But for every glorious Spitfire and Hurricane that graces the WWII newsreels there are dozens of equally interesting, but much more obscure, British fighters lost to aviation history. Some were innovative and far ahead of their time, others were undone by reliability issues, nasty handling and delays in development or simply shifting military interests. They tell a richer tale than the ones that achieved fame.

From the time of World War One up to World War Two and into the early Jet Age the design departments of aircraft constructors in Britain never lost the appetite for unorthodox designs, heavy armament, specialist armour, powerful engine combinations and novel attack methods in aerial warfare. Some of these excellent and promising aircraft never reached front line squadrons; others had short service lives in the front lines of the War where their careers were not given the chance to last; and in their design one can read so much on experimentation, scientific brilliance and poor timing.

1. Bristol M.1 Monoplane Scout

A remarkably clean monoplane scout by Scottish aeronautical engineer Frank Barnwell to ensure the air supremacy over the Western Front, Bristol M.1 aircraft adopted much more revolutionary structure in compare to its contemporaries. Its remarkably well streamlined circular-sectioned fuselage was built by usual wood and fabric technique. Ever since the maiden flight of first M.1A prototype on 14July 1916, it performed outstandingly, its speed approximately 30-50 mph more than Fokker Eindecker on Germany and Morane-Saulnier N from French. In spite of having such obvious potential, Bristol M.1 received institutional resistance.

Why the Bristol M.1 Stood Out:

• Exceptionally clean monoplane design
• Designed by Frank Barnwell
• Extremely fast for 1916
• Only British wartime production monoplane
• Built in limited numbers

The aircraft’s 49 mph landing speed had the further disadvantage of making it somewhat unsuitable for the limited French airfields that existed on the Western Front. Furthermore, red tape made it unlikely that the type would become a significant frontline fighter. Only about 125 to 130 aircraft were built, with many others being employed as training machines in Britain and several others seeing service with No. 14 and No. 111 Squadrons in Palestine and the Balkans. The Bristol M.1 served up until 1919. It was not a significant operational machine but it showed that a sleek monoplane could do, at a time when the biplane was the mainstay of the fighter force. Pilot Frederick Dudley Travers DFC was one of its pilots and he achieved several kills in the aircraft. In December 1918, the Chilean Lt.

2. Westland Whirlwind

Late in the 1930s Britain produced one of her most fascinating new fighter projects in the shape of the Westland Whirlwind. Designed by ‘Teddy’ Petter this small, twin-engine machine made its maiden flight on 11 October 1938, and was intended to couple great speed with unprecedented firepower. Fitted with four 20mm Hispano-Suiza HS404 cannons in the nose – far more than in any other comparable operational machine when it first flew and powered by two Rolls Royce Peregrine engines it had much to recommend it as a fighter and fighter-bomber, especially suitable for over-Channel and French duties with its compact configuration and strong forward striking power.

Whirlwind’s Impressive Features:

• Twin-engine fighter configuration
• Four 20-mm nose cannons
• Designed by ‘Teddy’ Petter
• Strong fighter-bomber potential
• Exceptional early performance

Unfortunately, its development was hobbled by issues with the engines and weaponry. Shipments of the Rolls-Royce Peregrines were plagued by delays and this held up production. With wartime aviation rapidly changing the world was already moving onto a world of cheaper, simpler single-engine aircraft, and, of course, an engine called Merlin. Because the fuselage of the plane was quite compact it was already going to have issues when they later decided they were going to adapt a radar system into a night fighter plane.

3. Sopwith Dragon

The Sopwith Dragon was derived from the Sopwith Snipe of 1918, and promised high performance for its era. It was to be powered by the 360 hp ABC Dragonfly IA engine and had a top speed of 150 mph at sea level. It could attain 25,000 ft and had a particularly sharp rate of climb of 10,000 ft in 7 1/2 min. The fighter was armed with two synchronised .303 Vickers machine guns. With an order for 300 of the type placed with Sopwith it seemed to have the credentials to be a major British fighter. The performance figures showed that with the proper power plant it could have been a truly outstanding machine.

Dragon’s Promising Performance:

• Developed from Sopwith Snipe
• Powered by Dragonfly IA
• Reached 150 mph
• Climbed rapidly to 10,000 feet
• Armed with Vickers machine guns

Unfortunately, the aircraft’s major shortcoming was its engine, the ABC Dragonfly. The unit was riddled with vibration problems, overheating, and mechanical failure that kept the Dragon grounded as operational an example. About 200 airframes were built but six were ever equipped with engines and they were not operated by a RAF squadron as there was a good deal of promise for their flying performance despite all these issues.

