Best Jet of WW2?

[bronzewhaler82]

There were a suprising number of Jet aircraft developed during WW2, question is...which was the best?

 

[GermansRGeniuses]

The Schwalbe of course. 8) and the Ohka aint a jet its rocket propelled like the ME163 and it isnt reusable lol but for the matter they were developing a turbojet powered version which was never used (too late for service) which in my opinion would be a huge waste of engines but for the Jap jets you could say the Kikka or mandarin orange blossom which was a lightly modifed me262 with straight wings diff guns less armor and a wee bit more speed but it only became operational in the last week of the war so we can pretty much count out the japs in the jet department

 

[cheddar cheese]

i know the 262 will probably walk away with this, so ill be different and go for the arado 8)

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

the Ohka aint a jet its rocket propelled like the ME163

yeah, i don't hink them two should be there
and the metoer, while not the best, is my favourite

 

[kiwimac]

There was also the Heinkel 280 which first flew in 1941.

Origin: Ernest Heinkel
Type: Single-seat fighter
Engines: two 1,852lb (840kg) thrust Junkers Jumo 004A turbojets
Dimensions: Span 12m; Length 10.20m; Height 3.19m
Weights: Empty 7,386lb (3350kg); loaded 11,465lb (5200kg)
Performance: Maximum speed 508mph (817km/h); Range 382 Miles (615km)

This interesting fighter often goes unnoticed in the annals of flight, eclipsed by its more successful and glamorous brother the Me 262. The He 280 is however, a remarkable aircraft. It was the first jet combat aircraft, the first twin-jet aircraft and the first jet aircraft to go beyond prototype stage. The He 280 first flew under jet power on April 2, 1941 and eventually eight of these beautiful aircraft were built, but, even after a mock dogfight was arranged between the He 280 and a Fw 190, which the jet won easily, there was little interest in the jet. If the He 280 had ever reached combat, it was most likely to have been armed with three 20mm MG 151 cannons.

Source: http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/LRG/he280.html

Kiwimac

 

[cheddar cheese]

wow, that looks and sounds pretty cool 8) you would think it'd be more widely recognised with a history like that

 

[nutter]

262 for me
did the Yokosuka Ohka ever fly in ww2?

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

very few sucessfull flights, the problem was that their launch ships were often shot down before their launch

 

[bronzewhaler82]

I will admit ignorance on my part about the Jap Ohka 'jet' and it shouldn't really be on there BUT the Me163 was undoubably a jet fighter and it DID have some sucess so i still think that one should be up there

 

[Archer]

No, the Me163 was definately rocket propelled and not jet propelled.

 

[GermansRGeniuses]

about the me163... it was an interceptor not a fighter and like u said archer its completly rocket powered and he280 never entered service so thats y it isnt well known

 

[Hot Space]

The Arado Ar 234 8) 8)

Hot Space

 

[GermansRGeniuses]

yes that was a good one but i prefer schwalbe and not just cuz that wins by majority but because its very nice looking and goes very fast has four BIG ASS guns and twelve or twenty-four rockets and still kills stangs and b17s

 

[kiwimac]

Hey I like the HE 280. It was a better dogfighter than the 262 and potentially was available much earlier. God alone only knows why the Reich Air Ministry didn't want it.

Kiwimac

 

[nutter]

the me163 only got about 7 kills in ww2 compared to loads by the 262

 

[cheddar cheese]

woo im not alone on the arado 8)

 

[bronzewhaler82]

You're just a fan of bombers really aren't you? When i first got into aircraft when i was about 8 or 9 years old my dad bought me a book about the Vickers Wellington (i was too young to appreciate any of the info on it but i loved the pictures) I was totally hooked after that - but i still have a big soft spot for good ol' 'Wimpy'

 

[Anonymous]

I'm glad to see the American Aircomet only got one vote - it was a crap! and i DO know that I just put it there to keep the Americans sweet (we brits are good at that cos our prime minister is a coward )

 

[bronzewhaler82]

I'm glad to see the American Aircomet only got one vote - it was a crap! and i DO know that I just put it there to keep the Americans sweet (we brits are good at that cos our prime minister is a coward )

That was me by the way, i forgot to log on (Doh! )

 

[kiwimac]

I note also the Campini-Caproni

500 km/h is already passé; in a few years, it will be common to all planes. We are so sure of it that we are looking even further? (Italo Balbo, 1931).

