D.H.103 Hornet
The de Havilland Hornet Mk 1 (F.1)
Type	land and naval fighter aircraft
Manufacturer	de Havilland
Maiden flight	1944
Retired	1956
Primary users	Royal Air Force (209) Fleet Air Arm (174)
Number built	383
Developed from	de Havilland Mosquito

The de Havilland Hornet was a development of de Havilland's classic Mosquito designed as private venture for a long-range fighter for use in the Pacific Theater in the war against Japan. Specification F.12/43 was written around the type. The Hornet equipped Fighter Command day fighter units in the UK and later was used with success as a strike fighter in Malaya. ImageMetadata File history File links DH_Hornet_Mk_1_PX275. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing, building, testing, selling, and maintaining aircraft, aircraft parts, missiles, rockets, and/or spacecraft. ... Until 1920, Geoffrey de Havillands de Havilland Aircraft Company had been known as Airco, where he was owner and chief designer. ... The Maiden flight of an aircraft is the first occasion on which an aircraft leaves the ground of its own accord. ... This is a list of aviation-related events from 1944: Events January January 11 - in one of the largest air raids to date, 570 USAAF bombers strike Brunswick, Halberstadt, and Oschersleben. ... The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Fleet Air Arm is the operational group of the Royal Navy responsible for the operation of the aircraft on board their ships. ... The de Havilland Mosquito (The Wooden Wonder, also known as The Timber Terror) was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. ... Until 1920, Geoffrey de Havillands de Havilland Aircraft Company had been known as Airco, where he was owner and chief designer. ... The de Havilland Mosquito (The Wooden Wonder, also known as The Timber Terror) was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. ... A map of the Pacific Theatre. ... This is a partial list of the British Air Ministry specifications for aircraft. ... Fighter Command was one of three functional commands that dominated the public perception of the RAF for much of the mid-20th century. ... Map of Peninsular Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia (Malay: Semenanjung Malaysia) is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north. ...

The Hornet, D.H.103 in the company's internal numbering scheme, first flew in 1944 and remained in service until 1956. Powered by twin "slimline" Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, it was the fastest piston-engined fighter in Royal Air Force service. The Hornet has the distinction of being the fastest wooden aircraft ever built and the second fastest operational twin propeller-driven aircraft — being slightly slower than the unconventional German Dornier Do 335 of 1945. This is a list of aviation-related events from 1944: Events January January 11 - in one of the largest air raids to date, 570 USAAF bombers strike Brunswick, Halberstadt, and Oschersleben. ... Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Merlin was a 12 cylinder, 60° V, 27 litre, liquid cooled piston aircraft engine built during World War II by Rolls-Royce and under licence in the United States by Packard. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Dornier Do 335 Pfeil (Arrow) was a World War II heavy fighter built by the Dornier company. ...

The Hornet was somewhat unusual in that it had propellers that rotated in opposite directions. To achieve this the engines were slightly different, hence the double Merlin marks of 130/131. This feature effectively cancels the variable and cumulative torque effect of two propellers turning in the same direction that had plagued earlier designs such as the de Havilland Mosquito, in turn reducing the amount of adverse yaw caused by aileron trim corrections and generally providing more stable and predictable behaviour in flight. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The de Havilland Mosquito (The Wooden Wonder, also known as The Timber Terror) was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. ... Adverse yaw (or aileron drag) is a secondary effect of the application of the ailerons in aircraft. ... For the band with a similar name, see The Ailerons Ailerons are hinged control surfaces attached to the trailing edge of the wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. ...

The prototype achieved 780 km/h (485 mph) in level flight, which came down to 760 km/h (472 mph) in production aircraft.

Service

The Hornet entered service in 1946, mainly in the Far East, including action in Malaya during the Malayan Emergency. Map of Peninsular Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia (Malay: Semenanjung Malaysia) is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north. ... The Malayan Emergency was an insurrection and guerrilla war of the Malay Races Liberation Army against the British and Malayan administration from 1948-1960 in what is now Malaysia. ...

