List of jet aircraft of World War II

Right side view of aMesserschmitt 262 jet fighter captured by the United States Army Air Forces on the ground.
A captured Messerschmitt Me 262, the most numerous jet fighter of World War II

World War II was the first war in which jet aircraft participated in combat with examples being used on both sides of the conflict during the latter stages of the war. The first successful jet aircraft, the Heinkel He 178, flew only five days before the start of the war, on 1 September 1939.[1] By the end of the conflict on 2 September 1945[2] Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States had all used turbojet-powered fighter aircraft operationally while Japan had produced, but not used, motorjet-powered kamikaze aircraft, and had tested and ordered into production conventional jets. Italy and the Soviet Union had both tested motorjet aircraft which had turbines powered by piston engines and the latter had also equipped several types of conventional piston-powered fighter aircraft with auxiliary ramjet engines for testing purposes. Germany was the only country to use jet-powered bombers operationally during the war.[3]

This list includes only aircraft powered by turbine engines, either on their own or as part of mixed-power arrangements. The table is separated into sections for types that saw service during the conflict, types that flew before the end of the war but either did not enter service until after its conclusion or were never operationally used in the conflict, and types used only for testing. Rocket-powered aircraft are not included, nor are aircraft that only flew following the end of the war.[N 1] Aircraft which were designed but not constructed are also excluded. Production figures for aircraft used postwar include examples built after the war ended, of the same versions already flying during the war.

Aircraft

Aircraft Origin First flight Entered service Number built Notes
These types saw operational combat service at least once during the war.
Arado Ar 234GermanyJune 1943August 1944250+First operational jet-powered bomber; used primarily in the aerial reconnaissance role. Twin-engined, high-wing; four-engined variants trialled but not produced; night-fighter version tested operationally but achieved no kills.[5][6]
Gloster Meteor F.1 & F.3UKMarch 1943July 1944250First operational Allied jet fighter; twin-engined, low-wing; developed versions remained in service until the 1980s. First jet to shoot down another jet aircraft (a V-1 flying bomb).[7]
Heinkel He 162GermanyDecember 1944February 1945238+Inexpensive interceptor (Volksjaeger) intended for mass production and use by semi-trained pilots. Single-engined, high-winged; only saw extremely limited operational service before the end of the war.[8]
Lockheed P-80 Shooting StarUSJanuary 1944January 1945361First operational American jet fighter. Single-engined, low-winged; four deployed to Europe before the end of the war, two seeing limited service in the reconnaissance role in Italy, but no actual combat.[9]
Messerschmitt Me 262GermanyJuly 1942June 19441,433First operational jet fighter. Twin-engined, low-winged; served in both fighter and fighter-bomber roles, with night-fighter, bomber, and reconnaissance versions among many variants trialled. Continued in production post-war in Czechoslovakia as Avia S-92.[10]
These types entered full production and were accepted for service, but did not reach combat operations.
Bell P-59 AiracometUSOctober 1942September 194466First USAAF jet to fly; used for training purposes only.[11]
Fieseler Fi 103R ReichenbergGermanySeptember 1944October 1944300Manned variant of V-1 flying bomb ready for operations late 1944, not used.[12]
McDonnell TD2D KatydidUS19421942UnknownUS Navy pulsejet-powered target drone.[13]
Ryan FR FireballUSJune 1944March 194566US Navy mixed power fighter, never saw combat.[14]
Yokosuka MXY7 Model 22JapanJune 1945-50Motorjet-powered version of "Ohka" Suicide Attacker; not used operationally.[15]
These types flew before the end of the war and were ordered into full production, but did not reach service before the conflict ended.
de Havilland Vampire F.1UKSeptember 1943March 1946244Only 12 produced before VE Day; no combat service.[16]
McDonnell FD PhantomUSJanuary 1945July 194762Postwar production, designation changed April 1946 to FH.[17][18]
Nakajima KikkaJapanAugust 1945-1[N 2]Jet ground-attack/kamikaze aircraft, inspired by Me 262.[20]
NAMU TD2NUSJune 1945-9Target drone based on Gorgon III missile.[21]
These types flew during the war, but never entered production for operational service, being used solely as testbeds.
Bell XP-83USFebruary 1945-2Cancelled long-range escort fighter.[22]
Caproni Campini N.1ItalyAugust 1940-2First motorjet.[23]
Consolidated Vultee XP-81USFebruary 1945-2Cancelled mixed-power fighter.[24]
Curtiss XF15CUSFebruary 1945-3Cancelled mixed-power fighter.[25]
Douglas XBTD-2 DestroyerUSMay 1944-2Cancelled mixed-power torpedo bomber[26][27]
Gloster E.28/39UKApril 1941-2Engine testbed and first Allied jet to fly.[28]
Heinkel He 178GermanyAugust 1939-2First jet aircraft to fly[29]
Heinkel He 280GermanySeptember 1940-9First jet fighter to fly, cancelled.[1]
Horten Ho 229GermanyDecember 1944-3Fighter/bomber, first jet powered flying wing.[30]
Junkers Ju 287GermanyAugust 1944-1Testbed for multi-engine bomber design.[31]
Messerschmitt Me 328Germany1944 (early)-9Cancelled pulsejet fighter/bomber.[32]
Mikoyan-Gurevich I-250USSRMarch 1945-28Mixed-power motorjet fighter.[33]
Polikarpov I-153DMUSSRSeptember 1940-1Experimental mixed power ramjet fighter biplane.[34]
Sukhoi Su-5USSRApril 1945-1Cancelled mixed power motorjet fighter.[35]
Yakovlev Yak-7PVRDUSSR1944 (late)-2Mixed power ramjet fighter.[36]


