Dornier Do 335

what is it?

The Dornier Do 335 Pfeil (Arrow) is a heavy fighter built by Dornier for Germany during World War II. The Pfeil's performance was predicted to be better than other twin-engined designs due to its unusual push-pull configuration and the lower aerodynamic drag of the in-line alignment of the two engines. It is considered one of the fastest piston-engined aircraft ever and was Nazi Germany's fastest piston-engined aircraft of World War II. The Luftwaffe was desperate to get the design into operational use, but delays in engine deliveries meant that only a handful were delivered before the war ended, and it never saw combat. The Do 335 was originally designed as a Schnellbomber.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · low wing · 13.8 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 770 km/htop speed
• range 1,550 kmwithout refuelling
• size 9,600 kgmax take-off weight
• built 38made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 83 years ago, in 1943.
• 🏎️Top speed is 5.9× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 13.8 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🌍Range of 1,550 km: 9× Amsterdam to Brussels.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.3× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1943-10-26

introduced

1944

retired

1945

status

retired

number built

38

role

fighter-bomber

origin

Nazi Germany

makers

Dornier

engines

2× Daimler-Benz DB 603E-1 / Daimler-Benz DB 603

crew

1

length

13.9 m

wingspan

13.8 m

height

5 m

max take-off weight

9,600 kg

top speed

770 km/h

cruise speed

770 km/h

range

1,550 km

ceiling

11,900 m

wings

low wing

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.