Soon after the 801 entered testing, BMW engineers turned to building much larger versions. One idea was to “simply” bolt two 801’s back to back. Although seemingly simple, the resulting BMW 803 was in fact fantastically complicated, even giving up on air cooling to be liquid-cooled instead, and generally proved that piston engines of this size were unworkable. Another idea was to simply add more cylinders to the 801 design, and since radials need to have an odd number of cylinders per row, the next “size up” was a two-row 9-cylinder design, the 802, which emerged having an almost identical displacement to the Wright R-3350 Duplex Cyclone American 18-cylinder twin-row air-cooled radial aviation engine.
One problem with the 801 was its poor altitude performance, due almost entirely to the simple single-stage two-speed mechanical supercharger it used. Since the 802 was not a necessity given the success and emerging flexibility of the 801’s basic design, the engineers decided to take the time needed to address this problem by including an improved three-speed supercharger. The lowest-speed setting would not “rob” as much power at low altitudes, allowing the engine to produce 2,600 PS (1,912 kW) for takeoff, and still produce 1,600 PS (1,176 kW) at 39,000 ft (12,000 m). This was a dramatic improvement on the 801A’s 1,600 PS (1,176 kW) for takeoff and 1,380 PS (1,015 kW) maximum at 15,100 ft (4,600 m), especially notable considering the engine was less than 30% larger in displacement.
Development was still underway in late 1943 when BMW decided the project simply wasn’t worthwhile. With their BMW 003 axial-flow turbojet engine finally maturing and considerably larger models of turbojet and even turboprop powerplants entering the prototype phase from both BMW and their competitors, it appeared that large piston engines simply weren’t worth building.
A further improvement led to P.8011, which replaced the supercharger with two smaller turbochargers, driving contra-rotating propellers. This raised the takeoff power to about 2,800 PS (2,059 kW), (some report 2,900 PS (2,133 kW)) and dramatically improved altitude performance. As with most German turbocharger projects, the lack of quality high-temperature alloys meant the project was never able to enter production.
BMW 802 Type: 18-cylinder supercharged two-row radial engine Bore: 156 mm (6.142 in) Stroke: 156 mm (6.142 in) Displacement: 53.671 L (3,275.2 in³) Valvetrain: One intake and one sodium-cooled exhaust valve per cylinder Supercharger: Gear-driven single-stage three-speed Fuel system: Fuel injection Cooling system: Air-cooled Power output: 1,912 kW (2,563 hp) for takeoff 1,176 kW (1,575 hp) at 12,000 m (39,000 ft) Specific power: 35.6 kW/L (0.78 hp/in³) Compression ratio: 6.5:1
In the 1930s, BMW took out a license to build the Pratt & Whitney Hornet engines. By the mid-30s they had introduced an improved version, the BMW 132. The BMW 132 was widely used, most notably on the Junkers Ju 52, which it powered for much of that design’s lifetime.
In 1935 the RLM funded prototypes of two much larger radial designs, one from Bramo, the Bramo 329, and another from BMW, the BMW 139. BMW bought Bramo soon after the projects started; unsurprisingly BMW folded the Bramo engineers into the BMW project, cancelling the Bramo design. The resulting proposal was essentially a two-row version of the BMW 132, the 1,550 PS (1,529 hp, 1,140 kW) BMW 139.
The BMW 139 was originally intended to be used in roles similar to those of the other German radials, namely bombers and transport aircraft, but mid-way through the program Kurt Tank suggested it for use in the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighter project. Radial engines were rare in European designs as they were considered to have too large an area for good streamlining and would not be suitable for high speed aircraft. However, radials were often used in American and Japanese fighters at the end of the 1930s, and improvements in the cowlings for radial engines were reducing the concerns about drag. Tank felt that attention to detail could result in a streamlined radial that would not suffer undue drag, and would be competitive with inlines.
The main concern was providing cooling air over the cylinder heads, which generally required a very large opening at the front of the aircraft. Tank’s solution for the BMW 139 was to use an engine-driven fan behind an oversized prop-spinner, blowing air past the engine cylinders, with some of it being drawn through S-shaped ducts over a radiator for oil cooling. However this system proved almost impossible to operate properly with the BMW 139; early prototypes of the Fw 190 demonstrated terrible cooling problems. Although the problems appeared to be fixable, since the engine was already fairly dated in terms of design, in 1938 BMW proposed an entirely new engine designed specifically for fan-cooling that could be brought to production quickly.