This declaration perfectly recaps the spirit which brought about, a few years later, the first Italian jet. Since 1931, Secondo Campini, an aeronautical engineer, had shown to the Ministry of Aeronautics his studies of a new kind of engine, which promised higher speed and greater elevation. In brief, the schema proposed called for the dynamic collection and compression of air, which, subsequently, would be further compressed by a mechanical device, heated and then expanded through a jet to generate thrust.

In February 1934, the "Regia Aeronautica" stipulated a contract with Campini for the realization of two jet airplanes. For the construction of his machines, Campini contacted the firm "Aeroplani Caproni" of Taliedo, whose owner had been a believer in this new kind of propulsion since the beginning. The production of the first two prototypes began immediately, but was delayed mostly due to the unavailability of the aeronautical engines used to propel the compressor, and by increasing costs. The first prototype was not completed until 1940.

These delays caused the German Henkel He.178V1 to become, on August 27, 1939, the first jet plane in the history of aeronautics. Campini-Caprini prototype number one called for a propulsion system capable of dynamically collecting and compressing air via the movement of the airplane itself. Subsequently, air was further compressed using a three-stage axial compressor mechanically operated by an internal combustion engine (Alfa Romeo Asso L.121 RC40 900Hps). Upon exiting the compressor, air was heated by external burners and then allowed to expand through a Bernoulli jet. This device was adjustable by means of a "never-ending screw" of the Pelton type; the total thrust was about 750 Kg.

In reality, this propulsion system was still quite rudimental because the air was heated by a series of burners placed outside the jet. For better performance, these burners should have been placed inside the combustion chamber, thus allowing the air-gasoline mix to burn internally and not externally. Another substantial limitation was the fact that an auxiliary combustion engine actuated the three-stage compressor, and not, as usually found in similar engines, by a turbine directly connected and actuated by the exhaust gases. Naturally, this second choice would have caused substantial difficulties in terms of the proper material to be used by the turbine itself due to the extreme heat.

The prototype which flew for the first time on August 27, 1940 was an elegant monoplane with two seats wholly constructed of metal with a low wing of elliptical shape. After a series of tests and demonstration flights, the first prototype was transferred in November 1941 from Milan to the "Centro Sperimentale" in Guidonia, near Rome.

Test flights continued until 1942 when the plane was abandoned and later mined by the retreating Germans. The relic was examined by the British, sent to England and later scrapped. The second prototype, which left the assembly line in 1941 and had flown only once, survived the war and is currently preserved in excellent condition at the "Museo Storico dell?Aeronautica" in Vigna di Valle, just north of Rome.

The Campini-Caproni jet plane was an aircraft of modest performance because of its excessive weight and the propulsion solution chosen. It never passed the prototypical stage but still represents a testimonial to a fascinating but unlucky technological gamble.

Technical Data

Type Macchi Mc.200

Engine Alfa Romeo Asso L.121 RC40

Total HP hp 900

Wing span m 14.32

Length m 12.88

Height m 4.70

Wing area m2 36.52

Weight kg 3,460

Max weight kg 4,409

Max speed km/h 329 @ 3000 m without burners
km/h 375 @ 3000 m with burners

Range km. 3,520

Armament none

Crew 2

Total build 2 (C.C. n°1 e n°2) + test shell

Source: http://www.regiamarina.net/arsenals/planes_it/jet/jet_us.htm

Kiwimac