The De Havilland DH.112 Venom was a jet combat aircraft developed at the De Havilland Aircraft Company based on the earlier de Havilland Vampire. A significant role in the development of this aircraft was played by the Polish designer Stanislaw Prauss (creator of the PZL.23 Karas), who found himself in Great Britain during the war and remained in exile after it ended.
The prototype was first flown on 2 September 1949, and in 1951 the first examples of the single-seat fighter-bomber version FB Mk.1 entered service. In 1953, the two-seat night fighter variant Venom NF Mk.2 appeared in RAF units, with a crew consisting of a pilot and a radar operator. This was followed by the improved NF Mk.3 variant, equipped with ejection seats, the more powerful Ghost 104 engine and the new American-made APS-57 radar. In total, 849 “land-based” Venoms were produced in Great Britain and 250 under licence in Switzerland.
The Sea Venom was a naval variant of the Venom NF Mk.2 fighter, adapted for operations from aircraft carrier decks, and thus equipped with folding wings and an arrestor hook for catching the wires that shortened the landing roll. Another Polish designer, Wsiewolod Jakimiuk (creator of the PZL P.11c fighter), was employed to develop this aircraft. He had previously created the DHC-1 Chipmunk training aircraft and the DHC-2 Beaver light transport at the Canadian division of De Havilland. The first variant to enter production was the FAW Mk.20, which was the equivalent of the Venom NF Mk.2 fighter.
Next came the most widely produced (167 out of 299 “naval” examples) FAW Mk.21, the equivalent of the Venom NF Mk.3, its export variant FAW Mk.53 for the Royal Australian Navy, and the FAW Mk.22, powered by the higher-thrust Ghost 105 engine. Sea Venoms were also produced under licence in France (95 examples under the name SNCASE Aquilon).
Sea Venom fighters were intensively used by the Fleet Air Arm (British naval aviation) in the 1950s. In October and November 1956, aircraft from 809, 892 and 893 squadrons of the FAA, stationed on HMS Albion and HMS Eagle, took part in Operation “Musketeer” – the UN-blocked attempt by British and French forces to retake the Suez Canal, nationalised by the Egyptian government. They also participated in conflicts in Yemen in 1957 and Cyprus in 1958. In 1959, they were replaced in combat units by DH.110 Sea Vixen aircraft. Several Sea Venoms FAW Mk.21 and Mk.22 were converted into electronic countermeasures aircraft ECM Mk.21 and Mk.22. In second-line FAA units, Sea Venoms served until 1970.
They also participated in conflicts in Yemen in 1957 and Cyprus in 1958. In 1959, they were replaced in combat units by DH.110 Sea Vixen aircraft. Several Sea Venoms FAW Mk.21 and Mk.22 were converted into electronic countermeasures aircraft ECM Mk.21 and Mk.22. In second-line FAA units, Sea Venoms served until 1970.
The museum specimen XG613 was used for flight testing throughout its service life – first from 1956 by De Havilland, then from 1958 for drop tank trials at the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at Boscombe Down, and from 1960 to 1969 at the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Bedford. In 1969, it was transferred to the Imperial War Museum and became part of the Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden, from where it was moved to Duxford in 1971. Purchased in 2012 by the Polish Aviation Museum and brought to Krakow in May 2013.
| Wingspan | 13.09 m |
| Length | 11.2 m |
| Takeoff weight | 6500 kg |
| Maximum speed | 925 km/h |
| Ceiling | 15000 m |
| Range | 1600 km |
| Armament | 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannons; 8 x 27 kg RP-3 unguided rockets or 2 x 450 kg MC bombs |
| Engine | turbojet Ghost 104 with 22 kN thrust |
