Tempest Mk II

This page is about the British fighter Tempest Mk II. For other versions, see Tempest (Family).

Tempest Mk II

Tempest Mk V

Vampire F.B.5

Tempest Mk II

Tempest Mk V

Vampire F.B.5

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
6.3	6.0	6.3

Class:

Fighter

Research:54 000

Purchase:185 000

Description

The Tempest Mk II was a British fighter developed alongside the Tempest Mk V during WWII after cancellation of Hawker Tornado. Unlike thw Tempest Mk V, the Mk II was powered with radial Bristol Centaurus 18 cylinder radial engine. The engine installation, cowling and exhausts were inspired by captured Fw 190. The first Centaurus powered Tempest II flew on 28th June 1943, the first prototype was using rudder and tail fin of a Typhoon. The second prototype flew on 18th September 1943, and featured the enlarged rudder and tail used on Tempest. The prototypes experienced issues with engine vibrations which were fixed with different engine mountings and the plane also experienced overheating and some other issues. Due to this, aswell as decision to tropicalize all the planes for service in South-East Asia the production was delayed. In September 1942, order was placed for 500 Tempest IIs to be built by Gloster, but in 1943 priority to Typhoon was given and the contract was give to Bristol instead and Hawker was to build another 1800. The first production Tempest II rolled off the line on 4th October 1944. As the war was nearing the end, only 50 Tempests were built by Bristol with 402 built by Hawker. A total of 100 were built as fighters and 302 were built as fighter bomber versions with reinforced wings and wing bomb racks capable of carrying up to 1000 kg. The Tempest II was intended for combat against Japan, however the war ended before they were deployed.

The Tempest Mk II has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27. The Tempest Mk II is faster than the Mk V, however the engine performance drops significantly above 4000 m. The Mk II is best utilized for Boom and Zoom tactics, as the plane itself is not very manoeuvrable in horizontal, however the superior acceleration and dive speed could be utilized to either escape or regain energy again.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 3 657 m723 km/h

Turn time21 s

Max altitude11 800 m

EngineBristol Centaurus V

TypeRadial

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight6 t

The Tempest Mk II is the last propeller-driven aircraft in the Hawker line and is a fitting send-off. With its sleek airframe, extremely powerful Centaurus engine and heavy weight, it holds one of the highest top speeds of any traditional prop aircraft in the game and acceleration to match. However, it only keeps these advantages below 3,000 m, as above that the engine will asphyxiate and you will notice a drastic decrease in performance.

Boom & Zoom is this aircraft's forté, and is the main way you should fly it. It can easily abuse its brutal speed and acceleration combined with the amazing dive speed and powerful weaponry to blitz any aircraft that it sets its sights on. On the flip side, the heavy weight means it fares very poorly in manoeuvre fights as most propeller aircraft (and some jet-powered ones) will easily turn circles around it.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 3,658 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	668	653	11800	22.4	23.2	17.2	17.2	452
Upgraded	821	723		20.1	21.0	36.8	23.9

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	+	-
879	361	412	389	270	~14	~7

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 440	< 430	< 530	> 337

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
950 m	2,300 hp	2,829 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,330 m	1,950 hp	2,398 hp

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural879 km/h

Gear361 km/h

• 16.9 mm Steel - Armour plate behind pilot's seat and headrest
• 44.5 mm Bulletproof glass - Armoured windscreen

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 675 → 3 442

RB6 089 → 7 836

SB9 702 → 12 486

Total cost of modifications46 900

85 200

Talisman cost1 500

Crew training52 000

Experts185 000

Aces940

Research Aces480 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

110 / 210 / 470 %

166 / 166 / 166 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230 Radiator Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230 Compressor Research: 3 500 Cost: 6 400 260 Wings repair Research: 2 900 Cost: 5 300 220 Engine Research: 2 900 Cost: 5 300 220 150 octane fuel Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230 Engine injection Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230	Airframe Research: 3 500 Cost: 6 400 260 Cover Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230	HSBC mk.2 Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230 HMBC mk.2 Research: 3 500 Cost: 6 400 260 hispano_belt_pack Research: 2 900 Cost: 5 300 220 HLBC mk.2 Research: 2 900 Cost: 5 300 220 hispano_mk5_new_gun Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230 HRC mk.8 Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 600 230

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 14 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannon

Ammunition636 rounds

Fire rate750 shots/min

The Tempest Mk II is armed with:

• 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannons, wing-mounted (156 rpg outer + 162 rpg inner = 636 total)

Suspended armament

List of setups (4)

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

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

Setup 32 x 1000 lb M.C. Mk.I bomb

Setup 48 x RP-3 rockets

The Tempest Mk II 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)
• 2 x 1,000 lb M.C. 1,000 lb Mk.I bombs (2,000 lb total)
• 8 x RP-3 rockets

Usage in battles

The main tactic for the Tempest II is high-speed combat. With a weight of over 5,000 kg, and a peak WEP power of 2,500 hp it can accelerate very fast in a dive. This means that less altitude is traded for the same gain in speed compared to other props.