4. Sopwith Salamander

Conceived in 1918, the Sopwith Salamander was a ground-attack specific development of the Sopwith Snipe, intended to operate, attacking trenches from low altitudes (unlike interceptors whose main role was combatting other aircraft) and being in a position to be most vulnerable to enemy ground fire. In an effort to afford extra protection to the pilot, the aircraft features an integral steel armour-boxed cell within the fuselage; the armour was 11mm thick and weighed, at more than 35 percent, more than a quarter of the aircraft itself. In that respects it was unusual for its time, representing, rather a nascent effort to conceive an aircraft primarily for its close-support potential over the battlefield, and hazards present.

Salamander’s Protective Design:

• Derived from Sopwith Snipe
• Designed for ground attack
• Steel armour protected pilot
• Armour reached 11 mm
• Built for low-level operations

Large number ordered Salamander Production Problems, although it was ordered in large numbers. When manufacturers the aircraft designers and were producing the steel armor they experienced technical problems whilst trying to harden it, but also achieve it doing so not becoming deformed. The production was a considerable delay on this aircraft that was so badly need at the time that all 1,400 aircraft that were at one point order, only 37 had actually left the factory when the armistice came about. This Salamander is one 497 built, with some still in use till the beginning of the 1920’s, a salamander is an interesting early approach to aircraft crew protection, in low altitude, and has proved how the aircraft designers were considering to make an aircraft specifically to withstand low altitudes close on battlefield operation, even although the war ended it had made it this far at least.

5. Saunders-Roe SR.A/1

One of the strangest jet-era fighters that never entered production is the Saunders-Roe SR.A/1. This plane was designed to unite jet propulsion with seaworthiness by using buoyancy to operate from the surface of the sea rather than an air strip. This was prompted by Japan’s use of combat floatplanes during World War Two and the development of turbojet technology. Saunders-Roe outlined the initial jet seaplane to the Air Ministry in 1943 and the latter issued a contract for three prototypes under a development of specification E.6/44. Fitted with four 20-mm cannons, manoeuvrability, early Martin-Baker ejection seats the SR.A/1 had a reported top speed of 512 mph.

SR.A/1 Offered Unique Capabilities:

• Jet-powered water-based fighter
• Four 20-mm cannons
• Operated without traditional runways
• Reached 512 mph
• Only three prototypes built

At the close of the Second World War, however, circumstances shifted. Priority increased for civilian projects and delays put the first prototype into the air on July 16, 1947. The British Royal Navy remained devoted to conventional, catapult launched carrier aircraft (such as the fast Sea Hawk) and found itself with very limited room for a jet powered seaplane. The RAF rejected the SR.A/1, as its potential did not match that of land-based aircraft, and while foreign countries such as the US expressed some interest none of them actually placed any orders. Ultimately, only three prototypes were built and the SR.A/1 saw no mass production or active service. Interest resurfaced momentarily in the Korean War, but again, was ultimately rejected as the technology was far too old.

6. Gloster Javelin

When the Gloster Javelin entered squadron service in 1956, it marked a major advance in operational fighter technology. This was not just because it was the first of the world’s twin-jet, delta-winged fighters, but also because it was much larger than the British Meteor and Venom fighters developed over ten years previously. The all-weather interceptor was the first design conceived to fit a wide tailless delta configuration and it was developed for the Royal Air Force to ensure the ability to carry out a night and all-weather interception task against the evolving threats which would be encountered as technology advanced, it was powered by two Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbo-jets making a giant technological advance on previous fighter designs and armed with radar and guided missiles.

Javelin’s Advanced Features:

• First twin-jet delta-wing fighter
• Designed for all-weather interception
• Integrated radar systems
• Equipped with guided missiles
• Powered by twin turbojets

But despite its modern looks the Javelin had aerodynamic disadvantages which limited its effectiveness in the long term. A fairly thick wing together with a draggy rear fuselage meant that the fighter could not fly at supersonic speed which was increasingly a necessity as it was up against faster and faster enemy and stand-off armed missiles. The Javelin was updated during its service with better engines and radar and it also received a missile capability and fitted with the de Havilland Fire streak air to air missile to augment or replace its missiles.

