Aeroplane Monthly 1983-06
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R.Beamont - Test flying the Tempest (2)
Bill Humble flying Tempest V EJ743 on test from Langley.
The first Tempest II, LA602, with unmodified fin, Langley 1943.
JN730, the second production Tempest V, at Langley before delivery to Boscombe Down in October 1944 for drop-tank trials.
The same aircraft overpainted with D-Day invasion stripes, June 1944. This was the first Tempest to make a ground attack, the first to attack enemy aircraft and the first to attack a V1 flying bomb.
Production Tempest II PR533 with bomb racks, Langley 1945.
The Sabre-engined production Tempest VI, NX135, at Langley in 1945.
Tempest V cockpit, showing reasonable ergonomics, but gloves were a necessity to prevent knuckle injury! The mounting for the gunsight (not fitted here) incorporated hand-grips for getting into and out of the cockpit and could result in distorted harmonisation if gripped too vigorously!
In the Tempest V, the Basic Six panel was flanked by two side-panels which sloped inwards so that the pilot could look at all of the instruments and controls head-on, rather than obliquely. This feature is becoming fashionable on many motor cars today.