DOFLUG D-3802

Monoplane Fighter Aircraft

Switzerland | 1946

"The DOFLUG D-3802 was another French-originated fighter design taken on by the Swiss - only eleven pre-series aircraft and a single prototype were made."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 09/18/2021 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Following the production of several hundred units of the EKW D-3801 single-seat, single-engine monoplane fighter (based in the pre-World War 2 French Morane-Saulnier "MS.412" fighter design), the Swiss took to further development of another French-originated system in the Morane-Saulnier "MS.450". As the French were forced to end their involvement in the MS.450 program due to the June 1940 surrender at the hands of the invading Germans, Dornier-Werke AG, the Swiss-based arm of the same German company that produced the wartime Do 17 medium bomber and other solutions for the Luftwaffe, headed development of the new fighter - designated "D-3802" - in 1942.

Like other modern fighter mounts, the D-3802 was given all-metal construction with stressed skinning, a wholly-enclosed cockpit space, and fully-retractable undercarriage all centered around a streamlined, single-seat, single-engine monoplane configuration. Armament was similar to the proven Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter seeing a 20mm automatic cannon buried in the engine block and firing through the propeller hub at the nose. In addition to this, the fighter carried two machine guns to each wing mainplane for a formidable offensive punch.

The mainplanes were mounted low and ahead of midships. The cockpit sat just slightly ahead of center mass and aft of the engine installation at the nose. The D-3802 sported a canopy not unlike that of the German Bf 109, lightly-framed and boxy, while views to the rear were somewhat obstructed by the raised fuselage spine. The tail unit was capped by a single vertical plane with a pair of forward-set horizontal planes for the needed control. The undercarriage was of the typical "tail-dragger" arrangement, giving a pronounced "nose up" attitude of the aircraft when on the ground.

A first-flight of the D-3802 prototype was recorded on September 29th, 1944 and this form carried the Saurer YS-2 12-cylinder liquid-cooled engine of 1,250 horsepower - the engine a licensed, local copy of an original Hispano-Suiza design. From this spawned eleven pre-series airframes which featured reduced wingspans as well as modified outer panels. By this time, the armament suite was beefed up to encompass 20mm automatic cannons at each wing member in place of the original's machine guns. The resulting design (built by DOFLUG at Altenrhein in 1946) was designated as "D-3802A" and a first-flight was had on May 18th, 1946, the aircraft proving capable of exceeding 400 miles-per-hour.

By this time, however, World War 2 in Europe had ended in May of 1945 with Germany's formal surrender and, with an all-modern fighter solution no longer needed in the original numbers envisioned by the Swiss Air Force, the D-3802 existed only through the single prototype and eleven pre-series aircraft completed. These served with Fliegerstaffel 17 until retired in 1956.

At the same time that the D-3802 was seeing development, DOFLUG also funneled resources into a related variant known as the "D-3803". However, this aircraft also had its development cycle cut short by the end of the war and the subsequent glut of wartime surplus North American P-51D "Mustang" fighters becoming available worldwide - which the Swiss Air Force ended up purchasing in place of a local design. Thus ended the story of the D-3802 (and D-3803 for that matter).

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the DOFLUG D-3802 Monoplane Fighter Aircraft.

1 x Saurer (Hispano-Suiza) YS-2 12-cylinder, liquid-cooled inline piston engine developing 1,250 horsepower driving a three-bladed propeller unit at the nose.
Propulsion

391 mph
630 kph | 340 kts
Max Speed

332 mph
535 kph | 289 kts
Cruise Speed

30,003 ft
9,145 m | 6 miles
Service Ceiling

404 miles
650 km | 351 nm
Operational Range

2,795 ft/min
852 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the DOFLUG D-3802 Monoplane Fighter Aircraft.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

30.5 ft
9.31 m
O/A Length

32.9 ft
(10.02 m)
O/A Width

11.0 ft
(3.35 m)
O/A Height

5,512 lb
(2,500 kg)
Empty Weight

8,609 lb
(3,905 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the DOFLUG D-3802 Monoplane Fighter Aircraft .

PROTOTYPE:
1 x 20mm Hispano-Suiza HS-404 automatic cannon firing through the propeller hub.
4 x Machine guns in wings (two guns to a wing member).

PRE-SERIES:
1 x 20mm Hispano-Suiza HS-404 automatic cannon firing through the propeller hub.
2 x 20mm ispano-Suiza HS-404 automatic cannons in wings (one cannon to a wing member).

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the DOFLUG D-3802 family line.

D-3802 - Base Series Designation; single flyable prototype and eleven pre-series aircraft completed.

D-3803 - Offshoot variant of the D-3802 developed concurrently; revised fuselage with reworked canopy; fitted with Saurer YS-3 engine of 1,430 horsepower; 3 x 20mm cannon armament; not selected for production.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the DOFLUG D-3802. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 12 Units
Contractor(s): Dornier-Werke AG (DOGLUF) - Switzerland

[ Switzerland ]

1 / 1

Image from the Public Domain.

Going Further...
The DOFLUG D-3802 Monoplane Fighter Aircraft appears in the following collections:

HOME

AVIATION INDEX

AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY

AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks U.S. DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols US 5-Star Generals WW2 Weapons by Country

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes Global Firepower, WDMMA.org, WDMMW.org, and World War Next.

©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)