Gloster Meteor – Fotos e Vídeo

O Meteoro Gloster foi o primeiro caça a jato britânico e o único avião a jato dos Aliados a realizar operações de combate durante a Segunda Guerra Mundial. O desenvolvimento do Meteor foi fortemente dependente de seus motores turbojato inovadores, pioneiros por Sir Frank Whittle e sua empresa, Power Jets Ltd. O desenvolvimento da aeronave começou em 1940, embora o trabalho nos motores estivesse em andamento desde 1936. O Meteor voou pela primeira vez em 1943 e iniciou suas operações em 27 de julho de 1944 com o Esquadrão Nº 616 da RAF. O Meteor não era uma aeronave sofisticada em sua aerodinâmica, mas provou ser um caça de combate de sucesso. O demonstrador civil Meteor F.4 da Gloster em 1946, G-AIDC, foi o primeiro avião a jato registrado por civis no mundo

Fonte: Meteoro Gloster na Wikipédia

The Gloster Meteor was a pioneering aircraft in the history of aviation. It was the first British jet fighter and the only Allied jet aircraft to engage in combat operations during the Second World War. The Meteor’s development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turbojet engines, pioneered by Frank Whittle and his company, Power Jets Ltd. The Meteor first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with No. 616 Squadron RAF.
The Meteor was not a sophisticated aircraft in its aerodynamics, but proved to be a successful combat fighter. It had a conventional metal monoplane design with straight wings and twin-engine nacelles. It had a retractable tricycle landing gear and a single-seat cockpit with a bubble canopy. It was armed with four 20 mm cannons mounted in the nose. The Meteor had a maximum speed of 768 km/h (478 mph) and a service ceiling of 13,100 m (43,000 ft).
The Meteor saw limited action in the Second World War, mainly against German V-1 flying bombs and Me 262 jet fighters. It also served in the Korean War with the Royal Australian Air Force, where it faced superior MiG-15 jets. The Meteor was also used for research and development purposes and to break several aviation records. It was the first jet aircraft to exceed 600 mph (970 km/h) and the first turboprop aircraft to fly. The Meteor was also adapted for various roles such as night fighter, photo-reconnaissance, trainer, and target tug.
The Meteor was produced from 1943 to 1955, with a total of 3,947 built. It was exported to several countries such as Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Egypt, France, Israel, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Syria, and Turkey. The Meteor remained in service with some air forces until the 1980s. Today, only two Meteors are still flying as testbeds for Martin-Baker ejection seats. Several others are preserved in museums or as monuments around the world.