Hornet Mk.III

Hornet Mk.III

Whirlwind Mk I

Swift F.1

Hornet Mk.III

Whirlwind Mk I

Swift F.1

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	6.0	5.7

Class:

Fighter

Air Defence fighter

Research:46 000

Purchase:155 000

Show in game

Description

The Hornet Mk.III in the garage

The Hornet Mk.III is a Rank IV British strike fighter with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB), 6.0 (RB), and 5.7 (SB). This aircraft was introduced in Update 1.71 "New E.R.A". As of update 1.71, it is the final aircraft in the legendary British Twin-Engined tech tree.

General info

Flight Performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

For pilots who loved the Mosquito, the Hornet is a dream come true.

As a descendent of the Mosquito FB Mk VI, it maintains many similarities to its older brother, namely an all-wooden construction and the iconic de Havilland tail design. However, the Hornet somehow managed to improve on the already excellent Mosquito platform, improving speed, maneuverability, and armament while reducing overall proportions. From takeoff into the fight, the Hornet is an overall smooth operator with brutal speed and excellent maneuverability for a Twin-Engined fighter. However, it's still a Twin-Engined fighter, meaning it will be outmaneuvered by most single engined opponents it faces, namely Bf 109's and most Italian fighters.

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 5,791 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
716	698	11500	26.8	27.5	19.2	19.2	500
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 5,791 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
?	?	11500	??.?	??.?	??.?	??.?	500

Details

Features
Combat flap	Take-off flap	Landing flap	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
0	324	???	~??	~?

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< ???	< ???	< ???	> ???

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
2,000 m	??? hp	?,??? hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,300 m	?,??? hp	?,??? hp

Survivability and armour

• 38 mm Bulletproof glass in front of pilot.
• 12.7 mm Steel plate behind the pilot.
• Two 3 mm Steel boxes behind pilot in the fuselage.
• Critical components located at the front of aircraft (fuel, pilot, engine, controls)
• Lots of fuel tanks in the wings

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Hornet Mk.III is armed with:

• 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannon, chin-mounted (190 RPG = 760 total)

Suspended armament

The Hornet Mk.III can be outfitted with the following ordinance"

• Without load
• 2 x 500 lb bombs
• 2 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 8 x AP Mk I rockets
• 8 x AP Mk II rockets
• 8 x RP-3 rockets
• 4 x AP Mk I rockets + 2 x 500 lb bombs
• 4 x AP Mk II rockets + 2 x 500 lb bombs
• 4 x RP-3 rockets + 2 x 500 lb bombs
• 4 x RP-3 rockets + 2 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 4 x AP Mk I rockets + 2 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 4 x AP Mk II rockets + 2 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 4 x RP-3 rockets + 2 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs

Usage in battles

Being a descendant of the legendary Mosquito, one should expect a similar playstyle with the Hornet. However, due to the vastly improved performance, the aircraft can preform amicably in most situations it is thrown in.

Fighter: The Hornet does very well in a dogfighting situation for a heavy fighter. It can use its powerful quad Hispano Mk.V's to shred any fighter in sight. However, one should take note that most Single-Engined fighters will turn circles around you, so you should avoid turn-fighting like the plague. Naturally, there are some exceptions to this rule such as the P-47N-15, which you cannot turn with you.

Naturally, its high speed and great climb rate coupled with its amazing armament make it an extremely potent user of the Boom-&-Zoom fighting doctrine. Always attempt to maintain an energy and altitude advantage versus your prey, and avoid tunnel vision, as you are an easy target for enemy planes to take down.

Ground Attacker: When aced, the Hornet can load 4 AP or RP-3 rockets and two 1000 pounders. This, combined with the performance of the Hornet and power of the Hispano's allow it to be an amazing ground attacker that can shred any ground target in sight. The AP rockets are your best bet when it comes to ground attacking, as they are more accurate than the RP-3's, can penetrate more armour and fly faster. However, when destroying light targets, the RP-3's are better due to the increased explosive yield.

Bomber Hunter: Due to its amazing performance, powerful armament and Air Defence Fighter spawn, the Hornet can make for a powerful interceptor when played carefully. Climb to bomber altitudes (4,000 metres and up) and start hunting. When engaging bombers, repeat after me: Never tail bombers with powerful defensive gunners. Most bombers at this rank are quite well-armed, with .50 cal HMG's and 20 mm cannons everywhere. Notable examples you can encounter at this rank are the B-29A-BN, B-17G-60-VE, PB4Y-2, He 177 A-5, G8N1 and the premium Be-6.

When engaging these targets, come in from oblique angles and aim at the wings and cockpit. Best case scenario, you manage to force a head-on engagement and snipe the pilots. Worst case scenario, they land shots on your engines and fuel tanks, which start fires and down the plane, while you deal comparatively minimal damage to them.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable	Not controllable	Controllable	Combined	Controllable	Controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 20 mm	HMBC mk.2
II		Compressor	Airframe	New 20 mm cannons		GRC mk.8
III	Wings repair	Engine			HLBC mk.2	HRC mk.9
IV		Engine Injection	Cover			HRC mk.8

Your intended role of the Hornet decides which upgrades you go for first. When going for a ground attacker, focus the payload modules and cannon upgrades, with survivability modules coming next due to needing to lower the extra weight the payloads add.

When going for any other role, the belts and cannons should come first, followed by the performance upgrades, ultimately leading to Engine Injection, the Holy Grail of performance upgrades.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent armament. The Hispano Mk. V has a high rate of fire and causes a lot of fragmentation damage.
• Extremely quick, can compete with some of the best Single-Engined fighters.
• Has some excellent payload options. Several varieties of rockets and up to 2000 lb in bombs.
• Good amount of ammo for the cannons.
• Quite maneuverable for a Twin-Engined fighter, as to be expected of the descendant of the Mosquito.
• Fantastic climb rate, especially when spaded.
• Thin body for a Twin-Engined fighter.
• Experience with the Mosquito transitions between the planes.
• Lenient stock grind.

Cons:

• Not great at killing heavy bombers like the He 177 which shares your BR. You are not durable enough to take hits from defensive gunners. You will lose an engine or worse.
• Matchmaking will pit you against some serious foes.
• Despite the durable construction, you are still made out of wood, meaning you cant take much damage.
• Fires deal serious damage.
• Wings are littered with fuel tanks.
• Despite the thin body, it is still a large target.
• Carrying the max payload has a significant effect on performance.

History

The de Havilland first started out as a private venture by the de Havilland company. Having built the extremely successful Mosquito multi-role fighter, the company wants to improve on the design to make a faster and longer ranged heavy fighter. The project was soon developed to meet the Air Ministry specification F.12/43, which called for a fast, long-range fighter that operated in the Far East, in fact the design was drawn around the Hornet. The first prototype was a more streamlined, smaller Mosquito with more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. The wings were designed for adaptation for naval uses and could fold. Pilot comfort and stability had very high priority. According to accounts by test pilots, the Hornet is easily capable of taking on single engine fighters. It entered Squadron service in mid-1946. However it was rarely used as World War Two was drawing to a close. Instead the plane saw combat operations during the Malayan Emergency, and continued to serve the RAF until 1956.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

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• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.