Jet Fighters of the U.S. Navy Part 1: Early Designs 1945 - 1953

Military aviation entered a new era on April 2, 1941, when Fritz Schaefer took off in a Heinkel He 280, the world's first fighter powered by a turbojet engine. Germany would continue the development of jets throughout World War II, and the Messerschmitt Me 262 would become the first jet fighter to attain operational status. The only other country to have jet fighters in oper­ational service during World War II was Great Britain. On July 21, 1944, No. 616 Squadron received its first two Gloster Meteor Is. Additional Meteor Ills soon fol­lowed, but these never engaged in aerial combat with German jet fighters. Instead, the British used them to intercept and destroy V-1 buzz bombs.