Editing Hawker Tempest (section)

=== Tempest Mk.V ===
[[File:15 Hawker Tempest (15834185691).jpg|thumb|left|Tempest Mk. V prototype with [[bubble canopy]] and Mk. V tail, but with 20 mm Hispano Mk. II guns.]]
During early 1943, a production line for the Tempest Mk.V was established in Hawker's Langley facility, alongside the existing manufacturing line for the [[Hawker Hurricane]].<ref name=Mason67_6/> Production was initially slow, claimed to be due to issues encountered with the rear spar. On 21 June 1943, the first production Tempest V, ''JN729'', rolled off the production line<ref name=Mason67_6/><ref name=Thomas107/> and its maiden flight was conducted by test pilot [[Bill Humble]].<ref>Mason 1991, p. 333.</ref>

[[File:Hawker Tempest V JN729 - Langley - 1943.jpg|thumb|The first production Tempest Mk. V ''JN729''.  Long-barrelled Hispano II cannon and Typhoon five-spoke mainwheels were identifying features of the first production batch of 100 Tempests Vs.]]
During production of the first batch of 100 Tempest V "Series Is", distinguishable by their [[United Kingdom military aircraft serials|serial number prefix ''JN'']], several improvements were progressively introduced and were used from the outset on all succeeding Tempest V "Series 2s", with serial number prefixes EJ, NV and SN. The [[fuselage]]/[[empennage]] joint originally featured 20 external reinforcing "fishplates", similar to those fitted to the Typhoon, but it was not long before the rear fuselage was strengthened and, with the fishplates no longer being needed, the rear fuselage became detachable.<ref name=Bentley>Bentley 1973, pp. 92–93.</ref> The first series of Tempest Vs used a built-up rear spar pick-up/bulkhead assembly (just behind the cockpit) which was adapted from the Typhoon. Small blisters on the upper rear wing root fairing covered the securing bolts. This was later changed to a new forged, lightweight assembly which connected to new spar booms: the upper wing root blisters were replaced by small "teardrop" fairings under the wings.<ref name=Bentley/>

The first 100 Tempest Vs were fitted with {{convert|20|mm|in|abbr=on}} [[Hispano-Suiza HS.404|Hispano Mk.II cannon]] with long barrels which projected ahead of the wing leading edges and were covered by short fairings; later production Tempest Vs switched to the short-barrelled Hispano Mk.Vs, with muzzles flush with the leading edges.<ref name=Ovc1/> Early Tempest Vs used Typhoon-style {{convert|34|by|11|in|cm|abbr=on}} five-spoke wheels, but most had smaller {{convert|30|by|9|in|cm|abbr=on}} four-spoke wheels.<ref name=Ovc2_4>Ovčáčík and Susa 2000, pp. 2, 4.</ref> The new spar structure of the Tempest V also allowed up to {{convert|2,000|lb|kg|abbr=on}} of external stores to be carried underneath the wings.<ref name=Thomas107/> As a result, several early production Tempest V aircraft underwent extensive service trials at Boscombe Down for clearance to be fitted with external stores, such as one {{convert|250-1000|lb|kg|abbr=on}} bomb or eight "60lb" air-to-ground [[RP-3]] rockets under each wing. On 8 April 1944, the Tempest Mk.V attained general clearance<ref name=Mason67_7/> to carry such ordnance, but few Tempest Mk.V deployed bombs operationally during the war.<ref name=Mason67_6/><ref>Mason 1991, p. 334.</ref> Rockets were never used operationally during the war by the Mk.Vs.<ref name="hawkertempest.se/armament"/>

As in all mass-produced aircraft, there may have been some overlap of these features as new components became available. In mid-to-late 1944 other features were introduced to both the Typhoon and Tempest: A [[Rebecca/Eureka transponding radar|''Rebecca'']] transponder unit was fitted, with the associated aerial appearing under the portside centre section. A small, elongated oval [[Pitot-static system|static port]] appeared on the rear starboard fuselage, just above the red centre spot of the [[Royal Air Force roundels|RAF roundel]]. This was apparently used to measure the aircraft's altitude more accurately.{{Citation needed|date=January 2015}}

Unusually, in spite of the Tempest V being the RAF's best low- to medium-altitude fighter, it was not equipped with the new Mk.IIC [[Gyro gunsight|gyroscopic gunsight]] (as fitted in RAF Spitfires and Mustangs from mid-1944), which would have considerably improved the chances of shooting down opposing aircraft. Tempest pilots continued to use either the Type I Mk.III [[Reflector sight|reflector gunsight]], which projected the sighting graticule directly onto the windscreen, or the Mk.IIL until just after the Second World War, when the gyro gunsight was introduced in Tempest IIs.<ref>Ovčáčík and Susa 2000, p. 30.</ref>

Two Tempest Vs, ''EJ518'' and ''NV768'', were fitted with Napier Sabre Vs and experimented with several different Napier-made annular [[radiator (engine cooling)|radiators]], with which they resembled Tempest IIs. This configuration proved to generate less drag than the standard "chin" radiator, contributing to an improvement in the maximum speed of some 11 to 14&nbsp;mph.<ref>''Flight'' 1946, p. 91.</ref> ''NV768'' was later fitted with a ducted spinner, similar to that fitted to the [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190|Fw 190 V1]].<ref name=Mason91_332>Mason 1991, p. 332.</ref><ref>Thomas and Shores 1988, p. 112.</ref>

==== 47 mm anti tank gun trials{{anchor|Vickers 47 mm Class P}} ====
[[File:47mm P.jpg|thumb|Tempest ''SN354'', outfitted with experimental 47&nbsp;mm class P guns and standard smaller four-spoke wheels.]]

Tempest V ''SN354'' was fitted with two experimental underwing Class P 47 mm guns (built by [[Vickers-Armstrongs|Vickers]]) just after the war.<ref name="Williams, A. G.">{{cite web|last=Williams |first= A. G. |url=http://www.quarryhs.co.uk/Pgun.htm |title=The RAF'S 47 mm Class P Gun Project |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160319192518/http://quarryhs.co.uk/Pgun.htm |archive-date=19 March 2016 |website=quarry.nildram.co.uk |accessdate= 16 March 2012}}</ref><ref name=Mason67_13>Mason 1967, p. 13.</ref>{{efn|The weapon has been misidentified as a 40 mm cannon in many references, such as Mason 1991.<ref name=Mason91_336>Mason 1991, p. 336.</ref>}} These guns were part of a project started in mid-1942 to develop a more powerful airborne [[anti-tank gun]] than the [[Vickers 40 mm Class S gun]] which had been used on the Hurricane IID.<ref name="Williams, A. G."/>{{efn|Vickers, Rolls-Royce and the [[War Office]] Design Department produced competing designs but Rolls Royce stopped work before completing a weapon<ref name="Williams, A. G."/> }} The Vickers guns were housed in long slim streamlined [[gun pod]]s carried on the bomb racks<ref name="hawkertempest.se/armament"/> and had 38 rounds each.<ref>http://i.imgur.com/brlZOwU.png {{Bare URL image|date=March 2022}}</ref> Surviving photographs suggests that the 20&nbsp;mm wing guns were removed for this installation. Testing of the guns revealed that the weapon had potential, but no production was undertaken.<ref name="hawkertempest.se/armament"/>