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Hawker Tempest Mk. V EJ600 SD-F, Sqn. Ldr. Joseph Berry, No. 501 Squadron Royal Air Force, RAF Manston, England Ca. August 1944.
On 13 June 1944, the first V-1 flying bomb struck London next to the railway bridge on Grove Road, Mile End, killing eight civilians and marked the beginning of German V-1 campaign against Britain. The V-1 flying bomb - precursor to modern day cruise missiles - was powered by simple pulse-jet engine and was capable of delivering 500 kg explosive warhead over an operational range of 250 km. These missiles were fired from launch sites along occupied France and Dutch coast, with up to a hundred V-1 launched in a day against south-east England at its peak.
The British responded to the V-1 threat by launching Operation Diver, a combined defensive effort by anti-aircraft guns, barrage balloon, and high-speed fighters of the RAF Fighter Command. "Diver" being codename used by the Observer Corps to identify enemy flying bombs.
At the time, few aircrafts in RAF strength were capable of matching the V-1's performance. Among them, the excellent low-altitude performance of the Hawker Tempest made it suitable for intercepting the unmanned missiles. Less than 30 Tempest were initially available at the beginning of the campaign, though gradually building up to over 100 aircrafts by September 1944 and joined by specially tuned Mustangs and Griffon Spitfires, as well as de Havilland Mosquitos.
Between June and mid-August 1944, the small number of Tempests shot down 638 flying bombs. One Tempest pilot, Squadron Leader Joseph Berry of 501 Squadron, destroyed 59 V-1s and became the top-scoring V-1 ace of the war.
As allied ground troop advanced through France, more and more V-1 launch site were overran and by September the campaign against London were effectively over. In October, the focus of the campaign now shifted to Belgian cities of Antwerp and Brussels with missile fired from remaining launch sites in the Netherlands. Few air launched V-1 carried by Heinkel He-111 mothership still struck British soil, and the last enemy action of any kind on British soil in the war occurred on 29 March 1945, when a V-1 struck an empty field near Datchworth in Hertfordshire.
On 13 June 1944, the first V-1 flying bomb struck London next to the railway bridge on Grove Road, Mile End, killing eight civilians and marked the beginning of German V-1 campaign against Britain. The V-1 flying bomb - precursor to modern day cruise missiles - was powered by simple pulse-jet engine and was capable of delivering 500 kg explosive warhead over an operational range of 250 km. These missiles were fired from launch sites along occupied France and Dutch coast, with up to a hundred V-1 launched in a day against south-east England at its peak.
The British responded to the V-1 threat by launching Operation Diver, a combined defensive effort by anti-aircraft guns, barrage balloon, and high-speed fighters of the RAF Fighter Command. "Diver" being codename used by the Observer Corps to identify enemy flying bombs.
At the time, few aircrafts in RAF strength were capable of matching the V-1's performance. Among them, the excellent low-altitude performance of the Hawker Tempest made it suitable for intercepting the unmanned missiles. Less than 30 Tempest were initially available at the beginning of the campaign, though gradually building up to over 100 aircrafts by September 1944 and joined by specially tuned Mustangs and Griffon Spitfires, as well as de Havilland Mosquitos.
Between June and mid-August 1944, the small number of Tempests shot down 638 flying bombs. One Tempest pilot, Squadron Leader Joseph Berry of 501 Squadron, destroyed 59 V-1s and became the top-scoring V-1 ace of the war.
As allied ground troop advanced through France, more and more V-1 launch site were overran and by September the campaign against London were effectively over. In October, the focus of the campaign now shifted to Belgian cities of Antwerp and Brussels with missile fired from remaining launch sites in the Netherlands. Few air launched V-1 carried by Heinkel He-111 mothership still struck British soil, and the last enemy action of any kind on British soil in the war occurred on 29 March 1945, when a V-1 struck an empty field near Datchworth in Hertfordshire.
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1983 x 1034px
File Size 550.9 kB
Superb rendering.
There's some breathtaking gun camera footage of V-1s being shot down with machinegun fire. Their warheads were massive, and the pursuing fighter was in danger of being destroyed by the resulting explosion. (There's a memorable sequence of just such an event).
Apparently the interceptors found that they could knock the V-1 out of the sky by flying close to it and using the airflow of their aircraft's wing to destabilize the flying bomb. The V-1's gyro-stabilization was unable to compensate, and the weapon tumbled out of the sky. Safe to say this maneuver happened over open countryside, and not the city! :D
Well done, sir!
There's some breathtaking gun camera footage of V-1s being shot down with machinegun fire. Their warheads were massive, and the pursuing fighter was in danger of being destroyed by the resulting explosion. (There's a memorable sequence of just such an event).
Apparently the interceptors found that they could knock the V-1 out of the sky by flying close to it and using the airflow of their aircraft's wing to destabilize the flying bomb. The V-1's gyro-stabilization was unable to compensate, and the weapon tumbled out of the sky. Safe to say this maneuver happened over open countryside, and not the city! :D
Well done, sir!
I remember seeing an archival photo that looked similar to this art, but instead of a "Tempest" it showed a Spitfire MK III, and the photo was taken from the rear. So, the question is: did the Spitfires participate in shooting down these missiles? Additionally, as far as I know, the V-2 is much more dangerous than the V-1, as it was planned to destroy all of London, but the plans were disrupted. And by the way, why are the "Tempest" and "Typhoon" so similar to each other? Is one better than the other? Is it all because of one company, or is it something else?
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