Fairey Fulmar, part three

The first prototype of the Fulmar, which was a flying mock-up, was powered by the Rolls-Royce Merlin III engine, which was able of generating up to 1.080 hp of power. When flight-tested, it was shown that performance was relatively poor as the highest speed it could attain was 230 mph (370 km/h). In order to fix such problem, it was fitted with a more powerful Merlin engine; the Merlin VIII, which was a variant made specifically for the Fulmar and with supercharging optimised for low-level flight. Some other aerodynamical improvements were also made to the fuselage.
Those changes managed to increase the speed up to 265 mph (426 km/h) when flown at an altitude of 7.500 ft (2.286 m) high. Given the need for modern fighters to equip Royal Navy's aircraft carriers, the Fulmar performance was considered acceptable.
As a relatively straightforward derivative of the existing prototype, the Fulmar was expected to be ready in big numbers quickly. In mid-1938 a manufacturing order was placed for 127 production aircraft by the Royal Navy. A floatplane variant was also envisioned and promoted but, however such variant was never-built (Note: We couldn't find blueprints or drawings about how this variant would looked like, so we decided not to drawn it) .
On 4th January 1940 the first production aircraft took-off from Fairey's factory at RAF Ringway, near Manchester. Production numbers rise up to 600 machines manufactured. Two-hundred and fifty of the Mk.I variant (first production variant powered by the Rolls-Royce Merlin VIII engine and armed with eight 0.303 in Browning Mk.II machine guns in the wings) and 350 of the Mk.II variant (powered by a Merlin XXX engine capable of yielding up to 1.300 hp of power, a new propeller ,the addition of tropical equipment, the usual eight Browning Mk.II machine guns in the wings -being replaced however by four 0.5 in Browning AN/M2 in the last batch- and underwing hardpoints which allowed the aircraft to carry up to 500 lb (226 kg) of bombs). There was also a night fighter variant fitted with an Air Interception Mk.IV radar of which 100 machines were converted from the Mk.II variant.
During January 1941 the manufacturing process of the Mk.II variant started with the first of them being delivered to an operational squadron in March 1941. This model had provision for a 60-gallon (273 litre) centre-line drop-tank which could be replaced by bombs. During October 1941, flight tests performed at RAF Boscombe Down showed that the drop tank extended Fulmar's range to 1.100 milles (1.800 km). Further testing showed that it could safely drop a 500 lb bomb during 60-degree dives at speed of up to 310 knots (574 km/h). Some Fulmars were fitted with catapult-launching gear to be launched from merchant ships, in order to make convoys safer.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Fulmar
2. https://www.valka.cz/Fairey-Fulmar-Mk-I-t951
3. https://www.valka.cz/Fairey-Fulmar-Mk-II-t40358
4. https://www.valka.cz/Fairey-Fulmar-NF-Mk-II-t180813
5. Hall Park Books - Warpaint Series 41 - Fairey Fulmar
6. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters