Whirlwind Mk I

This page is about the British twin-engine fighter Whirlwind Mk I. For the other version, see Whirlwind P.9.

Whirlwind Mk I

Brigand B 1

Hornet Mk.III

Whirlwind Mk I

Brigand B 1

Hornet Mk.III

Britain

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.3	3.7	4.0

Class:

Fighter

Air Defence fighter

Research:20 000

Purchase:135 000

Show in game

Description

The Whirlwind Mk I is a rank III British twin-engine fighter with a battle rating of 4.3 (AB), 3.7 (RB), and 4.0 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.75 "La Résistance".

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 4 876 m580 km/h

Turn time23 s

Max altitude9 144 m

Engine2 х Rolls-Royce Peregrine I

TypeInline

Cooling systemWater

Take-off weight5 t

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 4,877 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	559	543	9144	24.2	25.2	12.2	12.2	650
Upgraded	601	580		21.9	23.0	18.2	15.0

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
676	265	465	433	265	~11	~5

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 420	< 420	< 450	> 324

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural676 km/h

Gear265 km/h

• 60 mm Bulletproof glass in cockpit front.
• 9 mm Steel plates in the nose.
• 4 mm Steel plate in pilot's seat.
• 6 mm Steel plate behind the pilot.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB1 346 → 1 809

RB2 928 → 3 935

SB4 445 → 5 974

Total cost of modifications34 800

67 800

Talisman cost1 300

Crew training39 000

Experts135 000

Aces700

Research Aces390 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

70 / 180 / 380 %

154 / 154 / 154 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 1 700 Cost: 3 300 130 Radiator Research: 1 700 Cost: 3 300 130 Airframe Research: 3 900 Cost: 7 600 290 Compressor Research: 3 900 Cost: 7 600 290 Wings repair Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 165 Engine Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 165 Cover Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 290 Engine injection Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 290	EFS Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 290	hispano_belt_pack Research: 1 700 Cost: 3 300 130 SBC mk.II Research: 1 700 Cost: 3 300 130 hispano_mk1_new_gun Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 165 MBC mk.II Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 165

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 14 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.I cannon

Ammunition240 rounds

Fire rate600 shots/min

The Whirlwind Mk I is armed with:

• 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.I cannons, nose-mounted (60 rpg = 240 total)

Suspended armament

List of setups (3)

Setup 12 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bomb

Setup 22 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bomb

Setup 32 x 500 LB S.A.P. Mk.II bomb

The Whirlwind Mk I can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (500 lb total)
• 2 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (1,000 lb total)

Usage in battles

The Whirlwind Mk I should be used similarly to other heavy fighters. The flight characteristics are very similar to the Whirlwind P.9 with the main difference being significantly less ammo.

The Whirlwind Mk I is very effective in a boom and zoom role due to its good climb rate and powerful armament. However, the relatively low wing break speed in RB does limit you in this role. The Whirlwind Mk I has a good turn rate for a heavy fighter, but will be easily out turned by single-engined fighters. The use of combat flaps will help to balance out this disadvantage. Care must be taken when using the combat flaps, however, as they are prone to snapping off at a relatively low speed.

At this BR you will see many BV 238s and Me 264s. Heading on these bombers will usually guarantee you a kill, but you still need to be careful of the powerful defensive armament of them. The Whirlwind Mk I has relatively little ammunition with only 60 rounds per gun. It is important to be accurate to be successful with this aircraft. To help with accuracy try to get very close to the target before shooting.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Not controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Auto control available	Combined	Not controllable 1 gear	Not controllable

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Devastating nose-mounted 20mm Hispano armament.
• Great for head-ons.
• Good turn rate when upgraded for a twin engined fighter.
• Able to carry bombs, unlike P.9 Variant

Cons:

• Poor climb rate.
• Under-powered engines.
• Drum-fed Hispano Mk1s. Only 60 rounds per gun. You must make every round count.
• Inaccurate Hispano Mk1 cannons. Precise aiming is hard.
• Poor roll rate
• Quite slow level flight speed
• Unfavourable matchmaking puts you up against some very challenging opponents
• Hispano Mk 1 cannons do not have access to more effective air targets belt

History

The Westland Whirlwind was designed after a specification was issued by the British Air Ministry. The specification called for a cannon-armed day and night fighter. The Air Ministry wanted a top speed of at least 530 km/h at an altitude of 4,600m. Out of five designs offered by the companies. The Air Ministry decided to go with Westland's design for several important reasons. The cannon was mounted on the nose so that the recoil does not affect the accuracy of the gun. There were also no convergence problem as compared to other single-engine fighters with wing mounted guns. The requirements also led to the world's first bubble canopies on a plane. However the decision to arm the Spitfire with cannon and the development of other twin engine fighters such as the Bristol Beaufighter has led Fighter Command to use the Whirlwind less and less as the war progressed. The first batch of Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines were also delayed. It was also found that the engine was severely under-powered and the drum magazines used to feed the cannons were small in capacity. All of this has resulted in the Whirlwind's cancellation and resulted in the plane only equipping two RAF squadrons.

Media

The Shooting Range #81 - Pages of History section at 08:13 discusses the Whirlwind.

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

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance

Westland Aircraft Limited
Aircraft
Fighters	Whirlwind Mk I · Whirlwind P.9
Turboprop	Wyvern S4
Helicopters*
Attack	AH Mk.1 Apache**
Utility	Wessex HU Mk.5 · Scout AH.Mk.1 · Wasp HAS.Mk.1 · Lynx AH.Mk.1 · G-LYNX
	*After World War II, Westland Aircraft focused on building helicopters and changed its name to Westland Helicopters.
	**Licensed AH-64D
See Also	Boeing Aircraft