De Havilland DH.100 Vampire FB Mk.5

From The Air Combat Wiki

Contents 1 Quick Link 2 Fighter Ace Screenshots 3 Fighter Ace Ratings 4 Fighter Ace Performance 5 Historical Statistics 6 Strengths 7 Weaknesses 8 History 9 Sources 10 See Also 11 Quick Link

Quick Link

• Fighter Ace Flight Museum: WWII US / GB / SU / GE / JP / Jets and Post WWII // Planes Inventory (text list)
• Fighter Ace Plane Physics: Speeds / Accelerations / Climb Speeds / Star Ratings
• Fighter Ace Weapons: Guns / Rockets / Bombs / Torpedoes

Fighter Ace Screenshots

Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ
Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ

Fighter Ace Ratings

Durability: 4

Speed: 9

Maneuverability: 4

Firepower: 8

Climb Rate: 6

Ground Attack: 5

Fighter Ace Performance

Top Speeds						Climb Rates
	Sea Level	4921' 1500m	9843' 3000m	19685' 6000m	Best Speed	Best IAS	to 1000m	to 3000m	to 6000m
mph	549	571	582	579	582@ 9843'	275 mph	1:10	2:48	5:36
kph	884	919	937	931	937@ 3000m	442 kph

Historical Statistics

Service Date: June 1948

Primary Guns: 2x 20mm Hispano cannons with 150 rpg in nose

Secondary Guns: 2x 20mm Hispano cannons with 150 rpg in nose

Ordnance: 2x 500 lb (227 kg) bombs or 2x 1000 lb (454 kg) bombs or 4x 60 lb (27 kg) unguided air-to-ground rockets or 2x 240 gallon (909 l) drop tanks

Engine(s): 1x de Havilland Goblin 2/2 turbojet rated at 4400 lbs (1996 kg) thrust

Int Fuel Capacity: 3,168 lbs (1,437 kg)

Ext Fuel Capacity: 3,168 lbs (1,437 kg)

Maximum Speeds: 530 mph (853 kph) at sea level, 548 mph (882 kph) at 30,000 ft (9145 m), 482 mph (775 kph) at 40,000 ft (12,200m)

Ceiling: 44,000 ft (13,410 m)

Empty Weight: 7,253 lb (3,290 kg)

Loaded Weight: 12,390 lb (5,620 kg)

Wing Area: 262 sq ft (24.34 sq m)

Wing Loading: 47.29 lbs/sq ft (230.9 kg/sq m)

Strengths

Ground Attack: With four 20 mm cannons in the nose and the ability to carry up to 2000 lbs of bombs, the Vampire is a potent ground attack fighter.

Weaknesses

Top Speed: Although faster than piston-engined aircraft, the Vampire is slower than most contemporary jet fighters.

History

Designed to fulfill Air Ministry Specification E.6/41, the D.H.100 Vampire was the second jet fighter to be used by the RAF. Work on the Vampire began in 1941 and employed the novel twin-boom design to ensure that maximum power would be attained at the tailpipe by eliminating the power-reducing ducting employed by standard single-engine configurations. The central nacelle, which contained the cockpit and the 2700 lbst (1225 kgf) Halford designed de Havilland H-1 Goblin turbojet, was built of the same plywood-balsa-plywood sandwich construction used in the Mosquito, while the wings, booms and tail section were constructed of metal.

The first prototype flew on 20 September 1943 without any armament, but a subsequent was fitted with the definitive armament of four 20mm Hispano cannons with 150 rpg mounted under the cockpit floor in a similar configuration to that used on the Mosquito fighter-bombers. Production of the de Havilland D.H.100 F Vampire Mk.I began in March 1944 and was conducted by the English Electric Company (EEC). The first production version flew on 20 April 1945 and while the first 40 Vampire Is used the prototype Goblin I turbojet, subsequent examples used the uprated Goblin II, which produced 3100 lbs (1407 kg) thrust. Deliveries commenced in 1946 and a total of 174 were built for the RAF and 70 for the Swedish Flygvapnet, 25 of which were subsequently sold to Dominca. Additionally a single unit was delivered to the Royal Canadian Air Force and four were sent to the Swiss Air Force for evaluation. Between December 1948 and January 1950 thirty ex-RAF Vampire Is were transferred to the Armee de l'Air for training purposes before they were replaced in active service by the Ouragan.

Air Ministry Specification F.11/45 called for a more powerful fighter and so three Mk.I airframes were modified to accomodate the Rolls-Royce Nene 1 turbojet, which produced 4500 lbst (2041 kgf), almost 50% more than the Goblin 2. These prototypes were designated Vampire F Mk.II and were fitted with "elephant ear" type dorsal intakes to improve engine breathing to the Nene's double-sided impellers.

The second production version to see service was the Vampire F Mk.III, which was similar to the Mk.I, but had larger internal fuel tanks and was fitted with a pair of underwing pylons, each of which could carry 120 gal (454 l) drop tanks. It also had a slightly revised tail section, with a lower tailplane and more rounded rudders. Six Vampire F.3s were flown across the Atlantic, becoming the first RAF jet to perform the feat. EEC built 117 Vampire F.3s for the RAF and another 85 for the RCAF, 15 of which were subsequently sold to Mexico in 1961. Additionally, Norway acquired four Mk.IIIs for evaluation purposes.

