but carried more ammunition and had greater range than either. Once the Luftwaffe had been defeated over Britain, the need for the M.20 vanished and the design was abandoned without entering production. The first prototype was scrapped at Woodley. A second prototype, U-0228 (later DR616) was built to Specification N.1/41 for a Fleet Air Arm shipboard fighter, equipped with an arrestor hook and catapult launch points. It first flew on 8 April 1941. This variant could be launched by catapult aircraft merchant ships which lacked flight decks so the aircraft were to be ditched after their mission, and to facilitate this the undercarriage could be jettisoned. However, obsolete Hurricanes were modified to fill this role, which rendered a shipboard variant of the M.20 unnecessary. Consequently, this prototype was also scrapped. Test pilot Eric Brown flew this aircraft in January 1942. He reported that "although surprisingly nippy in performance, could not match the Martlet, Hurricane, or Spitfire in manoeuvrability". It lacked also the excellent deck landing characteristics of the Martlet. Accounts compare the M.20's performance with that of Battle of Britain aircraft. The M.20 ( at ) was powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin XX with a two‑speed supercharger. A Hurricane IIB with the same engine did at . A Spitfire Mk.VC, powered by a similar Merlin 45 did at . The Spitfire was armed with two cannons and four machine guns. The other two aircraft were armed with eight machine guns. Specifications (M.20/4) See also References Citations Bibliography Bridgeman, Leonard. "The Miles M.20." Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II. London: Studio, 1946. . Brown, Don. "Last-ditch defender". Aeroplane Monthly, Vol. 4, No. 4, April 1976, pp. 207–211. Green, William. Warplanes of the Second World War, Fighters, Vol. 2. London: Macdonald, 1961. Jarrett, Philip. "Nothing Ventured..." Part 21. Aeroplane Monthly, Volume 20 No. 1, Issue 225, January 1992, pp. 54–60. London: IPC. ISSN 0143-7240. Mason, Francis K. The British Fighter since 1912. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1992. . Mondey, David. The Hamlyn Concise Guide to British Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor Press, 2002. . Swanborough, Gordon. British Aircraft at War, 1939–1945. East Sussex, UK: HPC Publishing, 1997. . 1940s British fighter aircraft Cancelled military aircraft projects of the United Kingdom M.20 Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1940