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Summary: Gloster Gladiator I aircraft Airplane blueprint for the Gloster, Gladiator, I ... Aviation history and aircraft blueprints/plans. The Gloster Gladiator was the last RAF biplane fighter and the first with an enclosed cockpit. The Gladiator was developed from it's predecesor the Gauntlet as a private venture by the Gloster aircraft company and was first flown on September 12th 1934. Despite being an anachronism by the time that it entered service in 1937, 550 were built for the RAF and 200 for export.
The Gladiator was largely replaced in front line service by the Hurricane and Spitfire at the outbreak of World War II, although two squadrons were used in the French and Norwegian campaigns. The Gladiator will probably be best remembered for the heroic defence of Malta by three Sea Gladiators, (Faith, Hope, and Charity) and their exploits in the western desert. The Gloster Gladiator was a classic biplane fighter and was also one of Britains biggest export successes before the war, seeing service in many other countries.
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