• Wing Span: 64 in (163m)
• Wing Area: 791 sq in (5103)
• Length: 55 in (140m)
• Weight: 8.0 lbs (3.6 kg)
• Engine: .61 2 - cycle
  (10.0 cc 2 - cycle)
  .91 4 - cycle
  (14.9 cc 4 - cycle)
• 5 Servos required

The Hawker Sea Fury was originally designed by the Royal Air Force as a piston engine fighter aircraft. However, the Royal Navy became the primary operator and it was later converted into a fighter/bomber role to carry underwing bombs. This is the second semi-scale warbird kit offered by Direct Connection R/C, but the Hawker Sea Fury is the first kit with laser-cut parts and interlocking formers. The symmetrical airfoil provides for full acrobatic capabilities. With a lighter wing loading than most warbirds on the market, the Hawker has extremely slow landings and an increased glide ratio. By adding the optional flaps it allows for steeper landing approaches and shorter takeoff distances.

The Direct Connection Hawker Sea Fury was selected primarily because of its appearance. It is easier to see than most warbirds because of its relatively large wing area and span. The weight is also low for a plane of this size, which gives the plane a light wing loading for a war bird. It is suggested for this kit that the builder should have completed three (3) previous kits prior to building this one. There are some details that are left to the builder. Pictures of the servos are shown to indicate the location but the mounting method is left to the ingenuity of the builder.

The kit is designed with the assumption that the builder will use retracts, a single aileron servo, and flaps. On this particular kit, two (2) aileron servos were used and it was built without retracts and flaps.

The kit well packaged and the wood is separated into bundles and is good quality. The instructions are very clear and has diagrams to help the builder like a good Sig kit.

The plane is basically constructed by building the top section of the fuselage, which then gets set aside. Then the bottom section of the fuselage is built. Finally, the two halves together are joined. This is not hard to do and the fit of the pieces is very good. What this does mean is the building time is at least double that of building a trainer type plane.

The wing is fully symmetrical and was not hard to build.

The tail wheel is mounted to the bottom of the rudder. To get a solid mounting, the tail wheel was replaced with a Sullivan tail wheel assembly mounted on the bottom of the fuselage and the larger of the two (2) supplied springs were used. Du-Bro 3" Liteweight wheels were chosen because the plane is to be flown from a grass field.

This was a Winter/Spring project, which was easy to put together. Neon yellow and metallic green monocoat were chosen for maximum visibility. An OS FX61 engine with a Bisson Pitts style incowl muffler was selected to power the plane. A 14 ounce fuel tank was used with a Du-Bro Kwik-Fill fueling valve. The valve was mounted in the side of the engine cowl. The cowl is made of plastic but it is thick and durable.

After everything was completed, the cowl was mounted and the CG checked. About 1/2 pound of weight was added inside the cowl to balance the plane.

The Sea Fury was taken to the field and final checks were made. The engine was started and the plane was lined up on the runway. When the engine was throttled up, it only took some right rudder to keep it tracking straight and in about 100 feet the plane lifted from the ground without further input and had a fast climb out. The plane needs a light touch but is not touchy and goes where it is pointed. After some circuits to get the feel of the plane, some loops were done, which were fun to watch. When landing, the plane has to be throttled back early while going downwind to bleed off speed before turning to final. The plane floated down toward the runway. The planes speed really began to drop off just over the runway fence. A little more elevator was added for the flair and the speed decreased to about 1/2 and then the main gear touched down for a perfect landing. The rollout was only about another 20 feet before the plane stopped. The plane is easy to keep level and control the descent all the way to touchdown.

This plane is highly recommended for a first warbird. The pilot should have both previous low wing experience and tail dragger experience due to the high runway takeoff speeds and the quick response times. The plane has five (5) flights on it with no bad habits.