The BMW 801 would eventually be fitted with a magnesium alloy cooling fan that rotated at 1.72 times the crankshaft speed (3.17 times the propeller speed). This provided effective cooling although at the cost of about 70 PS (69 hp, 51.5 kW) required to drive the fan when the aircraft was at low speed. Above 170 miles per hour (270 km/h), the fan absorbed little power directly.
The cowling used for the BMW 801 was generally identical for almost every aircraft it was fitted onto, as it was designed and supplied by the BMW firm itself. The oil cooling provision existed within the curved forward section of the cowl, just aft of a 360º perimeter armored metal ring forming the cowl’s extreme forward component, and had airflow directed to flow from the inside of the cowl, over the oil-cooling core block and drawn out into the cooling fan’s slipstream within the cowl and over the engine cylinders. Integrating the oil cooling provision within the cowling’s sheet metal made it more possible to “unitize” a powerplant installation, with minimal exterior fluid and mechanical mounting and control linkage connections – the ideas behind it were inspired by the Kraftei standardized format engine mounting, possibly first done on the liquid-cooled Junkers Jumo 211 inverted V12 liquid-cooled engine. The Jumo 211 most often used an integrated annular radiator for both the engine coolant and motor oil just behind the prop for a unitized installation, as used for the many examples of the Junkers Ju 88 built, an airframe that just as easily could take a pair of BMW 801 radial engines with minimal design changes.
Differences between the BMW 139 and the new design were fairly minor and limited primarily to details except for the use of fourteen larger cylinders instead of eighteen smaller ones. The engine’s cylinders were in two rows of seven, the bore and stroke were both 156 millimetres (6.1 in), giving a total capacity of 41.8 litres (2,550 cu in). The unit (including mounts) weighed from 1,010 to 1,250 kg and was about 1.29 m (51 in) across, depending on the model.
The new design was given the name BMW 801 after BMW was given a new block of “109-800” engine numbers by the RLM to use after their merger with Bramo. The BMW 801 retained the BMW 139’s older-style single-valve intake and exhaust, while most engines of the era had moved to four valves per cylinder, or in British use, sleeve valves. Several advances were worked into the design, including the use of sodium-cooled valves and a fuel injection system. The supercharger was rather basic in the early models, using a single-stage two-speed design directly geared to the engine (unlike the DB 601’s hydraulically clutched version) which led to rather limited altitude performance, in keeping with its intended medium-altitude usage. One key advancement was the Kommandogerät (command-device), a mechanical-hydraulic unit that automatically adjusted engine fuel flow, propeller pitch, supercharger setting, mixture and ignition timing in response to a single throttle lever, dramatically simplifying engine control.
The first BMW 801A’s ran in April 1939, only six months after starting work on the design, with production commencing in 1940. The 801B was to be identical to the 801A except turning the airscrew in the opposite direction (counterclockwise, as seen from behind the engine) using a different gearbox. The A and B models were intended to be used in pairs on twin-engine designs, cancelling out net torque and making the plane easier to handle. There’s no confirmation the 801B ever left the prototype stage.The initial BMW 801 series had a lot of overheating problems especially with cylinders in the rear cylinder row and a number of efforts were improvised in an attempt to cure them. The BMW 801A/B/C/L engines delivered 1,560 PS (1,539 hp, 1,147 kW) for takeoff. Major applications of the 801A/L engines include multiple variants of the Junkers Ju 88 and Dornier Do 217.
The BMW 801C was developed for use in single- or multi-engined fighters and included a new hydraulic prop control and various changes intended to improve cooling, including cooling “gills” on the cowling behind the engine. The BMW 801L was an A model with the hydraulic prop control mechanism introduced with the 801C engine. The 801C was almost exclusively used used in early variants of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190A.
