- Yes
- No
About this aircraft and its interest in War Thunder
In an effort to bring new and unique aircrafts to the game, one lesser known promising field is the Swiss industry. In particular, I think their Doflug serie would be ideal to bolster either the French fighter line or, possibly, a new unique nation.
History of the D-3802
The Swiss airforce bought Morane Saulnier 406 right before the war. When they realised that its performance was inferior to that of the Emil, they chose to enhance the airframe with their own mean. This gave birth to the Doflug D-3801, which was basically a Morane Saulnier 410, with a better engine a bit of armor. The defeat of France prevented them to follow the MS.450 program which would have enhanced further the aircraft. Although the Doflug 3801 was a temporary improvement, the swiftness of fighter innovation quickly highlighted the problems of the aging design. Aside from buying Me. 109, it pushed the Swiss government to improve the design again to meet the performances of more modern aircrafts.
This is why they started working with Dornier-Werke AG, the Swiss branch of the German manufacturer, to create a new fighter, the Doflug D-3802. This one benefitted from an improved engine, a redesign of the cabine and the canopy. Furthermore, if the first prototype, which first flew in 1944, still carried the standard 4 mgs and 1 cannons, by that time, better aircraft like the P51 Mustang and the late Messerschmitt were filling the skies with much improved armament.
Thus, the planned serie, called Doflug D-3802A was started the same year. It would have a rounder canopy improving the visibility of the pilot, and more importantly, its armament would evolve into three 20mm canons, two in the wings and one firing through the propeller hub. The first pre-serie D-3802 entered service in 1946, however the end of the war cancelled most of the orders, limiting its production to only 11 fighters. They flew in the Fliegerstaffel 17, being joined by the prototype and by the last evolution attempt, the Doflug 3803. However, the design wasn’t improved further as the Swiss government deemed more cost effective to buy P51 Mustang. Thus, they remained in their unit until 1956, at which point they were retired.
General Characteristics :
Empty Weight: 2,945 kg
Loaded Weight: 3904 kg
Wingspan: 10.02 m
Wing area: 17.1m²
Length: 9,308 m
Height: 3,34 m
Engine: Saurer YS-2 (12-cylinder Hispano-Suiza developping 1250 hp)
Maximum speed: 638 km/h
Range: 650 km
Service ceiling: 11,500 m
Rate of climb: 14.2 m/s
Armament : 2 x 20mm HS.404 (license built in Switzerland) cannons in the wing (90 RPG), 1 x 20mm HS 404 in the propeller hub (140 rounds
Bomb load :
6 × 8cm Flz Rak Oe
4 × 50kg Sprengbombe
2 × 200kg Sprengbombe
Photos :
Sources :