Ultimately, the Meteor was not great and not terrible. It was a steady, reliable bird, and proved useful for the British and Allied air forces.
The story of the Gloster Meteor begins with the visionary work of Sir Frank Whittle, who patented the turbojet engine concept in 1930. Indeed, the Gloster Meteor holds a distinguished place in aviation history as the first operational jet fighter fielded by the Allies during the Second World War.
Developed by the British Gloster Aircraft Company and powered by Whittle’s revolutionary turbojet engines, the Meteor was a quantum leap in technological capabilities for the British Royal Air Force. It was, in fact, the only jet-powered airplane the Allies had in WWII.
By the late 1930s, as war loomed in Europe, the British Air Ministry recognized the potential of jet propulsion and sought an aircraft to harness this technology. The Gloster Aircraft Company, known for producing sturdy fighters such as the Gladiator, was selected to develop the new jet fighter under the specification F.9/40. But the project, initially designated the Gloster G.41, faced significant challenges, including the untested nature of jet engines and the urgency of wartime demands—and delays in its construction allowed Germany to beat Britain to the punch.
The Meteor Marked the Start of Britain’s Jet Age
The first Meteor prototype, powered by two Whittle W.1 engines, took flight on March 5, 1943, at RAF Cranwell, piloted by Michael Daunt.
The Meteor’s design was conservative yet effective, reflecting the need for reliability in an uncharted field. It featured a conventional straight-wing configuration, a twin-engine layout with nacelles mounted under the wings, and a tricycle landing gear system—a rarity among fighters of the era.
Although its straight wing design limited high-speed compared to swept-wing designs, notably Germany’s iconic Messerschmitt Me 262, the Meteor’s robust construction and stable handling made it a practical first step into jet aviation. Its airframe was built primarily of aluminum, balancing strength with weight, and its twin-engine design offered redundancy—a critical feature given the early jet engines’ tendency to fail.
Early models, such as the Meteor F.1, were powered by Rolls-Royce Welland engines based on Whittle’s design, producing 1,700 pounds of thrust each, which gave the aircraft a top speed of around 410 miles per hour. Later variants, like the F.3 and F.4, adopted the more powerful Rolls-Royce Derwent engines, boosting speeds to over 600 mph. The Meteor was armed with four 20mm Hispano cannons in the nose, providing formidable firepower against both aircraft and ground targets.
The Meteor’s Baptism by Fire
The Gloster Meteor entered service with the RAF on July 27, 1944, with No. 616 Squadron becoming the first unit to operate this warplane. Its initial mission was to counter the German V-1 “buzz bomb” cruise missiles then terrorizing London.
The Meteor F.1’s speed allowed it to chase down and destroy V-1s, either by shooting them down or tipping them off course with wingtip contact—a technique that showcased both pilot skill and the aircraft’s agility. By August 1944, Meteors had claimed their first aerial victories against these pilotless weapons, proving the jet’s combat potential.
But unlike its German counterpart, the more famous Messerschmitt Me 262, the Meteor saw limited action against enemy aircraft during the war. The RAF kept the jet over British territory to protect its secrecy, and it did not engage Nazi Luftwaffe fighters until early May 1945, only days before Germany’s surrender. Indeed, its first confirmed kill occurred on May 4, 1945, against a Fieseler Fi 156 Storch. The war in Europe had ended well before the Meteor could fully demonstrate its capabilities in air-to-air combat.
And while the Germans made an earnest effort to expand the Me 262 to mass production—building roughly 1,400 of the aircraft by war’s end, though only a few hundred were ever operational at any given time—the Meteor scarcely inched beyond the prototype phase. Fewer than twenty Meteors were operational by the war’s end. Its engines, while groundbreaking, were underpowered compared to later designs, and its straight wings made it less maneuverable at high speeds than the swept-wing Me 262. Nevertheless, the Meteor’s reliability and ease of maintenance set it apart from its far more temperamental German rival.
A Starring Role in the Early Cold War
Ultimately, the true impact of the Gloster Meteor was not felt in WWII at all. It came after that conflict, during the early years of the Cold War against the Soviet Union. The Meteor was ubiquitous for the early Cold War defenses of Great Britain, where it served until the late 1950s.
What’s more, the Meteor saw protracted combat during the Korean War (1950-53) in the service of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). By this point, the Meteors were decidedly outclassed by swept-wing Soviet warplanes, but they still performed well against ground targets.
Ultimately, the Meteor was not great and not terrible. It was a steady, reliable bird, and proved useful for the British and Allied air forces. By the 1950s, it had been exported to over a dozen countries, including Argentina, Israel, and Egypt, showing its enduring popularity—if not its greatness.
About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert
Brandon J. Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest as well as a contributor at Popular Mechanics, who consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including the Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, the Asia Times, and countless others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.
Image: Shutterstock / Kev Gregory.
