General Aircraft Hamilcar
The British General Aircraft GAL 49 Hamilcar was the largest Allied gliders during World War II and made its first flight in 1942.
With its loading capacity of eight tons, Hamilcar could carry a light tank even as the Tetrarch, a M22 Locust or two Bren Carrier. The almost entirely built of wood gliders were towed by Stirling, Lancaster and Halifax bombers at a maximum speed of 240 km / hr.
A total of about 400 copies were built, they have been used, among others, during the D -Day, Operation Market Garden and the crossing of the Rhine.
A motorized further represented the GAL 58 Hamilcar X, which received two Bristol Mercury 31 radial engines as a drive. The airframe was this taken over almost unchanged.