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The British Air Ministry placed an order for a flyable version of Whittle's engine in June 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Whittle#Development_of_the_turbojet_engine. The He-178 and its engine were developed as a private venture funded by Ernst Heinkel, and it made its first successful flight on August 27, 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He_178. The generally accepted "official" beginning of WWII was Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II. Jet engine and aircraft development would almost certainly have been slower without the war, but the basic technology was already there or in work when it started and would in all likelyhood have been further pursued even if the war never happened.Martin
The British Air Ministry placed an order for a flyable version of Whittle's engine in June 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Whittle#Development_of_the_turbojet_engine. The He-178 and its engine were developed as a private venture funded by Ernst Heinkel, and it made its first successful flight on August 27, 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He_178. The generally accepted "official" beginning of WWII was Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II. Jet engine and aircraft development would almost certainly have been slower without the war, but the basic technology was already there or in work when it started and would in all likelyhood have been further pursued even if the war never happened.
Martin
