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Heinkel He 280 | bgcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3" align="center" style="border-bottom:3px solid"|Heinkel He 280 V3 | | olspan="3" align="center"|300px | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Description | | ole | colspan="2"|Fighter | | rew | colspan="2"|One, pilot | | irst Flight | colspan="2"| | | anufacturer | colspan="2"|Heinkel | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Dimensions | | ength | 10.40 m | 34 ft 1 in | | ingspan | 12.20 m | 40 ft | | eight | 3.06 m | 10 ft | | ing area | 21.5 m | 233 ft | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Weights | | mpty | 3,215 kg | 7,073 lb | | oaded | 4,280 kg | 9,416 lb | | aximum takeoff | 4,300 kg | 6,184 lb | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Powerplant | | ngines | colspan="2"|2x Heinkel HeS.8 turbojets | | ower | 13.7 kN | 3,080 lb | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Performance | | aximum speed | 650 km/h | 405 mph | | ange | 370 km | 230 miles | | ervice ceiling | 10,000 m | 32,000 ft | | ate of climb | 1,145 m/min | 3,756 ft/min | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Armament | | uns | colspan="2"|3x 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons | The Heinkel He 280 was the first jet-powered fighter aircraft built in the world. It was inspired by Ernst Heinkel's emphasis on research into high-speed flight and built on the company's experience with its He 178 jet prototype. The He 280 never entered mass production as a combination of technical and political factors led to it being passed over in favour of the Messerschmitt Me 262. Only nine were ever built. The Heinkel company began the He 280 project on its own initiative after the He 178 had been met with indifference from the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Reich Aviation Ministry - RLM). The head designer was Robert Lusser, who began the project under the designation He 180 in late 1939. The eventual result was, on first appearances, a highly conventional aircraft by the standards of the day - a mid-wing with no sweep and two jet engines mounted in nacelles underneath. Externally, the most notable innovation was a tricycle undercarriage, probably included because experience with the He 178 showed the advantages of this arrangement for jet aircraft. Internally, the He 280 was equipped an ejector seat, the first aircraft to carry one. It was also planned to pressurise the cockpit. On September 22 1940, the first prototype started glide tests, with ballast hung in place of its engines. The He 280 was intended to be powered by two Heinkel HeS.8 engines, but development problems resulted in the airframe being ready for testing before the powerplant was. It would be another six months before Fritz Schfer would take the second prototype into the air under its own power, on March 30 1941. The type was then demonstrated to Ernst Udet on April 5, but like its predecessor, failed to make an impression. Over the next year, progress would be slow due to the ongoing engine problems. In the meantime, alternative powerplants were considered, including the Argus As 014 pulsejet that famously powered the V-1 flying bomb. By the end of 1943, however, the third prototype was fitted with refined versions of the Heinkel engine and was ready for its next demonstration. On December 22, a mock dogfight was staged for RLM officials in which the He 280 was matched against a Focke-Wulf Fw 190. Here, the jet not only demonstrated its vastly superior speed, but also out-maneuvered its opponent. Finally, the RLM became interested, and placed an order for twenty pre-production test aircraft, to be followed by 300 production machines. Engine problems continued to plague the project. The RLM had ordered Heinkel to abandon the HeS.8 and focus development on a follow-on engine, the Heinkel HeS.11, a much more advanced (and therefore problematic) design. Meanwhile, the first He 280 prototype had been re-equipped with the Argus pulsejets and was towed aloft to test them. Bad weather caused the aircraft to ice up, however, and before the jets could be tested, pilot Helmut Schenk became the first person to put an ejector seat to use. The seat worked perfectly, but the aircraft was lost. Nevertheless, Heinkel was forced to accept that they would have to use a competitor's engines, and selected the BMW 003. Unfortunately, this engine was also experiencing problems and delays, and in the meantime, the second He 280 prototype was re-engined with Junkers Jumo 004s while the next three airframes were earmarked for the BMW motor (which, in the end, would never be ready before the end of the He 280 project). The Jumo engines were much larger and heavier than the HeS.8 that the plane had been designed for, and while it flew well enough (for the first time on March 16 1943), it was immediately obvious that this engine would be unsuitable in the long term. Less than two weeks later, on March 27, Erhard Milch cancelled the project, ordering Heinkel to abandon the He 280 and focus attention on bomber construction.
see also: List of World War II jet aircraft
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