Wings Over The Pacific

de havilland D.H. 100 Vampire

First flying on September 20th 1943, the de Havilland D.H. 100 Vampire was designed   a very short time after the Mosquito began flying in 1941. Like the Mossie, the Vampire used a balsa cored plywood construction for the main fuselage nacelle. The wing was of all metal construction. The engine exhaust was short to reduce the power loss from the newly developed turbojet, necessitating the twin boom type of tail assembly.

The first production Vampire made it's maiden flight on April 20, 1945. Joining the RAF squadrons in 1946, the "Vamp" was first flown with RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force) squadrons  on January 17, 1948. The 86 jet fighters  quickly became favorites with Canadian pilots. The Vampire's life with the RCAF ended in 1958.

Specifications; Engine; (one) de Havilland "Goblin" D.Gn. 3 turbojet 14.9 kN. (3,350 lbs. st), Wing Span; 11.58 m. (38' 0"), Length; 9.37 m. (30' 9"), Maximum take off weight; 5,620 kg. (12,390 lbs.), Maximum level speed; 869 km/h. (540 mph.), Range; 1,963 km. (1,220 miles), Armament; (four) 2 mm. cannons, up to 907 kg (2,000 lbs.) iron bombs fixed to underwing hard-points.

Wings Over The Pacific was updated December 22, 1998