed and climb rate, but it was maneuverable, a stable gun platform and – a big advantage – easy to repair. A hit in the fabric-covered fuselage could often be patched with what was at hand, while damaged all-metal airframes had to go to the workshop.

The Hurricane also flew in many other countries and theaters of war: in France, North Africa, on Malta, in Burma and India. Under Lend-Lease terms, almost 3,000 Hurricanes went to the Soviet Union, and there were exports as well, such as to Belgium and Yugoslavia before the war and to Finland in early 1940.

From Mk I to Sea Hurricane: the versions

During the war, the Hurricane was developed from a pure fighter into a versatile fighter-bomber. For spotters, the differences in armament and propeller are of most interest.

Version	Engine	Special feature
Mk I	Merlin II / III	first series with eight machine guns; early examples with fabric-covered wing and two-blade wooden propeller
Mk IIA	Merlin XX	more powerful engine, otherwise largely like the Mk I
Mk IIB	Merlin XX	twelve machine guns, bomb racks
Mk IIC	Merlin XX	four 20 mm cannon – the most-built version
Mk IID	Merlin XX	two 40 mm cannon in pods under the wings, tank buster
Mk IV	Merlin	“universal wing” for bombs, rockets or cannon
Sea Hurricane	Merlin	naval version, partly catapult-launched from merchant ships, partly with arrestor hook
Mk X–XII	Merlin (Packard license)	Canadian production at Canadian Car and Foundry

The early Mk I flew at first with a two-blade wooden propeller and fabric-covered wings. Even before the start of the Battle of Britain, metal wings and a three-blade variable-pitch propeller were added. With the Mk II and the more powerful Merlin XX, the career as the “Hurribomber” began: the Mk IIC with four cannon is the most-built version and also the one you see most often in the air today.

A curiosity is the Sea Hurricane IA. It was catapult-launched from armed merchant ships to protect convoys from long-range reconnaissance aircraft. Landing aboard was not planned – after the mission the pilot had to fly to land or ditch next to the convoy. Later Sea Hurricanes received an arrestor hook for aircraft carriers.

The three features that are enough to identify it

The final certainty comes from the registration. Airworthy Hurricanes mostly carry a civil registration, often from the British G register, but are painted in historic markings – such as “P3717” or “Z7015”. What information you find in the British register is explained in British G registrations. The aircraft of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, by contrast, are RAF aircraft and fly with their military serial numbers.

Hurricane, Spitfire or Bf 109?

At warbird shows, the fighters of the Battle of Britain often stand close together. The finder helps you narrow things down.

The Supermarine Spitfire is the Hurricane’s natural partner and sounds quite similar with the Merlin – wings and landing gear make the difference. The North American P-51 Mustang flies at many British shows and is easy to rule out by its belly radiator. If you want to sharpen your eye for old types further, Recognizing vintage aircraft in the sky helps, and tips on the Merlin’s sound are in Recognizing aircraft types by sound. The engine maker is introduced on the page on Rolls-Royce.

Airworthy Hurricanes today

Overviews count, as of recent years, about a dozen and a half airworthy Hurricanes and Sea Hurricanes worldwide. The number is not fixed: aircraft change owners, go into restoration or drop out after damage. The following focal points apply as of October 2026 – always check the current program before a visit.

Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, RAF Coningsby. With the BBMF, the Royal Air Force keeps two Hurricane Mk IICs in the air. The LF363 first flew in January 1944 and has belonged to the Flight since 1957; after a crash in 1991 it was rebuilt over several years. The PZ865 is the last Hurricane built: it left production in July 1944 and joined the BBMF in 1972. The aircraft are based at Coningsby in Lincolnshire, where a visitor center offers tours. From outside you can watch flying operations at the Viewing Area of RAF Coningsby. After a fatal Spitfire crash in May 2024, the BBMF’s flying operations were temporarily suspended; you can find current appearances in the RAF display calendar.

Duxford. Several private Hurricanes are based at the airfield of the Imperial War Museum Duxford, including aircraft of the Aircraft Restoration Company and the Historic Aircraft Collection, among them a two-seat conversion. At the airshows at Duxford, Hurricanes are regularly on the program, often in formation with Spitfires. The spot IWM Duxford describes the location for spotters. The museum also displays another Hurricane statically.

Old Warden. The Shuttleworth Collection looks after the Sea Hurricane Z7015 (registration G-BKTH), an aircraft converted to a Sea Hurricane in 1941. The privately operated R4118 (G-HUPW) is also housed there, a Hurricane Mk I that actually flew in the Battle of Britain in 1940 and was restored in Britain after decades in India. How best to experience the flying days on the grass airfield is covered at the spot Shuttleworth Collection in Old Warden.

Other countries. A few airworthy Hurricanes – mostly Canadian Mk XIIs – are in Canada, the US and Australia, and a Hurricane Mk IIA flies in France. Which shows in Europe offer warbirds is collected in Airshows in Europe. The BBMF also often appears at the Royal International Air Tattoo in Fairford.

Hurricanes in museums

Static examples are easier to plan for. According to common overviews, these institutions among others display a Hurricane:

• the RAF Museum in London-Hendon with a Mk I in the colors of No. 607 Squadron
• the RAF Museum Cosford with a late Mk IIC (spot info)
• the Brooklands Museum in Surrey, where the Hurricane’s story began
• the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces in Brussels as the nearest address for spotters from Germany

Before visiting, check whether the exhibit is currently on display – collections are rearranged and aircraft are lent out. How rare a Hurricane is in your collection can be judged with Judging how rare a sighting is. And if you want to lend a hand with a restoration, you will find ideas in Volunteering at aviation museums.

Photo tips especially for the Hurricane

The Hurricane is bigger than many expect, but at airshows it often flies in formation with Spitfires – then the right moment counts.

Photographing airshows bundles general tips for the day at the display line. At British shows you also often see the Hurricane together with the BBMF’s Avro Lancaster – one of the best-known formation pictures there is.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

The North American T-6 Texan, known in Britain as the Harvard, often wears RAF colors at shows, but the radial engine gives it away immediately. The Hawker line can be followed nicely over the decades: the Hurricane was later followed by the jet fighter Hawker Hunter and the vertical-takeoff Harrier. Hawker itself merged into Hawker Siddeley, and the British aircraft industry is bundled today at BAE Systems.

Conclusion

The Hurricane bridges two eras: it was the RAF’s first monoplane fighter, but still carried the steel-tube-and-fabric heritage of the biplanes within it. It was precisely this robust construction that made it so valuable in 1940. Today it unjustly stands in the Spitfire’s shadow – and because only a few examples fly, a Hurricane in the air is a sighting that stands out in any hangar.