7. Blackburn Firebrand

Developed to meet a Fleet Air Arm requirement for a naval torpedo fighter, the Blackburn Firebrand, which was conceived in 1939. Went on to have a profoundly troubled development, and was only to see service on the verge of the end of World War Two. The initial intention had been for a pure fighter, but that program was cancelled due to performance deficiencies. And the decision was taken by the Ministry of Aircraft production to provide no priority on powering its aircraft from Napier Sabre’s (they instead went to the Hawker Typhoon). The operational use of the Firebrand was severely restricted: only two squadrons were actually commissioned and they were crewed mainly by Qualified Flying Instructors.

Firebrand Faced Serious Problems:

• Originally designed as fighter
• Later became strike fighter
• Development suffered major delays
• Handling remained dangerously difficult
• Operational use stayed limited

The Firebrand suffered from stability problems in all three axes, and possessed a dangerous predisposition to the violent stall characteristic of some high-performance aircraft. Naval authorities tried to limit accident risk through imposed restrictions on how the aircraft could be operated; for example, it was not permitted to carry drop tanks, even though the pilots felt very strongly that the airframe’s inherent defects were a major limitation. Unfortunately, not all of these criticisms were taken onboard by the military procurement hierarchy.

8. Martin-Baker MB3

The MB3 was developed by James Martin and Valentine Baker to satisfy a requirement during World War II for an armed and fast fighter. This machine was a stressed tube design and relied on inherent structural robustness, and this rugged design was an attempt to produce an aircraft which could withstand extensive war damage as well as being cheap to produce and maintain as compared to stressed skin designs. The first machine powered through the air in October 1942, and achieved outstanding performance for the type. The prototype was heavily armed with 6 cannons of 20mm, which gave considerable firepower for a single engined aircraft, while a maximum speed in excess of 415mph saw it outpace the Spitfire Mk VIII.

MB3 Combined Strength and Firepower:

• Designed by James Martin
• Heavy tubular airframe construction
• Armed with six cannons
• Reached 415 mph
• Outran contemporary Spitfire Mk VIII

That said this exciting programme ended in disaster in September 1942 when a crash following engine failure killed the pilot, Valentine Baker. The aircraft itself was the only MB3 to be built, and the programme was immediately cancelled. The crash impacted James Martin quite profoundly and it reoriented his work. Not only did he want to engineer outstanding performance in a cockpit, he also increasingly felt that the life of the crew in an aircraft was just as important.

9. Supermarine Spiteful

Development at the Supermarine Aviation Works began during World War II of a high speed successor to the beloved Spitfire aircraft. Designs from Chief Designer Joe Smith developed an advanced new wing, which uses laminar flow principles for smooth airflow over the surface for minimized high-speed drag. Powered by a Rolls-Royce Griffon, other changes were also incorporated including a larger fin to give the marginal stability of Griffon powered Spitfires added stability, along with a retracting undercarriage which retracted inwards. This was no small technical undertaking and it was a huge speed effort as this was to produce the fastest unmodified piston-engine British aircraft as well as the fastest piston-engine British fighter to enter production.

Spiteful Advanced Aerodynamics:

• Developed as Spitfire successor
• Designed with laminar-flow wing
• Powered by Griffon engine
• Achieved remarkable piston speed
• Became production piston fighter

The airplane’s technologically advanced wing came with problems of its own however; low-speed performance was poor and a violent stall, as well as a range of compressibility issues at higher altitudes plagued the aircraft. As the Spiteful became ready for production the war came to an end and jets were revolutionizing the fighter scene. The airplane’s testing also demonstrated small advantages over much older aircraft, a factor that made costly production difficult to justify.

10. Martin-Baker M.B.5

The MB5 was the culmination of Martin-Baker’s wartime work on prototype fighter aircraft. Powered by Rolls Royce Griffon with contra-rotating propellers the MB5 offered a fine combination of speed, excellent climb, climb and endurance. It could exceed 450 mph and was regarded as exceptionally docile, with a well-appointed cockpit and, a major feature, the flat-feed cannon mechanisms meant there was no external blisters on the wings. A most competent, if somewhat complicated, aircraft in many respects. The MB5 flew on May 23, 1944, but remained one of one prototype.

MB5 Delivered Impressive Performance:

• Powered by Griffon engine
• Used contra-rotating propellers
• Exceeded 450 mph
• Offered excellent flight characteristics
• Only one prototype completed

The only issue that let down the MB5 was timing. By the time that it was ready, the end of the second world war was in sight, and there were plenty of Spitfires and Tempests, and other piston engined fighter aircraft, already stock piled by various forces. There was therefore no advantage for the government to decide to launch a completely new piston engined fighter into mass production.