Variants

• Hornet F.1: Fighter

60 built

• Hornet PR.2: Photo-reconnaissance

5 built

• Hornet F.3: Fighter

132 built

• Hornet FR.4: Fighter-reconnaissance

12 built

• Sea Hornet F.20: A navalised version for service on British aircraft carriers

79 built

• Sea Hornet NF.21: FAA night fighter, with Merlin 133/134 engines

72 built

• Sea Hornet PR.22: Photo-reconnaissance

23 built

The Fleet Air Arm is the operational group of the Royal Navy responsible for the operation of the aircraft on board their ships. ...

Operators

• United Kingdom
  • Royal Air Force.
  • Royal Navy, Fleet Air Arm.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... The Fleet Air Arm is the operational group of the Royal Navy responsible for the operation of the aircraft on board their ships. ...

Units using the Hornet

• No. 19 Squadron RAF
• No. 33 squadron RAF
• No. 41 Squadron RAF
• No. 45 Squadron RAF
• No. 64 Squadron RAF
• No. 65 Squadron RAF
• No. 80 Squadron RAF

No. ... No. ... 45 Squadron - Royal Air Force. ...

Specifications (Hornet F.3)

General characteristics ^[1]

• Crew: one pilot
• Wingspan: 45 ft 0 in (13.72 m)
• Length: 36 ft 8 in (11.18 m)
• Height: 14 ft 2 in (4.3 m)
• Wing area: 361 ft² (33.54 m²)
• Empty weight: lb (kg)
• Gross weight: 19,550 lb (8,886 kg)
• Powerplant: 2x Rolls-Royce Merlin 130/131 12-cylinder engines, 2,080 hp (1551 kW) each

The Merlin was a 12 cylinder, 60° V, 27 litre, liquid cooled piston aircraft engine built during World War II by Rolls-Royce and under licence in the United States by Packard. ...

Performance

• Maximum speed: 472 mph (760 km/h) at 22,000 ft (6706 m)
• Rate of climb: 4000 ft/min (20.3 m/s)
• Service ceiling: 35,000 ft (10668 m)
• Maximum range: 3,000 mi (4828 km)

Armament

• 4x 20 mm Hispano cannon (with 190 rounds per gun) in fuselage nose
• 2x 1000 lb (454 kg) bombs under wing, outboard of engines
• 8x 60 lb (27 kg) RP-3 unguided rockets

The Hispano Suiza 20 mm cannon was one of the most widely used aircraft weapons of the 20th century, used by British, American, French, and many other military services. ... The RP-3 (for Rocket Projectile 3), was a British air to ground rocket used in the Second World War. ...

Notes

1. ^ Jane, Fred T. “The D.H. 103 Hornet.” Jane’s Fighting Aircraft of World War II. London: Studio, 1946. p. 114. ISBN 1 85170 493 0.

References

1. Aeroplane Monthly June 2005, pg 68

1. The de Havilland Hornet Project website, see link below.

External links

• Hornet and Sea Hornet

• de Havilland Hornet Project

Related content

Related development

• de Havilland Mosquito

Comparable aircraft

• Grumman F7F Tigercat
• Lockheed P-38 Lightning
• Westland Welkin

Designation sequence

DH.95 - DH.98 - DH.100 - DH.103 - DH.104 - DH.106 - DH.110 The de Havilland Mosquito (The Wooden Wonder, also known as The Timber Terror) was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. ... The Grumman F7F Tigercat was the first twin-engined fighter aircraft design to enter service with the United States Navy. ... P-38 may also refer to the P-38, an army-issue can opener, or to the Walther P38 handgun The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was one of the most important American fighters of the Second World War. ... The Welkin was a twin-engine heavy fighter from the Westland Aircraft company, designed to fight at extremely high altitudes in the stratosphere. ... The de Havilland DH.95 Flamingo was a high-wing monoplane passenger airliner of the World War II period, also used by the RAF as a troop-carrier and for general communications duties. ... The de Havilland Mosquito (The Wooden Wonder, also known as The Timber Terror) was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. ... The de Havilland Vampire, or DH.100, was the second jet-engined aircraft commissioned into the Royal Air Force during World War II (the first being the Gloster Meteor), although it did not see combat in that conflict. ... de Havilland Dove The de Havilland DH.104 Dove was a British monoplane short-haul airliner from de Havilland, the successor to the bi-plane de Havilland Dragon Rapide and was one of Britains most successful post-war civil designs. ... The de Havilland Comet of Britain was the worlds first commercial jet airliner. ... The correct title of this article is de Havilland Sea Vixen. ...