The Mk.III was followed by the definitive Mk.5 fighter-bomber, which utilized a basic Mk.III airframe coupled with a strengthened and clipped wing fitted with underwing hardpoints one each side of the booms. The four hardpoints could be made to carry a total of eight 60 lb (27 kg) unguided rockets, two 500 or 1000 lb bombs, or two 240 gallon (909 l) drop tanks. The Mk.5 was powered by either the 3100 lbst (1406 kgf) Goblin 2 or the more powerful Goblin 2/2 turbojet, rated for 4400 lbst (1996 kgf). Additionally, it was fitted with longer stroke landing gear to accomodate the underwing stores, resulting in a taller profile. The first production Mk.5 flew on 23 June 1948 and a total of 888 were built for the RAF.

Several new and second-hand Vampire FB Mk.5s were diverted from RAF stocks to the RNZAF, the SAAF, Armee de l'Air, Aeronautica Militare Italiana, and the Lebanese Air Force. Purpose-built export versions of the Mk.5 were powered by the Goblin 3 rated for 3350 lbst (1520 kgf), and were designated the FB Mk.50 for Sweden and the FB Mk.52 for service in Egypt, Finland, Iraq, India, New Zealand, Norway and Venezuela. In addition to these EEC-built export Vampires, 100 FB Mk.6s were built by FFA in Switzerland and 80 FB Mk.52s were built by Macchi and Fiat in Italy. France's SNCASE firm built 120 FB Mk.51s, which included 67 assembled from imported components, and India's HAL built 281 machines, including 34 assembled from imported parts. In 1956 Sweden sold 17 of their FB Mk.50s to Dominica.

The Vampire FB Mk.9 was the last single-seat version constructed for the RAF and 381 machines were built, with the first of them entering service in 1952. These were intended for service in the Far East and Middle East and were essentially FB Mk.5s fitted with cockpit air conditioning. Several ex-RAF FB Mk.9s eventually were transferred to the air forces of Rhodesia, Jordan and Ceylon.

The Mk.IV designation was assigned to an experimental attempt to mate the Rolls-Royce Nene turbojet with the Mk.III airframe, as requested by the Australian government. This was sent to Australia and served as the prototype for the Vampire Mk.30, which was built by Australia's de Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd. The Mk.30 was powered by an Australian Rolls-Royce Nene 2-VH rated for 5000 lbst (2270 kgf) and had several other modifications to make it more suitable for Australian service. A total of 57 Mk.31s were assembled at the Bankstown plant and replaced American-built Mustangs in both RAAF and Citizen Air Force (CAF) squadrons.

The Mk.30 was soon replaced on the assembly lines by the Mk.31, which was a localized version of the FB Mk.5, of which 23 were built. These different from RAF Mk.5s in that they could carry up to two 2000 lb (907 kg) bombs, due to the more powerful engine used by the Australian Vampires. In addition to the 23 purpose-built Mk.31s, 28 Mk.30s were retroactively modified to Mk.31 standards. The Mk.32 was created in 1951 when two Mk.30s were equipped with cockpit air conditioning and ejection seats. Australian-built Vampires remained in front-line service with the RAAF until they were replaced by Sabres in 1955 and remained in service with the CAF until 1957.

Meanwhile the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm had acquired the second Vampire prototype and began deck landing trials with the HMS Ocean on 3 December 1945. Successful trials with this and with fully navalized versions of the Vampire I led to the conversion of six RAF Vampire F.3s into Sea Vampire Mk.21s. These had strengthened undersides, with the armament removed to save weight, and were used for flexible deck landing trials at RAW Farborough and aboard the HMS Warrior between 1947 and 1955. A production version of the Sea Vampire was based on the FB.5 airframe and designated Sea Vampire Mk.20, of which 30 were built. The first of these flew in October 1948 and they were used primarily in the training role to give jet experience to FAA pilots.

In 1949 de Havilland foresaw a need for a specialized jet night-fighter and privately funded development of the D.H.113 prototype based on the Vampire FB Mk.5 airframe coupled with the side-by-side cockpit of the Mosquito NF Mk.30 and 36. This was intended primarily for export and the first prototype was flown on 28 August 1949. Egypt placed an order for 15 of the new night-fighter, but their export was vetoed by the RAF, which saw the plane as a replacement for their own fleet of aging night-fighters. The new plane was designated Vampire NF Mk.10 and 95 were delivered to the RAF. After it was replaced in service by Meteor and Venom night fighters, the RAF refurbished and sold 28 of their NF.10s to the Indian Air Force and 14 to the Italian Air Force. Once the export embargo had been lifted, de Havilland was allowed to export the NF Mk.10 design as the NF Mk.54. The night-fighters' armament remained as four 20mm cannons and they were powered by the 3350 lbst (1520 kgf) de Havilland Goblin 3 turbojet.

The final major variant of the Vampire was the T.11 two-seat trainer, of which over 600 were built for domestic use and over 200 for export. Additionally, 74 were built to naval standards and designated T.22 for use by the FAA.

Over 4000 Vampires of different marks were constructed and the plane was used by the air forces of about 30 different countries. Even into the late 1970s the fighter-bomber version remained in service with in the Dominican Republic and Zimbabwe, while the trainer version still served with the Swiss Air Force, making the Vampire one the most successful and longest service jet fighters.

Sources

Angelucci, Enzo; The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft 1914 to the Present; Crescent Books, New York; 1980.

Green, William and Swanborough, Gordon; The Complete Book of Fighters; Smithmark Publishers, Inc., New York; 1994.

Taylor, Michael J.H.; Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation; Crescent Books, New York; 1993.

See Also

The de Havilland Aircraft Co., Ltd.

Aircraft Manufacturers During World War II

Quick Link

• Fighter Ace Flight Museum: WWII US / GB / SU / GE / JP / Jets and Post WWII // Planes Inventory (text list)
• Fighter Ace Plane Physics: Speeds / Accelerations / Climb Speeds / Star Ratings
• Fighter Ace Weapons: Guns / Rockets / Bombs / Torpedoes