Country of origin United Kingdom Thrust 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) | Manufacturer Armstrong Siddeley | |
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Propellant Liquid oxygen (LOX) / methanol/water Pumps Centrifugal, mechanically driven by external shaft drive from other engine. Propellant capacity LOX 75 imperial gallons (340 L),
water-methanol 120 imperial gallons (550 L) | ||
The Armstrong Siddeley ASSn. Snarler was a small rocket engine used for mixed-power experiments with an early turbojet engine and was the first British liquid-fuelled rocket engine to fly Unlike other British rocket engine projects that used hydrogen peroxide as an oxidiser, Armstrong Siddeley's used liquid oxygen. The rocket engine is described as having a dry weight of 215 lbf (960 N) thrust of 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) and a specific fuel consumption of 20 (lb/h)/lbf thrust. Work began in 1947 and the final configuration was first tested on 29 March 1950.
The prototype of the Hawker P.1040 Sea Hawk, VP 401, had a Snarler rocket of 2,000 lbf thrust added in its tail. The Rolls-Royce Nene turbojet, of 5,200 lbf thrust, had a split tailpipe which exhausted either side of the fuselage. The combination was termed the Hawker P.1072. This gave approximately 50% greater thrust, although with twenty times the fuel consumption. It was first used in flight on 20 November 1950, by Hawker's test pilot Trevor "Wimpy" Wade. Half a dozen flights were made using the rocket motor before a minor explosion damaged the aircraft. Although methanol was used in the P.1072, jet fuel could be used for the Snarler. It was decided that reheat was a more practical proposition for boosting jet thrust than rockets.
An unusual feature of the engine was that the turbopump was externally driven, by a drive from the gearbox of the P.1072's turbojet engine. This feature continued into the first versions of the subsequent Screamer engine, but was later replaced with a turbine-driven turbopump.