The second main benefit from the extra weight is that the plane can hold the speed gained from a dive for a long time. Additionally, the plane has a very sleek airframe, which means that its top speed is one of the highest of any prop in the game. Considering this data, the plane should be flown in high-speed shallow manoeuvres.

Against jets, the tactics are reversed. Jets are faster and heavier, thus shallow angles should be avoided. Steep angle energy fighting and turn fighting should be applied. Few exceptions against jets should be made. The Ho 229 will out turn the Tempest II, but upwards spirals at high speed are an effective way to burn away the 229's energy and they are easily trapped.

The second exception is the Meteor F Mk.3. This plane outperforms or is on par in every aspect except for, hilariously enough, top speed on the deck.

The third and last are the Yak-15/17. They turn better, but their diving speed is a lot lower than the Tempest II's.

Versus the Tempest:

There's not much one can do while a Tempest II is diving on your aircraft, as it'll blitz you before you know it and will be gone just as fast. Most smart Tempest pilots stay around 2,500-3,500 m so they can keep their engine performance and have the ability to abuse their dive speed. If you are able to catch a Tempest mid-turn or if it's unaware of your presence, it becomes significantly easier to take down considering most aircraft at the tier can turn circles around it. Try to catch them in a manoeuvre trap and force them to bleed their speed for an easy kill.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Separate	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Strong engine providing excellent performance below 3,000 m (9,840 ft)
• Excellent climb rate and acceleration up to 3,500 m
• Dives very well (low parasitic drag)
• Reasonably decent roll rate
• Very agile at moderate speeds
• Very high speed in level flight for a propeller-driven aircraft: can maintain a speed of 670 km/h at sea level
• Solid firepower
• Can land on carriers if absolutely necessary

Cons:

• Poor performance at high altitudes
• Often gets matches with early rank 5 aircraft (early jets)
• Sub-par turning radius
• Difficult to aim at high speed
• Doesn't climb as well as its German or Italian counterparts

History

Tempest-IIs of the Royal Pakistan Air Force

The creation of this plane also came with an older counterpart, the Tempest Mk V. The Mk II has a different engine than the Mk V which is why they seem different. The Mk II's were used later in the war than the Mk V's.

Archive of the in-game description

The Hawker Tempest Mk.II was a single seat fighter powered by a single Bristol Centaurus radial engine. After the Hawker Typhoon had proved unsatisfactory in its originally intended role as an interceptor, Hawker continued their work on viable options for a replacement aircraft. The Hawker Tornado project had been run with two separate engine options concurrently; after the Tornado was cancelled the idea of trialing two separate engines was applied to Hawker's new venture, then entitled the Typhoon II. After major design changes and with a perceived lack of confidence in the Typhoon name, the aircraft was designated the Tempest. The original prototypes were planned as the Tempest I with the Sabre IV engine and the Tempest V with the Sabre II. Shortly after this, two Tempest Mk.IIs were ordered with the 18 cylinder Bristol Centaurus engine, rated at 2520 hp. An order for 500 Tempest IIs was placed in October 1942, before the prototype had even first taken to the air. The first flight occurred in June 1943 before the Bristol Aeroplane Company began production, completing construction of its first example in October 1944, joining the two prototypes to continue trials. After delays in the Tempest II program the aircraft type was originally intended for use against the Japanese in the Far East but entered service just too late for the operations in the Second World War. The first two Tempest II squadrons were No.54 and No.247 in autumn 1945. Only two squadrons of Tempest IIs operated from the UK mainland itself. With the war's end the demand for high numbers of Hawker's new fighter no longer remained and aircraft contracts were reduced significantly. Whilst 'Tiger Force' – the planned force for the Far East – had been cancelled, the RAF still opted to deploy 180 Tempest IIs to the Far East between 1946 and 1947. Four squadrons were stood up in British India and used in policing actions in the local area before the aircraft were handed over to the Royal Indian Air Force and the Royal Pakistan Air Force. The Tempest II was also used as part of the British Forces of Occupation in Germany until July 1949. Only 552 Tempest IIs were built, serving with the RAF, India and Pakistan.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Tempest Mk II from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

The Shooting Range #23 - Pages of History section at 05:58 discusses the Tempest and its engine.

See also

Related development

• Typhoon (Family) - the aircraft the Tempest evolved from

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.