Heinkel P-1079, a new twin-jet fighter project of the Heinkel Aircraft Construction Corp. was designed in five variations, all under the same designation. The first of these advanced designs, the Heinkel P-1078A was basically developed as a two-seated night fighter.
The pilot and the gunner/navigator were sitting in tandem position. The wings were swept back 35 degrees, mounted to mid-fuselage. The tail had a V-shaped rudder. The armament were three Rheinmetall-Borsig MK 108 30mm cannons in the nose and 24 R4-M 'Orkan' high explosive rockets on two racks mounted under the wings.
Another feature of armament was the so-called 'schraege musik' with four upward-firing 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 autocannons, mounted in the back of the aircraft. Therefore, the night fighter had to approach and attack bombers from below, guided into position by commands from the navigator.
The aircraft should be equipped with the new FUG 228 radar unit. This sophisticated radar would have empowered the aircraft with an almost all-weather ability.
The engines were located in the wing roots. This version should be fitted with two Junkers Jumo 004D turbojet engines with two-stage fuel injector, each with 8.8 kN of power.
Max. speed was about Mach 0.89 = 950kph
Range 1079.22nm = 1241.9 sm = 2000 km
Max. Service Ceiling was up to 51,000 ft = 15,545m