The 801C was replaced with the BMW 801 D-2 series engines in early 1942, which ran on C2/C3 100 octane fuel instead of the A/B/C/L’s B4 87 octane, boosting takeoff power to 1,700 PS (1,677 hp, 1,250 kW). The D-2 models were tested with a system for injecting a 50-50 water-methanol mixture known as MW50 into the supercharger output to cool the charge, and thereby reduce backpressure. Some performance was gained but at the cost of engine service life and other boost systems, using fuel for charge cooling (known as C3-injection), were developed and used until 1944. The serious fuel shortage in 1944 forced re-evaluating the MW50 system which was then installed instead of the C3-injection. With MW50 boosting takeoff power increased to 2,000 PS (1,470 kW), the C3-injection was initially only permitted for low altitude use and raised take-off power to 1870 PS. Later C3-injection systems were permitted for low-to-medium altitude use and raised take-off power to more than 1900 PS. The BMW 801G-2 and H-2 models were D-2 engines modified for use in bomber roles with lower gear ratios for driving larger propellers, clockwise and counterclockwise respectively. Just like the 801B engine the 801H-2 engine did not leave the prototype stage
With the engine now being used in higher-altitude fighter roles, a number of attempts were made to address the limited performance of the original supercharger. The BMW 801E was a modification of the D-2 using supercharger gear ratios tuned to higher altitudes. Although takeoff power was unaffected, cruise power increased over 100 hp (75 kW) and “high power” modes for climb and combat were likewise improved by up to 150 hp (110 kW), with the possibility of turning up to a four meter diameter, three-blade propeller for multi-engined use, such as on the proposed Heinkel He 277 Amerika Bomber four engined strategic bomber design. The E model was also used as the basis for the BMW 801R, which included a much more complex and powerful two-stage four-speed supercharger. Continued improvements to the basic E model led to the BMW 801F, which dramatically improved performance across the board, with takeoff power increasing to 2,400 hp (1,790 kW). It was planned to use the F on all late-model Fw 190’s, but the war ended before production started.
A number of attempts were made to use turbochargers on the BMW 801 series as well. The first used a modified BMW 801D to create the BMW 801J, delivering 1,810 PS (1,785 hp, 1,331 kW) at takeoff and 1,500 hp (1,103 kW) at 40,000 ft (12,200 m), an altitude where the D was struggling to produce 630 hp (463 kW). The BMW 801E was likewise modified to create the BMW 801Q, delivering a superb 1,715 hp (1,261 kW) at 40,000 ft (12,200 m), power ratings no existing Allied radial engine of a similar displacement could touch. However none of these engines ever entered production due to high costs, and the various high-altitude designs based on them were forced to turn to other engines entirely, typically the Junkers Jumo 213.
Engines were typically delivered from BMW complete in their cowling, ready to be bolted to the front of the aircraft, since 1942 as Motoranlage (M) and 1944/1945 as Triebwerksanlage (T). The Motoranlage was the original form of the interchangeable Kraftei, or “power-egg”, unitized powerplant installation concept used in many German wartime aircraft. It was most often used with twin and multi-engined designs, with some need for external add-ons, and the Triebwerksanlage was the Motoranlage plus some external mountings, such as exhaust pipes, as a completely interchangeable unit, still within the Kraftei definition. Both M and T formats were also used with various inline engines, like the Daimler-Benz DB 603 used for both the inline-engined versions of the Do 217 and the enormous Bv 238 flying boat, and the Junkers Jumo 213 powerplants used for later marks of the Ju 88 multirole aircraft.
The M and T unitized engine formats added secondary designator suffixes, which confuse the naming considerably, as they initially referred to these complete kits and their “bare” engine counterparts almost interchangeably. The A, B and L models were known (logically) as Motoranlage style MA, MB and ML engines in this form, but the common D-2 apparently initiated the “differing” second suffix letter usage when unitized into a Motoranlage powerplant unit, and was instead known as the MG. Deepening the confusion, the E model was delivered as the Triebwerksanlage style TG or TH, seemingly suggesting a relation to the G and H engines, but in fact those were delivered as the TL and TP. It is rather common to see the turbocharged versions referred to only with the T as Triebwerksanlage installations, notably the (most notoriously of all) TJ, and the TQ models, further confusing the issue.
Production versions of the engine generated between 1,560 and 2,000 PS (1,540-1,970 hp, or 1,150-1,470 kW). It was the most produced radial engine of Germany in World War II with more than 28,000 built.
