page_title: Handley Page Victor
section_title: Variants
hierarchical_section_title: Handley Page Victor / Variants
caption_attribution_description: orthographic outline of w:Handley Page Victor K Mark 2
context_page_description: The Handley Page Victor is a British jet-powered strategic bomber, developed and produced by Handley Page, which served during the Cold War. It was the third and final V bomber to be operated by the Royal Air Force, the other two being the Avro Vulcan and the Vickers Valiant. The Victor had been developed as part of the United Kingdom's airborne nuclear deterrent. In 1968, it was retired from the nuclear mission following the discovery of fatigue cracks, which had been exacerbated by the RAF's adoption of a low-altitude flight profile to avoid interception.
  A number of Victors were modified for strategic reconnaissance, using a combination of radar, cameras, and other sensors. As the nuclear deterrence mission was given to the Royal Navy's submarine-launched Polaris missiles in 1969, a large V-bomber fleet could not be justified. Consequently, many of the surviving Victors were converted into aerial refuelling tankers. During the Falklands War, Victor tankers were used in the airborne logistics operation to repeatedly refuel Vulcan bombers on their way to and from the Black Buck raids.
context_section_description: HP.80
  Prototype, two aircraft built.
  Victor B.1
  Strategic bomber aircraft, 50 built.
  Victor B.1A
  Strategic bomber aircraft, B.1 updated with Red Steer tail warning radar and ECM suite, 24 converted.
  Victor B.1A (K.2P)
  2-point in-flight refuelling tanker retaining bomber capability, six converted.
  Victor BK.1
  3-point in-flight refuelling tanker (renamed K.1 after bombing capability removed), 11 converted.
  Victor BK.1A
  3-point in-flight refuelling tanker (renamed K.1A as for K.1), 14 converted.
  Victor B.2
  Strategic bomber aircraft, 34 built.
  Victor B.2RS
  Blue Steel-capable aircraft with RCo.17 Conway 201 engines, 21 converted.
  Victor B(SR).2
  Strategic reconnaissance aircraft, nine converted.
  Victor K.2
  In-flight refuelling tanker. 24 converted from B.2 and B(SR).2.
  HP.96
  Proposed military transport of 1950 with new fuselage carrying 85 troops. Unbuilt.
  HP.97
  1950 civil airliner project. Not built.
  HP.98
  Proposed pathfinder version with remotely operated tail guns and powered by Conway engines. Rejected in favour of Valiant B.2.
  HP.101
  Proposed military transport version of HP.97. Not built.
  HP.104
  Proposed "Phase 3" bomber of 1955 powered by Bristol Olympus or Sapphire engines. Not built.
  HP.111
  1958 project for military or civil transport, powered by four Conway engines. Capacity for 200 troops in military version or 145 passengers in airliner in a double-decker fuselage.
  HP.114
  Proposed "Phase 6" bomber designed for standing patrols carrying two or four GAM-87 Skybolt ballistic missiles.
  HP.123
  Proposed military tactical transport based on HP.111 and fitted with blown flaps. Rejected in favour of Armstrong Whitworth AW.681.
caption: Ventral plan of a Victor K.2
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