De Havilland DH.100 Vampire

The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British single-engined, twin-boom jet fighter developed and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to serve with the Royal Air Force, after the Gloster Meteor, and the first of them to use a single jet engine. Design work began in 1941 around the Halford H.1 turbojet, later produced as the Goblin, and the first prototype flew from Hatfield on 20 September 1943 with Geoffrey de Havilland Jr. at the controls. Apart from its engine and twin-boom layout it was a fairly conventional aircraft. The RAF began moving it to ground attack and training roles in the early 1950s, and specialist two-seat night fighter, trainer and carrier-based Sea Vampire versions followed. In all 3,268 were built in 15 versions, 31 air forces used it, and the RAF retired it in 1966.