WarSimBox
de Havilland Vampire FB.5, the in-game model
1949United KingdomFighter

de Havilland Vampire FB.5

The de Havilland Vampire was Britain’s second jet fighter: single-engined, twin-boomed and small. Its short exhaust pipe let the engine use its power with little loss. In December 1945 it became the first jet aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier, and it served in more than 30 countries.

Short exhaust, twin booms

Early jet engines were weak, and a long exhaust pipe ate up part of their power. In the Vampire the engine sat in the short nacelle behind the pilot and exhausted straight back between the two tail booms. The nacelle was built of plywood and balsa, like the Mosquito.

de Havilland Vampire FB.5, side view
de Havilland Vampire FB.5: the in-game model from the side.

Firsts

On 3 December 1945 test pilot Eric “Winkle” Brown landed a Sea Vampire on the carrier HMS Ocean, the first jet aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier. In 1948 RAF Vampires became the first jets to fly across the Atlantic. The Vampire was the first jet fighter of many air forces; Switzerland flew it until 1990.

In WarSimBox

In the game it is a jet fighter in the light line: small and very agile, with four 20 mm cannon in the nose. Its straight wing reaches its Mach limit early at high speed, so its speed needs watching in a dive.

Unlocked in the aircraft tree after researching Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX and Centrifugal-flow turbojet.

Top speed
861 km/h · 2,000 m
Climb
27.5 m/s
Sustained turn
19.2 s
Stall speed
165 km/h

These figures come from the game’s flight model (climb, turn and stall at sea level).

Fly it in WarSimBox