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The Heinkel He-162 was a low cost fighter jet aircraft with only one engine. It was designed to be produced in large quantities. Although a single engine design, it was slightly faster in level flight than twin engine jets.
On September 8, 1944 the Luftwaffe requested an inexpensive jet powered fighter aircraft be developed to intercept Allied bombers. Only a little over three months later, on Dec. 6, 1944, the first Heinkel He-162 flew.
To keep costs down, the aircraft's fuselage was constructed of light metal alloy, while the nose of the aircraft and wing was made of plywood.
The engine of the Heinkel He-162 was mounted on top of the fuselage. This saved cost and construction time of not having to build an aircraft fuselage around the engine.
There are conflicting stories about the handling of the Heinkel He-162. While most agree that the position of the engine did not affect aircraft aerodynamics, some say that it made the aircraft top heavy, and unstable during flight. Other accounts are that the aircraft handled comparable to other fighter aircraft while having a higher top speed.
A number of problems were encountered with the first few Heinkel He-162 aircraft produced. This was largely a result of the demands for the aircraft to go into production quickly. The adhesive bonding the plywood was found to contain an acid which ate into it. Although production aircraft were produced with a different adhesive, prototypes were not. This resulted in the loss of an aircraft during a test flight on December 10, 1944 when the wing disintegrated.
By the February 1945 about 120 Heinkel He-162 aircraft had started replacing piston engine aircraft. However, no Heinkel He-162 aircraft ever saw combat due to the war ending.
At one time the Luftwaffe considered having the Hitler Youth fly the aircraft due to a lack of experienced pilots. After some experimenting, the idea was dropped. A jet aircraft was beyond the capabilities of all but the very best pilots.
A test variant of the Heinkel He-162 was designed to operate using low octane lawn mower type fuel, to ease Germany's fuel shortage. Another had forward swept wings. Experimental aircraft were tried with twin engines for interception missions.
When the Allies moved into Germany, they found about 800 Heinkel He-162 aircraft in various stages of construction at a number of underground facilities.
Eventually the British Royal Air Force acquired eleven of the aircraft for testing. We do not know the results of those tests.
