Curtiss Hawk 75A/Mohawk. Part Five. Various Asians users.

 

The Curtiss 75 was also employed by various users in Asia, among them, the following ones:

• British Raj: During the late 1930s India was technologically comparable to "average Asian country" and, therefore, had to rely on assistance from industrialized European countries. However, at the outbreak of the war and amidst the Japanese expansion, a group of industrialists from Bombay decided to establish an aircraft factory in Poona. This group was contacted by William D. Pawley, an American entrepreneur who funded the Chinese Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company or CAMCO and was looking for a new location for the company. The reason for this was the Japanese threat to CAMCO facilities in China, so, in December 1939 an agreement was signed.
  When French Indochina fell in September 1940 and Japan expanded its holdings, work on organizing the Indian aircraft industry intensified. On Christmas Eve 1940, Hindustan Aircraft Limited (HAL) was officially confirmed, with shares held by Intercontinent Corporation represented by Pawley, and the local Indian Government. 
  Raw materials and semi-finished products were to be shipped from the United States and several dozens of Chinese and Indian specialists were sent to that country and Great Britain to expand their knowledge and gain the experience needed. They were to take top positions at HAL and CAMCO plants. 
  Since production was expected to be quite substantial, it was decided to relocate the HAL factory from Poona to Bangalore in southern India. In August 1941, the first aircraft was manufactured there, a Harlow PC-5 trainer.
  At that time CAMCO's operations at Loiwing (Yunnan province - south-west China, where CAMCO moved its headquarters) were practically inexistant. In April 1941 the Indian government placed its first major order at HAL for 48 Hawk 75, intended to equip some squadrons at the Royal Indian Air Force. These were built using parts and equipment salvaged from the remains of Loiwing plant, which was destroyed after a Japanese bombardment on 26th October 1940, and surrendered by the Chinese government. 
  Production in India was largely dependent on American supply, which significantly curtailed after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, as when the United States entered the war every raw material suitable for wartime production was retained. Export plans changed, now entirely controlled by colonial government. As a result, HAL plant suffered greatly and production there was extremely slow until mid-1942 when larger contracts were assigned: thirty Harlow PC-5 trainers, 24 Vultee V-12 bombers, Hawks and transport gliders. It was also very valuable the ability to overhaul Allied aircraft from nearby stationed units and supply them with new equipment. One of the larger orders was for 600 jettisonable auxiliary fuel tanks for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF).
  However, both the United States and Great Britain did not consider HAL plant as a viable investment and an American mission was sent there to assess the capabilities of the Indian industry and concluded that it should be treated more as a repair base than a full-fledged supplier of equipment. Influenced by this opinion the Indian colonial government severely limited the orders and, as a result, only five Hawk 75A-5 were manufactured in Bangalore, the first of which took off on 31st July 1942.
  In addition to those five aircraft, numerous Hawk 75s were deployed on Indian soil by Royal Air Force's units stationed there. More than 80 of these were British Mohawk Mk. IV.
  The Royal Indian Auxiliary Air Force operated some Mohawk IVs, which were initially intended for Iran. The No. 1 (Indian) Operational Training Unit, based at Risalpur, operated the type until late July 1942..
  
  
• Dutch East Indies: One of Curtiss' earliest customers was the Dutch East Indies, for wich the Dutch government purchased P-6 Hawk biplane fighters and got a production license for their construction in 1929. Those fighters constituted the backbone of that colonial air force until 1935 when it was determined that effective protection required large seaplanes or patrol boats as well as long-range bombers capable of attacking a potential invasion fleet far from shore. However, it was also foresaw that those aircraft, as well as the many naval bases in that region, would need fighter protection. 
  Initially the Royal Dutch Navy considered the purchase of Curtiss P-6 Hawk biplane fighters to defend the airspace of Soerabaja naval base. However, the need for more fighters arose in 1938 when the Dutch government decided to modernize the Royal Dutch East Indies' Air Force with new equipment. The American offer, with the Curtiss-Wright CW-21 Demon export fighter, was chosen. A decision was made to purchase 35 CW-21, however due to pressures from the parliament, that amount was reduced to 24 aircraft in October 1939.
  The issue of selling Hawk 75 aircraft to the Dutch arose during the negotiations for the CW-21 contract. In June 1939, Bob Fausel (Curtiss' factory pilot) was at Bandoeng airport, on Java, tasked with presenting the proposed aircraft to the local military forces. Persuading them wasn't easy, as they thought that in island conditions, most operations would be conducted over open sea, so single-seat, single-engined aircraft were simply not viable. Larger machines with a crew of at least one pilot and one navigator were required, according to their doctrine. Fausel, however, convinced them of the exact opposite, although, as he admitted later, their decision was probably influenced by France, China and Norway as, if those countries ordered or operated the type, then the Curtiss Hawk 75 couldn't been a bad aircraft.
  Negotiations conducted at the turn of 1939 and 1940 resulted in the purchase of several different types of aircraft, including two fighters: the Brewster B-339D Buffalo (an export variant produced for and hated by the US Navy) and the Curtiss Hawk 75A-7. One hundred and sixty-four Buffalos were ordered, against only 20 Hawk 75s. They were to be delivered between July and August 1940.
  The first of Dutch Hawk 75 was flown personally by Fausel on 16th April 1940 and the first batch was dispatched on 6th May. Nine more were ready at New York to be shipped when Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10th May. At that moment planes' destination was changed and, instead of heading to the colony, they were to be sent to mainland Netherlands to defend it against Germany. However, before they could reach their new destination, Netherlands capitulated and the Hawk 75s were shipped to Java, as originally intended. 
  By 1st August 1940 every delivered aircraft was assembled and transferred to 1. Jachafdeling (1st Fighter Squadron), later renamed IV. Vliegtuiggrope (IV Aircraft Group). Some aircraft were lost to accidents and, when the Royal Dutch East Indies Air Force was mobilized in November 1941 there were just 15 Hawk 75 operational. All of them were later employed in combat against the Japanese.
  
  
• Iran: In 1940 the Shah of Iran ordered ten Cyclone-powered Hawk 75A-9 from Curtiss to replace their ageing Hawker Furys. These aircraft were loaded onto ships and shipped between March and April 1941. They were to be assembled at the aircraft factory and another Curtiss' factory pilot, Ed Elliot, was to fly each one into Iran. One Hawk 75 was shot down by Iranian anti-air fire by mistake, shortly after having being taken over by the Imperial Iranian Air Force. 
  After the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran, carried out on 25th August 1941, the nine remaining Hawk 75s were sent to India, where they were used in training units.

Sources:
1st  AJ-Press - Monografie Lotnicze 61 - Curtiss P-36 Hawk Part 1 (translated)
2nd https://www.rafweb.org/Organsation/OTU_1.htm
3rd https://kw.jonkerweb.net/index.php/en/aircraft-factory-lists/aircrafts-c/curtiss-hawk-75a-7-uk?showall=1
4th https://www.iiaf.net/history/iiaf.html