de Havilland Vampire

British jet fighter plane De Havilland Vampire DH 100.
History, development, service, specifications, pictures and 3D model.

De Havilland Vampire of the historical squadron of the RAF
De Havilland Vampire (back) of the historical squadron of the RAF and the last machine of this type which is able to fly, together with a Gloster Meteor (front).

De Havilland Vampire DH 100
Type: British jet fighter planes.

History:

The de Havilland Vampire was the first true design for a British jet fighter plane. That demanded a completely new classification of the individual assemblies to each other.

Frank Halford had designed a jet engine, called H 1 and later Goblin, with a thrust of about 2,530 lb (ca. 1,148 kg). The aircraft designers found this sufficient for a small fighter with one engine. They constructed a short torso, where the pressure cabins was in front of the engine. The tail was carried by two thin legs and the horizontal stabilizer was above the exhaust jet.

The prototype was the first Allied aircraft which reached 500 mph (ca. 805 km/h), but the first production aircraft didn’t reach the squadrons during WW2. Because the De Havilland company had no free capacities, these were built by English Electric.


 

This first jet fighters were replaced by the F 3, with a typical DH-tail, lowered horizontal tail and more fuel capacity. The FB 5 had straight winged ends with wing rackets, and the FB 6 was an export model which was built in Switzerland.
There were a huge range of export models, such as the Australian FB 30 with Nene engine and air entrance on the body, or the French Mistral SNCASE with Hispano Nene engine and enlarged air entrances at the wing roots.

The final version of the RAF was the tropicalized FB 9. Also, a Sea Vampire F 20 was built in small numbers.
The total production figure, including all variants, amounted to 4,206 – more than any other British post-war aircraft.


Animated 3D model de Havilland Vampire, Swiss Air Force


Specifications de Havilland DH 100 Vampire F1

Specifications:

DH 100 Vampire F1 Specification
TypeBritish jet fighter planes
Power plant 1 x 3,124 lb (1,420 kg) thrust de Havilland Goblin turbojet engine
Accommodation1
Wing span40 ft (12.19 m)
Length overall30 ft 8.9 in (9.37 m)
Height overall8 ft 10.3 in (2.70 m)
Weight empty 6,380 lb (2,890 kg)
Weight loaded 8,587 lb (3,890 kg)
Maximum speed 540 mph (869 km/hr)
Initial climb 4,200 ft / min. (1,280 m/min)
Service ceiling 41,000 ft (12,500 m)
Range 730 miles (1,175 km)

Armament:

DH 100 Vampire F1 Specification
in front 4 x 20 mm Hispano (150 rounds per gun)
under wing racks 2 x 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs or 8 x 60 lb (27 kg) rockets (for fighter-bomber F6)

Service statistics:

DH 100 Vampire F1figures
First flight20 September 1943
Production start20 April 1945
Service deliveryDecember 1945
Final delivery from British productionDecember 1953
Total production figure (all) 4,206



References and literature

Combat Aircraft of World War II (Bill Gunston)
Technik und Einsatz der Kampfflugzeuge vom 1. Weltkrieg bis heute (Ian Parsons)
Das große Buch der Luftkämpfe (Ian Parsons)
Luftkrieg (Piekalkiewicz)
The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force (James J. Halley)
Düsen-Kampfflugzeuge (David A. Anderton, John Batchelor)
Militärflugzeuge der Gegenwart aus aller Welt (Buch und Zeit Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Köln)
Technik und Einsatz der Kampfflugzeuge vom 1. Weltkrieg bis heute (Ian Parsons)


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