Aircraft of the Battle of Britain Quiz

Answer: Dornier Do-17

The Dornier Do-17 was a twin engined bomber used extensively in the Battle of Britain. It was given the nickname "Flying Pencil" due to its construction (the boom/tail was very thin). They suffered heavy losses and were taken out of service after 1941.

Answer: Hawker Hurricane

The Hawker Hurricane was the RAF's first monoplane fighter, constructed of metal and wood/canvas, the Hurricane was the most used fighter of the RAF during the Battle of Britain. Although the Supermarine Spitfire was bettter known, it was the Hurricane which shot down the most German aircraft between June-August 1940.

Answer: Gloster Gladiator

The Gloster Gladiator was already an obsolete design when the war began. However, because of the desperate need of aircraft, it was kept in service during the Battle of Britain. It was armed with four machine-guns and had an enclosed cockpit.

Answer: Junkers Ju-88

The Junkers Ju-88 was a twin-engined bomber which was designed as a dive-bomber. It was the fastest in the Luftwaffe's bomber arsenal as well as the most poorly armed. It later became a very effective night fighter.

Answer: Boulton Paul Defiant

The Boulton Paul Defiant was unlike any other fighter. This aircraft had a turret mounted behind the pilot with four .303 calibre machineguns, which would fire at an unsuspecting bomber over London, late in the battle of Britain. Although it saw service as a day fighter, it had limited forward firing armament, so it was transfered to night fighter service over London until 1941 when the Bristol Beaufighter took over.

Answer: Bristol Beaufighter

The Bristol Beaufighter was the most heavily armed fighter of the time, armed with four .303 Browing machine-guns and four 20mm Hispanio cannons. The De Havilland, although also a 2 seater twin engined fighter, didn't enter service until three months after the Battle of Britain.

Answer: Messerschmitt Bf-109

The Messerschmitt Bf-109 (also known as the Messerschmitt Me-109) was the most advanced fighter design at the time. Although it was 20kmph faster then the Supermarine Spitfire and better armed, it only had a combat time of 10 minutes over England before running out of fuel and being forced to return to base.

In August 1941 the Focke Wulf 190 (Fw190), which was even faster than the Bf-109, entered service.

Answer: Junkers Ju-87 Stuka

The Ju-87, first used in the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939, was the most accurate bomber of the time. However due to its full metal construction, the bomber was slow, and an easy target for RAF fighters. They were moved to the Mediterranean, Balkan and Russian fronts.

Answer: Supermarine Spitfire

The Spitfire was the icon of the battle of Britain. It was extremely fast and very manoeuvrable.

Answer: Heinkel He-111

The Heinkel He-111 was Germany's workhorse. These were the most used bombers of the Luftwaffe during the entire war. It suffered severe losses due to its light protective armament.