DAR-14 Salamandra

After the war the new Bulgarian government wanted to rebuild the air force with the most modern aircraft they could find. They used a few Messerschmitt Me-109 fighter left behind after the war and were supplied with various Soviet piston engined aircraft. However, they were keen to move to jet fighters.



A small number of He-162 fighters was found and used as pattern aircraft for the DAR-14 Salamandra. This was not a straight copy of the He-162A but featured the V-tail of the proposed He-162C model. It did retain the A-type wing and BMW003 engine. The engines used were both captured German models and newly built examples.



From 1947 onwards deliveries were made to the Bulgarian air force which received a total of 48 aircraft. The original German engines were quickly phased out being very unreliable but with new built engines the type soldiered on until 1955 when the Bulgarian air force received new Soviet MiG-15 fighters.



Model: 1/48 Dragon with Antares resin V-tail conversion.