page_title: Hawker Tempest
section_title: Combat
hierarchical_section_title: Hawker Tempest / Operational history / Combat
caption_attribution_description: Royal Air Force ground crew refuel and re-arm Hawker Tempest Mark V 'JF-G' of No. 3 Squadron RAF by the grass North-South runway at Newchurch, Kent (UK). On the far side of the runway is the dispersal area of No. 56 Squadron RAF.
context_page_description: The Hawker Tempest is a British fighter aircraft primarily used by the Royal Air Force in the Second World War. The Tempest, originally known as the Typhoon II, was an improved derivative of the Hawker Typhoon, intended to address the Typhoon's unexpected deterioration in performance at high altitude by replacing its wing with a thinner laminar flow design. Since it had diverged considerably from the Typhoon, it was renamed Tempest. The Tempest emerged as one of the most powerful fighters of World War II and was the fastest single-engine propeller-driven aircraft of the war at low altitude.
  Upon entering service in 1944, the Tempest was used as a low-level interceptor, particularly against the V-1 flying bomb threat, and as a ground attack platform, in which it supported major events such as Operation Market Garden. Later, it successfully targeted the rail infrastructure in Germany and Luftwaffe aircraft on the ground, as well as countering such attacks by German fighters. The Tempest was effective in the low-level interception role, including against newly developed jet-propelled aircraft such as the Messerschmitt Me 262.
context_section_description: By April 1944, the Tempest V had attained general acceptance and was in the hands of operational squadrons; 3 Squadron was the first to be fully equipped, closely followed by 486 (NZ) Squadron (the only Article XV squadron to be equipped with the Tempest during the Second World War), replacing their previous Typhoons. A third unit—56 Squadron—initially kept its Typhoons and was then temporarily equipped with Spitfire IXs until sufficient supplies of Tempests were available. By the end of April 1944, these units were based at RAF Newchurch in Kent a new "Advanced Landing Ground" (ALG), where they formed 150 Wing, commanded by Wing Commander Roland Beamont. The new Wing was part of the Second Tactical Air Force (2nd TAF).
  Most of the operations carried out by 150 Wing comprised high-altitude fighter sweeps, offensive operations known as "Rangers", as well as reconnaissance missions. Prior to the Normandy landings, Tempests would routinely conduct long-range sorties inside enemy territory and penetrate into Northern France and the Low Countries, using a combination of cannons and bombs to attack airfields, radar installations, ground vehicles, coastal shipping and the launch sites for the German V-1 flying bombs. The build-up of Tempest-equipped squadrons was increased rapidly, in part due to factors such as the V-1 threat, although a labour strike in Hawker's assembly shop adversely affected this rate; by September 1944, a total of five frontline Tempest squadrons which comprised 114 aircraft were in operation.
  In June 1944, the first of the V-1s were launched against London; the excellent low-altitude performance of the Tempest made it one of the preferred tools for handling the small fast-flying unmanned missiles. 150 Wing was transferred back to the RAF Fighter Command; the Tempest squadrons soon racked up a considerable percentage of the total RAF kills of the flying bombs (638 of a total of 1,846 destroyed by aircraft). Using external drop tanks, the Tempest was able to maintain standing patrols of 4.5 hours off the south coast of England in the approach paths of the V-1s. Guided by close instructions from coastal radar installation, Tempests would be positioned ready for a typical pursuit and would either use cannon fire or nudge the V-1 with the aircraft itself to destroy it.
  In September 1944, Tempest units, based at forward airfields in England, supported Operation Market Garden, the airborne attempt to seize a bridgehead over the Rhine. On 21 September 1944, as the V-1 threat had receded, the Tempest squadrons were redeployed to the 2nd TAF, effectively trading places with the Mustang III squadrons of 122 Wing, which became part of the Fighter Command units deployed on bomber escort duties. 122 Wing now consisted of 3 Sqn., 56 Sqn., 80 Sqn., 274 Sqn. (to March 1945), and 486(NZ)Sqn. From 1 October 1944 122 Wing was based at B.80 Volkel Air Base near Uden, in the Netherlands. During the early phase of operations, the Tempest regularly emerged victorious and proved to be a difficult opponent for the Luftwaffe's Bf 109G and Fw 190 fighters to counter.
  Armed reconnaissance missions were usually flown by two sections (eight aircraft), flying in finger-four formations, which would cross the front lines at altitudes of 7,000 to 8,000 feet: once the Tempests  reached their allocated target area the lead section dropped to 4,000 feet or lower to search for targets to strafe, while the other section flew cover 1,000 feet higher and down sun. After the first section had carried out several attacks, it swapped places with the second section and the attacks continued until all ammunition had been exhausted, after which the Tempests would return to base at 8,000 ft. As many of the more profitable targets were usually some 250 miles from base, the Tempests typically carried two 45-gallon drop tanks which were turned on soon after takeoff. Although there were fears that the empty tanks would explode if hit by flak, the threat never eventuated and, due to the tanks being often difficult to jettison, they were routinely carried th
caption: Early Tempest V of 3 Sqn. being refuelled and re-armed by ground crew at Newchurch, Kent, June 1944.
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