Detailed history of one of the Third Reich’s most interesting weapons
from the end of the war, the He 162 light jet fighter
Heinkel's He162 Volksjäger ("People's Fighter") was a German
single-engine, jet-powered fighter aircraft from World War II. Designed and
built within three months, and made primarily of wood as metals were in
very short supply, the He162 was nevertheless the fastest of the first
generation of Axis and Allied jets. Three months later, it was
operational.
Volksjäger was the Reich Air Ministry's official name for the He162,
but it was also know as the “Salamander”, which was the codename of its
construction program. This book details what some might say was an industrial
masterpiece - a desperate last ditch weapon system that in its creation, became
a huge success as a innovation, and could have become yet more of an effective
and easy-to-use aerial weapon, had the war lasted longer.
Available July 2012
