Hispano HA-1327 Golondrina

At the end of the second world war a number of leading engineers from the Messerschmitt company fled to Spain where they were warmly welcomed by the Spanish Air Force. The brought with them a large number of design drawings of late war Messerschmitt aircraft and projects and, even more importantly more than 200 Jumo 004 engines which had been produced in March and April 1945.

The Spanish Air Force was desperate to acquire more modern aircraft to replace the ageing Me-109E's which were leftovers from the civil war. The had started the license production of the Me-109G but lacked suitable engines. Trials were under way to power these with Hispano engines or even Rolls Royce Merlins.

The arrival of the Jumo jet engines opened up the prospect of producing jet aircraft in Spain. The first thought was to produce the Me-262. However the Messerschmitt staff managed to convince the Spaniards to let them develop a brand new jet fighter to equip the Spanish Air Force. This new aircraft was based on some preliminary designs of Messerschmitt and was designated HA-1327 Golondrina.

Detailed design commenced in September 1945 and the first prototype was rolled out in May 1946. The first flight was made on the 3nd of June 1946 and proved to handle quite well. Performance was a little below expectations but still good with a top speed of 895 km/h attained by the unarmed prototype. The only problem encountered was the short life time of the German engines.
The Spanish began to re-engineer the Jumo 004 using better materials which were much more heat resistant. This lead to a dramatic increase in engine life. Some other redesigns improved performance and reduced flame outs when the engines were revved quickly.

The second prototype made it first flight in August 1946. This was armed with four canon in the wing. As a result of the weight of the canon the top speed dropped to 850 km/h.
The Spanish Air Force ordered 120 HA-1327 fighters which were delivered between January 1948 and March 1949.
The HA-1327 stayed in active service until 1956 when it was replaced by the HA-1100 fighter that was developed by the same team as the HA-1327.