In comparison with the Vampire, it had a thinner wing and a more powerful de Havilland Ghost 103 turbojet engine, making the aircraft more suitable for high altitude flight.

The Venom had also proved to be popular on the export market, having been sold in substantial numbers to Iraq, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland and Venezuela.

[4] From the onset, the envisioned role had been intended as an interim fighter-bomber, while the development of aircraft capable of even greater performance had already been anticipated by the service.

[4][3] Although generally similar in appearance to the preceding Vampire, sharing the distinctive twin-boom tail and composite wood/metal structure, the Venom was a completely new design.

[4] The Venom adopted a wing designed with a leading edge sweepback of 17.6 degrees, a minimised thickness/chord ratio reduced from 14 per cent to 10 per cent, while the trailing edge was straight; a pair of optionally-fitted wing tip tanks were also designed to be fitted without any negative impact on the aircraft's overall combat manoeuvring capability.

In the course of these trials, the aircraft proved capable of satisfactory performance, including the besting of some contemporary fighters during mock combat, while some minor faults were also uncovered.

[10] de Havilland had developed it from the single seat ground attack-oriented Venom to serve as a replacement for the Vampire NF 10.

For this variant, the fuselage was redesigned to accommodate a two-man crew, (pilot and navigator/radar operator), seated in a side-by-side configuration, and an aircraft interception radar installed in the extended nose.

It was the first Venom to be fitted with an ejector seat, as well as being furnished with redesigned tail surfaces and hydraulically powered ailerons.

[21] In addition, the construction effort was augmented by numbers of Venom FB.1, FB.4 and NF.51 aircraft that were produced by Fairey Aviation at Manchester (Ringway) Airport.

[21] During the early 1950s, the prospects for Italian aircraft manufacturer Fiat Aviazione producing the type under license were explored; these did not materialise however.

[24] In the early 1970s, Swiss Venoms were equipped with a new extended nose to add space for the addition of a ultra high frequency (UHF) radio, an Identification friend or foe (IFF) transponder and a SAAB BT-9K ballistic computer that was used in conjunction with ground attack ordnance.

[25][26] The de Havilland Venom was a jet-propelled combat aircraft, featuring a distinctive twin-boom tail and composite wood/metal structure.

[27] It possessed a favourable rate of climb and other positive characteristics that lent itself well to combat operations, and represented a significant advance over the preceding Vampire.

[28] It was a sound ground attack aircraft, possessing good manoeuvrability, steadiness, endurance, handling, and a range of compatible stores.

[20] The Venom's manoeuvrability even gave it an edge against many dogfighters of the era, although its limited top speed proved to be a weakness in this role.

Early issues, such as a rear spar weakness and flash fires due to the ingestion of vented fuel by the engine air intakes under some conditions, were quickly identified and overcome.

[7] Early production Venoms commonly suffered from weaknesses within the wing structure, leading to flight limitations and warning markings being applied to distinguish them from typical aircraft.

[21] Upon their introduction to service, none of the single-seat fighter-bomber Venoms were deployed to home-based squadrons; priority was given to overseas forces, such as the Second Tactical Air Force stationed in Germany as well as those stationed in hotter climates where the benefits of the more powerful engine were most felt, such as Cyprus, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

[15] However, the night fighter Venom had only a relatively brief career with the RAF, having been procured to serve as an interim solution while more capable designs were developed.

[32] The Anglo-French invasion, codenamed Operation Musketeer, took place in response to the nationalisation of the Suez Canal by Egypt's leader, General Nasser.

The RAF conducted 1,635 raids, dropping 1,094 tons and firing 900 rockets at the interior of Oman between July and December 1958; insurgents were the primary targets, resulting various mountain top villages, water channels, and crops being struck in a conflict that remained relatively low profile internationally.

[24] In addition to the domestic production of 136 ground attack-orientated models and its Ghost engine to power them, Switzerland also produced a dedicated aerial reconnaissance variant of the aircraft, which were outfitted with specially modified underwing fuel tanks that had automated cameras installed in the forward section.