Interwar RAF procurement was changing too quickly to fit a simple picture of a service already fixed around mature heavy-bomber doctrine. Some eye-catching public claims supported the case for funding, while actual procurement involved more complicated choices. Multi-engine bombers could use added power to gain speed and altitude while also carrying navigators for long-range and night operations. Without radar to direct an interception, a fighter had to find and catch that bomber under severe weight and crew constraints. Those pressures help explain interest in twin-engine and two-seat fighters before radar-directed interception transformed the problem.
Notable Point · 6:22-9:31
Why faster bombers complicated interwar air defence
Explore why engine power, altitude, navigation, and the absence of radar made the bomber-versus-fighter problem difficult before the war.