See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ For instance, the first French jet aircraft, the Sud-Ouest Triton, was clandestinely designed during the German occupation of France, but was not constructed and flown until after the end of the war.[4]
  2. ↑ 23 additional Kikkas were near completion when the end of the war ended production.[19]

Citations

  1. 1 2 Bishop, 2002, p.321
  2. ↑ James, 1995, p.188
  3. ↑ Zabecki, 1999, p.868
  4. ↑ Caygill, 2006, p.136
  5. ↑ Smith, 1984, pp.2, 8 & frontispiece
  6. ↑ Nohara, 1996, p.72
  7. ↑ Butler, 2006, pp.15, 23, 26, 48 & 105
  8. ↑ Smith, 1986, pp.6, 12 & frontispiece
  9. ↑ Francillon, 1987, pp.235–243
  10. ↑ Baker, 1997, pp.7, 8, 31, 77, 111 & 128
  11. ↑ Pelletier, 1992, pp.50–54
  12. ↑ Myhra, 2007, pp.3, 6
  13. ↑ Yenne 2006, p.25
  14. ↑ Ginter, 1995, p.3 & 45
  15. ↑ Nijboer, 2015, p.169
  16. ↑ Harrison, 2000, pp.2, 8 & 14
  17. ↑ Ginter, 1981, pp.2 & 19
  18. ↑ Francillon, 1990, pp.65–67
  19. ↑ Lee, 2016
  20. ↑ Mikesh, 1979, pp.1 & 31
  21. ↑ Leyes, 1999, p.42
  22. ↑ Pelletier, 1992, pp.61–62
  23. ↑ Smith, 1941, p.c
  24. ↑ Ginter, 2007, pp.22–23.
  25. ↑ Green, 1994, p.143-144
  26. ↑ Kowalski, 1995, pp.42–43
  27. ↑ Francillon, 1979, pp.356–360
  28. ↑ Kershaw, 2004, pp.38, 54
  29. ↑ Koehler, 1999, p.173
  30. ↑ Daprowski, 1991, pp.5
  31. ↑ Hitchcock, 1974
  32. ↑ Ford, 2013, p. 224
  33. ↑ Gunston, 1999, pp.40–43
  34. ↑ Gunston, 2000, p.301
  35. ↑ Antonov, 1996, pp.68–69
  36. ↑ Gordon, 1992, p.35

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