Photograph:
de Havilland DH.112 Venom FB.4 ZK-VNM¹ at Masterton in March 1991, one of three Venoms to use this registration in New Zealand (R J Deerness)
Country of origin:
United Kingdom
Description:
Single-seat fighter-bomber
Power Plant:
(FB.4)
One 5,150 lbst de Havilland Ghost 105 turbojet
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 12.7 m (41 ft 9 in)
- Length: 10.05 m (33 ft)
- Height: 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
- Wing area: 25.92 m² (279 sq ft)
- Max speed at sea level: 960 km/h (597 mph)
- Max speed at 6,096 m (20,000 ft): 927 km/h (576 mph)
- Max speed at 12,192 m (40,000 ft): 854 km/h (531 mph)
- Initial rate of climb: 2,204 m/min (7,230 ft/min)
- Time to 6,096 m (20,l000 ft): 4.5 minutes
- Max range with max external fuel at 629 km/h (391 mph) at 12,192 m (40,000 ft): 1,730 km (1,075 miles)
- Loaded weight: 5,216 kg (11,500 lb)
- Max overload weight: 7,180 kg (15,830 lb)
Armament:
Four 20 mm Hispano cannon; provision for up to 907 kg (2,000 lb) of external ordnance
History:
The prototype of the de Havilland Venom series (VV612) was flown for the first time on 2 September 1949, and subsequently the Venom was built in two main variants, the FB.1 and the FB.4, some 383 and 150 examples of each model respectively being built for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Examples were also supplied to the air forces of Venezuela and Iraq, and the type was licence-built for the Swiss Air Force by a consortium of the Federal Aircraft Factory, Pilatus, and Flug und Fahrzeugwerke from 1951.
The Venom FB.1 was a development of the DH.100 Vampire, with refinements to increase the maximum permissible Mach number. Initial production aircraft was the FB.1, which was followed on the production line by the FB.4, this model introducing an ejector seat, an up-rated Ghost 105 engine, power-operated ailerons, and revised tail surfaces. Provision was made for underwing bombs, rockets, or fuel tanks, the wing being stressed to permit full manoeuvrability with full wingtip tanks.
Built in Switzerland, some 250 examples were delivered to the Swiss Air Force, 150 to FB.1 standard, and 100 to FB.4 standard, and these were known as the FB.50 and FB.54, these remaining in service until 1984. After retirement a few were sold overseas as warbirds.
One FB.54 J-1634 (c/n 844), which was retired from the Swiss Air Force in the early 1950s, was imported by New Zealand Warbirds Inc, painted as WE434 ‘L’ of No 14 Squadron, RNZAF, and registered ZK-VNM¹ on 8 January 1987. It made its first post-restoration flight on 29 August 1987 and was based at Wigram until it was damaged in a take-off accident at Ardmore on 17 November 1991. It was placed in storage at Ardmore, the registration being cancelled on 16 November 1992.
Subsequently a second ex-Swiss Venom was imported, an FB.54 J-1799 (c/n 448), which previously operated as G-BLIC in the United Kingdom, and prior to that as N502DM in the USA, becoming ZK-VNM² on 17 December 1992. It made its first flight on 23 January 1993 at Ardmore but suffered an engine failure, made a heavy landing and was written off, being partially restored and placed on display at the Classic Fighters Museum at Tauranga painted in a red and white colour scheme.
A further ex-Swiss Air Force Venom FB.50 J-1630 (c/n 840) was imported by Wanganui Sea and Air Charters, becoming ZK-VNM³ on 10 October 2012, and has operated at a number of aviation events in New Zealand since.
The de Havilland Venom was operated by No 14 Squadron, RNZAF on loan from the RAF between 1955 and 1958 from Tengah in Singapore but none ever got to New Zealand, all aircraft used being returned to the RAF when the unit was withdrawn. The unit was moved to Singapore in 1955 to help deal with the ‘growing menace of communist infiltration of South East Asian countries’ and initially equipped with Vampires pending the delivery of the Venom FB.1s from RAF units. The first offensive action took place on 1 May 1955 when five Vampires struck terrorist targets in Malaya. The first Venom strike took place on 6 May 1955 and the Squadron routinely practised aerial bombing, rocket exercises and interceptions of USAF and RAAF aircraft.
When operating in the ground attack role the RNZAF Venoms operated in sections of four, each fitted with two 454 kg (1,000 lb) bombs or rocket projectiles, and 600 rounds of 20 mm cannon ammunition, strikes being made on targets marked by RAF forward air control aircraft. Two Venoms were lost during the period they were operated by the RNZAF, one on 29 April 1956 and the other on 3 July 1957, both pilots ejecting.
The forward fuselage of an ex-Swiss Venom c/n S211, thought to be either J-1712 or J-1711, which was previously owned by an ex-Swiss Air Force pilot until 1994 when it was shipped to the United Kingdom, was imported to a private owner in New Zealand in 2017 where it has been restored for display.