BMW 801 F 2,400 PS (2,367 hp, 1,765 kW), development halted by the end of the war
Applications:
Blohm & Voss BV 141 Blohm & Voss BV 144 Dornier Do 217 Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Focke-Wulf Fw 191 Heinkel He 277 Junkers Ju 88 Junkers Ju 188 Junkers Ju 288 Junkers Ju 388 Junkers Ju 290 Junkers Ju 390 Messerschmitt Me 264
BMW 801 C Type: 14-cylinder supercharged two-row air-cooled radial engine Bore: 156 mm (6.15 in) Stroke: 156 mm (6.15 in) Displacement: 41.8 litres (2,560 in³) Length: 2,006 mm (79 in) Diameter: 1,290 mm (51 in) Dry weight: 1,012 kg (2,226 lb) Valvetrain: One intake and one sodium-cooled exhaust valve per cylinder Supercharger: Gear-driven single-stage two-speed Fuel system: Fuel injection Cooling system: Air-cooled Power output: 1,560 PS (1,539 hp, 1,147 kW) at 2,700 rpm for takeoff at sea level Specific power: 27.44 kW/L (0.60 hp/in³) Compression ratio: 6.5:1 Specific fuel consumption: 0.308 kg/(kW·h) (0.506 lb/(hp·h)) Power-to-weight ratio: 1.13 kW/kg (0.69 hp/lb)
The FGP 227 was a ¼ scale flying model of the Blohm & Voss BV 238 flying boat, built to provide data for the development of the BV 238. The FGP 227 was a faithful scale model with accommodation for a pilot in the front cockpit and a flight test observer in a cockpit aft of the wing. Power was supplied by six 15.7 kW (21 hp) ILO F 12/400 air-cooled two-stroke engines driving three bladed propellers.
Completed early in 1944 the FGP 227 (BQ+UZ) was fitted with a temporary wheeled undercarriage of ten small wheels fitted with low-pressure tyres. Intended to allow flight tests to commence from the manufacturers airfield, the FGP 227 refused to take-off from the grass airfield. To allow flight test to begin the aircraft was dismantled and transported to Erprobungsstelle See, Travemünde, (E-Stelle – flying boat testing station). During transport French prisoners of war loading the wing onto flat-bed trucks allowed it to fall from a crane causing damage which was not repaired until September 1944.
Flight tests commenced in September 1944 as soon as the repairs were completed, but all six engines stopped due to fuel starvation soon after take-off, resulting in a heavy landing on the water. The FGP 227 was again repaired after which the aircraft flew several more times. However, by this time the BV 238 programme had been halted, not least because BV 238 V1 had been sunk at its moorings on Lake Schaal by allied fighters, so no useful data were gleaned from the programme.
Engines: 6 × ILO F 12/400 air-cooled two-stroke, 15.7 kW (21.1 hp) each Propellers: 3-bladed fixed pitch propellers Wingspan: 15.25 m (50 ft 0 in) Wing area: 24.24 m2 (260.9 sq ft) Length: 11.95 m (39 ft 2 in) Empty weight: 1,250 kg (2,756 lb) Gross weight: 1,640 kg (3,616 lb) Crew: 2
Originally designed as a passenger flying boat for the postwar Lufthansa, the BV 238 design was adapted in 1941 for military use as a maritime patrol and transport aircraft. When completed in 1944 it was the largest aircraft since the Maxim Gorkii and the heaviest built to that time.
Bv.238
A quarter-scale testbed called the FGP 227 was deemed necessary to test the aerodynamics and water handling, but it completely failed to take off when tested on wheels and was then damaged by saboteurs. All the engines seized on the FGP 227 first flight from water — months after the first full-scale BV 238 flew in April of 1944, powered by six Daimler Benz inverted V-12 engines.
Bv.238
The sole complete BV 238 was caught on a lake by P-51 Mustangs and sunk by machine-gun fire in September 1944. Although three further BV 238s and three BV 250 landplane bombers were under construction, the loss of the only flying example caused the Luftwaffe to give up on the idea.
