Häfeli DH-4

Häfeli DH-4
Role	fighter
Manufacturer	K+W
Designer	August Häfeli
First flight	early 1918
Primary user	Swiss Air Force
Number built	1

The Häfeli DH-4 was a Swiss fighter prototype in the late 1910s, build by the Eidgenoessische Konstruktionswerkstaette. The DH-4 was a single-seat fighter based on the successful Häfeli DH-3 design. It was made of wood with fabric covering, and carried one machine gun.

Operational history

The Swiss Air Force trialled it from May 1918 to August 1918, but the DH-4 was found to possess disappointing performance and poor handling. As such only one was ever produced and production ceased in late 1918.

List of operators

Switzerland

• Swiss Air Force

Specifications

Data from The Complete Book of Fighters

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 6 m (19 ft 8 in)
• Wingspan: 9.8 m (32 ft 2 in)
• Height: 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in)
• Wing area: 22 m² (240 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 640 kg (1,411 lb)
• Gross weight: 885 kg (1,951 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Hispano-Suiza HS-41 V-8 water-cooled piston engine, 112 kW (150 hp)
• Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

• Maximum speed: 148 km/h (92 mph, 80 kn)
• Range: 300 km (190 mi, 160 nmi)
• Endurance: 4 hours 30 minutes
• Rate of climb: 4.5 m/s (890 ft/min)
• Time to altitude: 1,829 m (6,000 ft) in 14 minutes

Armament

• Guns: 1 x synchronised machine gun