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Heinkel He 177
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He_177
The Heinkel He 177 Greif (Griffin) was a large, long-range heavy bomber flown by the Luftwaffe during World War II. The He 177 was the only operational long-range heavy bomber available to the Luftwaffe during the war years that had a payload/range capability similar to the four-engined heavy bombers flown by the USAAF and RAF in the European theatre; it had higher cruising and maximum speeds. Designed to a 1936 requirement known as Bomber A, the aircraft was originally intended to be a purely strategic bomber intended to support a long-term bombing campaign against Soviet industry in the Urals. In spite of its large, 30 metres (98 ft) wingspan, the design was limited to two engines. During the design, Luftwaffe doctrine came to stress the use of moderate-angle dive bombing, or "glide bombing", to improve accuracy. Applying the changes needed for this type of attack to such a large aircraft was unrealistic. To deliver the power required from only two engines on an aircraft this large, engines of at least 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW) were needed. Such designs were not well established and the DB 606 "power system" engine, combined with the cooling and maintenance problems caused by the tight nacelles, caused the engines to be infamous for catching fire in flight. Early models gained the nicknames Reichsfeuerzeug (Reich's lighter or Flaming Coffin) from Luftwaffe aircrew. The type matured into a usable design too late in the war to play an important role. It was built and used in some numbers, especially on the Eastern Front where its range was particularly useful. It is notable for its use in mass raids on Velikiye Luki in 1944, one of the late-war heavy bombing efforts by the Luftwaffe. It saw considerably less use on the Western Front, although it played a role during Operation Steinbock (baby blitz), against the UK in 1944. In early September 1944, the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) was ordered to supply an aircrew for an He 177 that the French Maquis would capture at an airfield in Blagnac near Toulouse, where elements of both the He 177 A-equipped KG 4 and KG 100 bomber wings were based. A transport and two escort fighters from the RAE flew to the area to leave the Royal Aircraft Establishment Chief Test Pilot Roland Falk and a flight engineer with the commando group. On 10 September, as Operation Dragoon was wrapping up in the southeast of France, the aircraft was captured and flown back to the UK by Wing Commander Roland Falk. Soon afterwards, Capt. Eric Brown, an RN pilot then posted to the RAE as a test pilot, flew the He 177. He wrote that the in-flight handling characteristics of the He 177 A-5 were "...positive about all axes, but the controls were all remarkably light for such a large aircraft. Indeed I had the feeling that the elevator was dangerously light and I was all too aware of the intelligence reports of He 177s breaking up in the air so I decided to treat this control very gently...The aircraft had an automatic pull-out device and an acceleration warning apparatus fitted, but it really was nailbiting to have to treat a giant like this immense Heinkel bomber as if it were made of glass. The stalling characteristics with flaps and undercarriage lowered, the aircraft buffeted violently at 140 km/h (87 mph) before the nose dropped at 135 km/h (84 mph). The buffet experienced was so violent that I had some concerns over structural damage. Somehow the He 177 always conveyed an impression of fragility despite its size." He added that it was "one of the very few German aircraft of the period that I tested that I did not enjoy flying". Role Long-range heavy bomber Manufacturer Heinkel Flugzeugwerke Licensed to Arado Designer Siegfried Günter First flight November 1939 Introduction 1942 Retired 1945 Primary user Luftwaffe Number built 1,169 Variants Heinkel He 274 By February 1943: Heinkel He 277 Amerika Bomber Beset by technical difficulties in development, the He 177 had a troubled history in service. Unduly demanding design requirements of long range, high speed, heavy bomb load, and the formerly required dive bombing capability compounded the problems. Although the He 177 entered service in 1942, it was far from operational. In an assessment of the aircraft on 9 April 1942, the newly activated Erprobungsstaffel 177 reported that the Greif had good flying characteristics, but had unacceptable engine troubles and problems with its airframe strength. As an emergency measure, it was used to supply the encircled 6th Armee at Stalingrad, where it was found to be unsuited for the transport role, carrying little more cargo than the smaller and more reliable Heinkel He 111, and proving useless for the evacuation of wounded. As a result, the He 177s reverted to bombing and flak-suppression missions near Stalingrad. Only thirteen missions were flown, and seven He 177s were lost to fire without any action attributable to the enemy. As the war progressed, He 177 operations became increasingly ineffective. Fuel and personnel shortages presented difficulties, and He 177s were sitting on airfields all over Europe awaiting new engines or engine related modifications. Of the fourteen He 177 A-3s (the primary subtype in use) that were sent out during Operation Steinbock, one suffered a burst tyre, and