Bv 238 V-1 Engines: 6 x 1900hp Daimler-Benz DB 603G inline piston Wingspan: 60.17 m / 197 ft 5 in Length: 43.36 m / 142 ft 3 in Height: 12.80 m / 41 ft 12 in Empty Weight: 120,593lbs (54,700kg) Maximum Take-Off Weight: 187,393lbs (85,000kg) Max. speed: 425 km/h / 264 mph Maximum Range: 4,474miles (7,200km) Service Ceiling: 23,950ft (7,300m)
Germany’s foremost shipbuilder, the Blohm und Voss Schiffsweft of Hamburg, established an aircraft¬ manufacturing subsidiary on 4 July 1933. It was this youthful and relatively inexperienced concern that was selected by Deutsche Lufthansa (DLH) in preference to the immensely more experienced Dornier and Heinkel companies for the develop¬ment of a transatlantic flying boat only marginally smaller than the Dornier Do X. By 31 May 1937, when the Hamburger Flugzeugbau As the Blohm und Voss subsidiary was then known submitted its Projekt 54 transatlantic flying boat design study to DLH, the company had still to celebrate its fourth anniversary, and its practical experience with waterborne aircraft was limited to two prototypes of its first seaplane, the Ha 139. Nevertheless, on 19 September, the Hamburger Flugzeugbau was recipient of an order for three flying boats. The definitive DLH specification called for luxurious and spacious accommodation for 24 passengers by day, with an alternative arrangement for 16 sleeping berths. While this was being finalised, a thorough evaluation of the hydrodynamic characteristics of the proposed planing bottom of the new flying boat was undertaken with models by the Deutschen Schiffsbau Versuchsanstalt (DSV). This planing bottom was novel in that the length to beam ratio was 8.4 compared with the generally accepted ratio of the order of 6, this having been selected by the Hamburger Flugzeugbau team, headed by Dr Ing Richard Vogt, in order to reduce both hydrodynamic and aerodynamic drag.
Other novelties proposed included electrically actuated retractable floats arranged to split vertically, each half rotating through a 90 deg arc to lie flush within the wing, and a part servo and part manual control system. The structural design was conventional except insofar as it incorporated the fuel carrying tubular mainspar that had been developed by Dr Ing Vogt while working in Japan, this being sub divided by bulkheads to accommodate six 759 Imp gal (3 450 1) fuel tanks, and carrying via welded steel tube extensions the six BMW 132H nine cylinder radial engines by which it was proposed that the massive flying boat was to be powered. Detail structural design began in January 1938, the designation Ha 222 initially assigned to the flying boat having meanwhile been changed to BV 222 with the change in the title of the Hamburger Flugzeugbau to that of Abteilung Flugzeugbau der Schiffswerft Blohm und Voss. The first metal was cut during the course of the year at Wenzendorf, near Hamburg, while work began on a larger, more modern facility at Finkenwerder where it was proposed that assembly should take place. Despite the commencement of hostilities in September 1939, work on this ambitious commercial flying boat continued unallayed, and on 16 July 1940, DLH representatives inspected a full scale mock up of the interior, although it was becoming obvious that the airline stood little chance of adding the BV 222 to its fleet. Dr Ing Richard Vogt, leader of the BV 222’s design team, revealed that the BV 222 was intended from the outset as the forerunner of an even larger machine (ie, the BV238) and that the servo tab control system was selected in preference to an even more sophisticated power assistance system as it was likely to give less production repeatability trouble, a lower maintenance load and a more desirable method of emergency operation. In fact, the system was not pure servo tab control, but part servo and part manual. Each aileron was divided into two unequal sections, the large inboard section being fitted with a servo tab which had a follow up ratio of 0.6, both aileron and tab being aerodynamically balanced and the balance system consisting of Blohm und Voss patented “paddles” differentially controlled wind vanes previously employed by the tri motored BV 138. The “paddle” balance permitted an adjustment of the force to apply aileron and also enabled the pilot to adjust the stick free dihedral stability as required. The smaller outboard section of the aileron was operated by servo motor through a complex gearing action, but with the linkage direct to the pilot’s control wheel, while its trim tab was operated from the cockpit through rotating rods. Thus, both aileron sections moved in unison in response to the controls under normal circumstances, and in the event of the control linkage being severed, both sections were designed to float neutral. Each elevator was divided into three sections, the outboard section being used only for trimming and operated by an electric motor, the switch for this being adjacent to the flap control to ease the trimming out of pitching