It was designed to take advantage of the newly developed Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet engine and the swept wing, and was the first jet-powered aircraft produced by Hawker to be procured by the RAF.

During the 1960s, following the introduction of the supersonic English Electric Lightning in the interceptor role, the Hunter transitioned to being operated as a fighter-bomber and for aerial reconnaissance missions, using dedicated variants for these purposes.

In accordance with this policy, aside from a small number of exceptions such as what would become the Hawker Sea Hawk for the Royal Navy, the majority of Specifications issued by the Air Ministry for fighter-sized aircraft during the late 1940s were restricted to research purposes.

[3] Aviation author Derek Wood describes this policy as being: "a fatal error of judgement which was to cost Britain a complete generation of fighters and heavy bomber aircraft".

[6] Seeking better performance and fulfilment of the Air Ministry Specification E.38/46, Sydney Camm designed the Hawker P.1052, which was essentially a Sea Hawk outfitted with a 35-degree swept wing.

On 19 June 1950, the P.1081 conducted its maiden flight, and was promising enough to draw interest from the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF); however, further development was stalled by difficulties with the engine's reheat.

The intakes were moved to the wing roots to make room for weapons and radar in the nose, and a more conventional tail arrangement was devised as a result of stability concerns.

[13] On 20 July 1951, the P.1067 made its maiden flight, flown by Neville Duke, from RAF Boscombe Down, powered by a single 6,500 lbf (28.91 kN) Avon 103 engine.

As an insurance against development problems on the part of the Avon engine, Hawker modified the design to accommodate another axial turbojet, the 8,000 lbf (36 kN) Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire 101.

[19] The type was also lauded for its quick turnaround time, enabled by features such as its removable gun pack and pressurised fuelling system, and for its easy handling in flight.

[22] As the RAF received newer aircraft capable of supersonic speeds to perform the air interceptor role, many Hunters were modified and re-equipped for undertaking ground-attack and reconnaissance missions instead.

[15] Early on in the Hunter's service the Avon engines proved to have poor surge margins, and worryingly suffered compressor stalls when the cannons were fired, sometimes resulting in flameouts.

[37] Some other revisions on the F.6 included a revised fuel tank layout, the centre fuselage tanks being replaced by new slightly smaller ones in the rear fuselage; the distinctive "dogtooth" leading edge extension (Mod 533) to alleviate the pitch-up problem; the "Mod 228" wing, with increased structural strength and four (rather than the previous two) "wet" hardpoints, finally giving the aircraft a good ferry range.

SAS forces would routinely call in air strikes that required considerable precision, and, predominantly using 3-inch high explosive rockets and 30 mm ADEN cannon, the Hunter proved an able ground-attack platform.

[50] Two-seat trainer versions of the Hunter, the T.7 and T.8, remained in use for training and secondary roles by the RAF and Royal Navy until the early 1990s; when the Blackburn Buccaneer retired from service.

[57] During the 1960s, Pakistan investigated the possibility of buying as many as 40 English Electric Lightnings, but Britain was unenthusiastic about the potential sales opportunity because of the damage it would do to its relations with India, which at the time was still awaiting the delivery of large numbers of ex-RAF Hunters.

The aircraft attacked Pakistani tanks, armoured personnel carriers and gun positions and contributed to the increasingly chaotic battlefield conditions, which ultimately led to the retreat of Pakistan's ground forces.

[70][Note 5] Hunters were also used for many ground-attack missions and raids inside Pakistan's borders, such as the high-profile bombing of the Attock Oil refinery to limit Pakistani fuel supplies.

[72] Due to unfavourable currency conditions and conflicting pressures on the military budget, several prospective procurements of modern aircraft such as the SEPECAT Jaguar and the British Aerospace Sea Harrier were put on hold following the 1971 war; the indigenously developed HAL HF-24 Marut had also not been as successful as hoped, thus the IAF decided to retain the ageing fleets of Hunters and English Electric Canberra bombers.

[73] After considering several foreign aircraft to replace the Hunter, including the Dassault Mirage F1, the Saab 37 Viggen, and several Soviet models, the Indian government announced its intention to procure 200 Jaguars, a large portion of which were to be assembled domestically, in October 1978.

[83][84][85] Swiss Hunters were operated as interceptors, with a secondary ground-attack role; from 1963 onwards, the outboard wing pylons were modified to carry two AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles.

At the time, considerable international controversy was generated as Britain (and, as was later revealed, the U.S.) had refused to sell Hunters to neighbouring Malaysia, sparking fears of a regional arms race and accusations of favouritism.

[100] By 1991, Singapore's fleet of combat aircraft included the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, the Northrop F-5 Tiger II, as well as the locally modernised and upgraded ST Aerospace A-4SU Super Skyhawk; the Hunters were active but obsolete in comparison.

[103] In August 2007, the Lebanese Armed Forces planned to put its Hunters back into service following the 2007 Lebanon conflict, to deal with Fatah al-Islam militants in the Nahr el-Bared camp north of Tripoli.

[105] On 12 November 2008, 50 years after its original introduction, the Lebanese Air Force returned four of its eight Hunters to service with 2nd Squadron, based at Rayak AB: one two-seater and three single-seaters.

[108] Rhodesia later deployed its Hunter FGA.9s extensively against ZANLA and ZIPRA guerrillas during the Rhodesian Bush War in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, occasionally engaging in cross-border raids over Zambia and Mozambique.

[1] In Somalia, the Siad Barre regime's fleet of ageing Hunters, often piloted by former Rhodesian servicemen, carried out several bombing missions against rebel units in the late 1980s.

While flying a Hunter from Iraqi Airbase H3, Flight Lieutenant Saiful Azam, on exchange from the Pakistan Air Force, shot down three Israeli jets including a Sud Aviation Vautour and a Mirage IIICJ.

[121] During the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, some of the Hunters were used by military officers as part of the effort to successfully overthrow the democratically elected president of Chile, Salvador Allende, on 11 September 1973.

The following morning, the aircraft were used to conduct bombing missions against Palacio de La Moneda, Allende's official residence in Santiago, and several radio stations loyal to the government.