eight returned with overheating or burning engines. Of the four that reached London, one was lost to night fighters. These aircraft were brand new, delivered a week before the operation and not fully flown in, because the air unit had moved to a new airfield the day before and lacked sufficient maintenance personnel and material. Constant attacks against Luftwaffe long-range combat units in France made continuous operations difficult. On the Eastern Front, the most notable action by the He 177 was a mass raid of some eighty-seven aircraft against railway targets in the Velikiye Luki area, about 450 km (280 mi) west of Moscow on 19 July 1944. The participating Staffeln flew in three large attack wedges of about thirty aircraft, each loaded with four 250 kg (551 lb) or two 500 kg (1,102 lb) bombs. During this action, carried out in daylight at altitudes in excess of 6,000 m (19,690 ft), losses were relatively light. The Soviet Air Force, equipped mainly for low-level interception and ground-attack roles, could do little to hinder the high-flying bombers. In common with most piston-engined German bombers, the He 177 was grounded from the summer of 1944 due to the implementation of the Emergency Fighter Program as well as the Allied bombing of German fuel production facilities. Specifications (He 177 A-5/R2) General characteristics Crew: 6 Length: 22 m (72 ft 2 in) Wingspan: 31.44 m (103 ft 1¾ in) Height: 6.67 m (21 ft 10 in) Wing area: 100.00 m² (1,076.40 ft²) Empty weight: 16,800 kg (37,038 lb) Loaded weight: 32,000 kg (70,548 lb) Powerplant: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 610 "power systems", each one created from a twinned-pair of Daimler-Benz DB 605 inverted V12 engines, 2,900 PS (2,133 kW) each Performance Maximum speed: 565 km/h (351 mph) at 6,000 m (19,685 ft) Stall speed: 135 km/h (84 mph) Combat radius: 1,540 km (957 mi) Ferry range: 5,600 km (3,480 mi) Service ceiling: 8,000 m (26,246 ft) Rate of climb: 190 m/min (623 ft/min) Wing loading: 303.9 kg/m² (62.247 lb/ft²) Armament Guns: 1 × 7.92 mm MG 81 machine gun in Cabin 3 "fishbowl" nose glazing with 1,000 rounds 1 × 20 mm MG 151 cannon in forward ventral Bola gondola position with 300 rounds 1 × 13 mm MG 131 machine gun in rear ventral Bola gondola position with 1,000 rounds 2 × 13 mm MG 131 machine guns in Fernbedienbare Drehlafette FDL 131Z remotely operated forward dorsal turret, full 360° traverse with 1,000 rounds 1 × 13 mm MG 131 machine gun in manned Hydraulische Drehlafette HDL 131/1 aft dorsal turret with 1,000 rounds 1 × 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon in tail position with 800 rounds Bombs: Up to 7,000 kilograms (15,000 lb) of ordnance internally, up to 2,500 kg (5,500 lb) externally on each ETC 2000 underwing rack, or up to 3 Fritz X or Henschel Hs 293 PGMs (w/FuG 203 Kehl MCLOS transmitter installed) externally 48 × 50 kg (110 lb) bombs (2,400 kg/5,291 lb total) 12 × 250 kg (551 lb) bombs (3,000 kg/6,613 lb total) 6 × 500 kg (1,102 lb) bombs (3,000 kg/6,613 lb total) 6 × LMA III mines (3,000 kg/6,613 lb total) 2 × 1,800 kg (3,968 lb) bombs (3,600 kg/7,936 lb total) 4 × LMB III mines (4,000 kg/8,818 lb total) 2 × 1,800 kg (3,968 lb) bombs + 2 × LMA III mines (4,600 kg/10,141 lb total) 10 × 500 kg (1,102 lb) bombs (5,000 kg/11,023 lb total) 2 × 2,500 kg (5,511 lb) bombs (5,000 kg/11,023 lb total) 2 × 1,000 kg (2,204 lb) bombs + 2 × 1,800 kg (3,968 lb) bombs (5,600 kg/12,345 lb total) 4 × 1,400 kg (3,086 lb) bombs (5,600 kg/12,345 lb total) 6 × 1,000 kg (2,204 lb) bombs (6,000 kg/13,227 lb total) 4 × 1,700 kg (3,748 lb) bombs (6,800 kg/14,992 lb total) 2 × 1,800 kg (3,968 lb) bombs + 2 × 1,700 kg (3,748 lb) bombs (7,000 kg/15,432 lb) 2 × FX 1400 Fritz X + 1 × FX 1400 Fritz X under the wings and fuselage (w/FuG 203 Kehl MCLOS transmitter installed) 2 × Hs 293 or 294 + 1 × Hs 293 or 294 under the wings and fuselage (w/FuG 203 Kehl MCLOS transmitter installed) 2 × 500 kg (1,102 lb) bombs internally + 2 × Hs 293 under the wings (w/FuG 203 Kehl MCLOS transmitter installed) 2 × LT 50 torpedoes under the wing * http://dioramas-and-models.com/heink...0%20greif.html The He 177 vs. Allied bombers German hopes for a long-range bomber force to compare with those of the western Allies ended with the flameout of the He 177. Although it was the fuel famine which finally amputated the Luftwaffe heavy-bomber arm, the design of the He 177 was probably too complicated and advanced to achieve the same status as the Flying Fortress and the Lancaster. The reason for the success of the Allied bombers was that they were built to be flown and maintained by conscripts - they were easy to fly, they forgave fools, and they were simple enough to be kept in action by men with comparatively little training. On the other hand, the He 177 with its many advanced features would not tolerate fools and was far more complicated than any of its Allied counterparts. Therein lay the seeds of its downfall. The He 177 can in many ways be compared with the Boeing B-29 Superfortress which also took about two years to have its problems ironed out, after which it found success. However the He 177 was never to achieve its full potential. The He 177 looked like a 2-engine bomber, but it was far from small. The Greif was just some two feet smaller than the Flying Fortress, was much faster and could deliver far more bombs and fly longer distances. * |
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