movements with the application of flap. The centre portion of the elevator was also driven by an electric motor, but was not connected to the pilot’s wheel and had its tab locked central. This could be utilised as a normal power operated surface activated by the electric motor, be operated by the auto pilot, moving according to the attitude of the aeroplane, or be disconnected from the motor and allowed to float in the trailing position. The normal flight crew was intended to comprise 11 members, consisting of two pilots, two flight engineers, a navigator, a radio operator and five gunners. The structure was conventional, apart from the 4 ft 9 in (1,45 m) diameter welded steel tubular wing spar which was sub divided by bulkheads into six separate fuel compartments each with a capacity of 633.5 Imp gal (2 880 1) of Diesel K 1, the similar number of oil tanks each containing 37.4 Imp gal (170 1). The fuel tanks were pressure filled from the front wing catwalk, which also gave access to the rear of the engines, and the tanks had to be filled in staggered sequence one, six, two, five, three and four, and with 220 Imp gal (1000 1) at a time so as to avoid the risk of capsizing. The six Junkers Jumo 207C Diesel engines each offered 1,000 hp at 3,000 rpm for take off, with a maximum output of 750 hp at 2,500 rpm for 30 min at sea level for climb, and drove 10 ft 9 in (3,30 m) diam VDM Schwarz wooden bladed propellers. It appeared, however, that the Diesels developed insufficient take off power to lift the fully laden boat within a reasonable distance and therefore provision had been made for the attachment of four solid fuel take off assistance rockets beneath the wings, the modus operandi being to fire the rockets after 10 seconds full throttle to get the boat over the “hump” speed, these burning for a half minute and the cases then being jettisoned. Even in a lightly laden condition and at full power, the boat demanded a long run before it could be eased up onto the step, but once over the “hump” speed it soon lifted off smoothly at about 78 knots (145 km/h). The floats, each of which split vertically, each half folding upward to lie flat within the wing, had to be retracted as soon as the boat was airborne since the electrical process occupied some 20 seconds and had to be completed before the airspeed reached 121 knots (225 km/h). The flight deck, which was reached by a ladder from the lower deck, was spacious. The first pilot’s seat had an armour shield moulded to the shape of the body, and the first flight engineer occupied a jump seat between the two pilots, while the second engineer had a station at the rear of the flight deck. Meanwhile, the BMW 132H engines had given place to Bramo Fafnir 323Rs which it was anticipated would be able to offer 200 hp more for take off with the aid of methanol water injection, and late in August 1940, the first prototype, the BV222 V1 Werk Nr 365, was rolled out of the Finkenwerder factory, launched on the Elbe, and, on 7 September flown for the first time with Flugkapitan Helmut Rodig at the controls. Sporting the registration D ANTE, the flying boat was airborne for 20 minutes, Rodig declaring himself generally satisfied with control response, but complaining of some slight directional instability and a tendency to porpoise during taxying. Flight testing continued from the Elbe, interspersed with brief periods in the Finkenwerder factory for modifications, and the basic flight test programme was virtually complete by December, when the river iced up. Testing was resumed in February 1941, and plans were laid for a series of long distance flights to demonstrate range and endurance. At this stage, the Luftwaffe proposed that these flights should also be supply missions. Cargo doors were therefore cut in the sides of the hull and the interior rearranged to accommodate bulky items of freight. With the civil registration replaced by the radio callsign CC+ EQ, and now wearing full Luftwaffe markings and camouflage, the BV 222 V1 flew its first supply mission on 10 July 1941. The BV 222 flew from Hamburg to Kirkenes, Norway, on the Barents Sea, six more flights between Hamburg and Kirkenes being flown by 19 August, totalling some 18,600 miles (30 000 km), about 650 tonnes of freight being carried to Kirkenes and 221 casualties being transported back to Hamburg. While the first prototype was engaged in its proving flights between Hamburg and Kirkenes, the second prototype commenced its test programme from the Elbe, this, the BV 222 V2 Werk Nr 366 CC + ER, taking off on its maiden flight on 7 August 1941. The decision had meanwhile been taken to place the second and subsequent BV 222s at the disposal of the Fliegerfuhrer Atlantik, established in the previous March, additional hulls being laid down for the long range reconnaissance role in collaboration with U boats, and the V2 having been completed with full defensive armament. This armament comprised a single 7,9 mm MG 81 machine gun in the bow, fore and