The British Superplane Doomed By Its Propellers: Westland Whirlwind

In this video, we take a look at the Westland Whirlwind, a British-made fighter, heavy fighter, and ground attacker from early World War II. We first talk about the necessity of altering and modifying aircraft, that being part of literally any designs career. We then talk about Britain's effort to re-arm in the 1930's, and how that led to a quest for a plane with unparalleled power. We talk about the multiple designs that were proposed for this quest, before looking at the one that was selected in the Westland P.9, renamed to the Whirlwind. We talk about the uniqueness of the Whirlwind design, in its overall design, still in development engines, and nose-mounted cannon armament. We talk about the sheer potential of the design, and how it was probably one of the best in the world in the late 1930's. We then talk about the delays in the project due to engine troubles, the later production of the Whirlwind, and how these production models were a significant downgrade over the prototype, in part due to a propeller swap. We end by talking about how the Whirlwind could have potentially ended WW2 early, using its impressive firepower to great effect against early war German armor.