UNIQUE IN A NUMBER OF WAYS, THE STIRLING WAS apparently well liked by those who flew it clue to its good manoeuvreability, sturdy construction and ability to sustain considerable amounts of battle damage. However its flight performance and bomb carrying capacity left much to be desired thanks to the short-sighted requirements laid down by the Air Ministry; so the Stirling was later overshadowed by its rivals, the Handley Page Halifax and the Avro Lancaster. Consequently the Stirling's time as a bomber was relatively short but it went on to forge a new career for itself as a glider tug, transport and specialist warfare platform, even seeing some limited post-war use as a civilian airliner. Deliveries to the RAF of the first production standard aircraft from Short Brothers, designated as Stirling Mk Is, began slowly during the late summer of 1940 as the aviation industry devoted itself to churning out sorely needed Hurricane and Spitfire fighters to defend the country against the might of the Luftwaffe throughout the desperate days of the Battle of Britain. The supply of Stirlings was also hampered by the fact that the Germans raided Rochester and destroyed half a dozen newly completed airframes as they stood ready for delivery. A similar attack on Belfast later on wiped-out another five.
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