The Forgotten Fighter
Trumpeter

The Westland Whirlwind was a British twin-engined heavy fighter developed by Westland Aircraft. A contemporary of the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane, it was the Royal Air Force's first single-seat, twin-engined, cannon-armed fighter.

When it first flew in 1938, the Whirlwind was one of the fastest and most heavily-armed combat aircraft in the world. Protracted development problems with its Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines delayed the project and only a relatively small number of Whirlwinds were built.

During the Second World War, only three RAF squadrons were equipped with the Whirlwind, and despite its successful use as a fighter and ground attack aircraft it was withdrawn from service in 1943.