aft upper turrets each mounting a single 13 mm MG 131, four MG 81s firing from beam positions in the hull, and one forward and one aft firing MG 131 in each of two gondolas mounted beneath the wing and between the outer engine pairs. In the event, trials with the V2 at Travermunde revealed that the drag penalty incurred by the gondolas was greater than could be accepted by what was already tacitly admitted to be an underpowered aircraft, and these appendages were promptly removed. Other modifica¬tions directly resulting from the Travermunde test programme included the deepening of the rear hull step by the simple expedient of adding a wedge shaped auxiliary structure, the addition of five short auxiliary steps immediately aft of the first main step, and some structural strengthening. The BV 222 VI resumed its long distance flights on 10 September 1941, after overhaul at Finkenwerder, these commencing with a mission to Athens from where it was supposed to operate a shuttle service to Derna, Libya. Before this service could begin, however, the flying boat was forced to return to Finkenwerder to have a thick layer of barnacles scraped from its hull. During the period 16 October to 6 November 1941, the BV222 V1 made 17 return flights between Athens and Derna, carrying 66,140 lb (30000 kg) of freight and evacuating 515 casualties. During these flights, a maximum speed of 239 mph (385 km/h) was recorded at 14,765 ft (4500 m), and it was ascertained that up to 72 casualty stretchers or 92 fully equipped troops could be accommodated. Totally unarmed, the BV 222 VI was normally escorted by two Bf 110s, but occasionally the fighters missed the rendezvous and the flying boat had to fulfil its mission unescorted. On one such occasion, the lone BV 222 encountered two patrolling RAF Beauforts, but for some reason these did not attack the defenceless flying boat. In November 1941, the BV 222 V1 returned to Finkenwerder to have defensive armament fitted, this being similar to that already mounted by the V2 apart from the underwing gondolas. Bv 222 VI was fitted with seven single 7.92mm and 13mm machine-guns, and under each wing a gondola mounting a pair of the latter.
The BV 222 V3 Werk Nr 439 DM + SD, first flown on 28 November 1941, possessed no armament other than the MG 81 in the bow position, this third prototype being intended purely for the transport role, which, for some time, was also to be the task of the BV 222 V2. On 20 January 1942, the BV 222 flying boat was officially named Wiking (Viking) by the Reichsminister der Luftahrt, and by this time a pre production batch of five aircraft had reached advanced stages on the Finkenwerder final assembly line. It was envisaged that these boats, powered by Bramo Fafnir 323R 2 radials and considered as A series machines although allocated Versuchs numbers V4 to V8 inclusive, would serve in both transport and maritime reconnaissance roles. In the event, the fourth of the A series boats, the V7, was to be modified during construction to take Diesel engines as a C series prototype.
Ultimately, the Bv 222 V7 prototype was selected as the official production model for the military Bv 222 and appeared with the definitive “Bv 222C” model designation form. The earlier prototypes (V2, V3, V4 and V5) pressed into military service became maritime reconnaissance platforms, differing mainly in defensive armament and some mounting FuG 200 series search radar systems while flying for Fliegerfuhrer Atlantik. Bv 222B was a proposed variant to fit Junkers Jumo 208 series engines but never materialized.
On 9 December 1941, the BV 222 V3 had been officially taken on strength by the Luftwaffe and, as the entire aircraft complement of Lufttransportstaffel See 222 V3, had under¬ taken 21 supply flights between Italian bases and Tripoli in the period January March 1942. The BV 222 V3, by now coded X4 + CH, was joined on 20 April 1942, by the BV 222 V4 X4+13H, and the unit was redesignated Luftverkehrsstaffel “C”. The BV 222 V4 Werk Nr 0004 (originally DM + SE) had been completed earlier in the year at Finkenwerder, and embodied some strengthening of the rear hull and the outer wing panels, and a redesigned, longer span tailplane. On 10 May, the BV 222 VI was returned to service after modification and overhaul at Finkenwerder, being assigned to Luftverkehrsstaffel “C”, which then became Lufttransport staffel See 222, or LTS See 222, but the complement of the unit remained unchanged owing to the re assignment of the V3 to the 3Staffel of Kustenfliegergruppe 406, a BV 138 equipped unit operating from Biscarosse, for the maritime recon-naissance mission. The complement of LTS See 222 was increased in August, however, with the arrival on the 10th of the BV 222 V2 (now X4 + BH) and the BV 222 V6 Werk Nt¬ 0006 X4 + FH on the 21st. The four boats were primarily engaged on flying supply missions from Italian and Greek bases to Rommel’s Afrika Korps, alighting at Tobruk and Derna, and returning with casualties, and were joined on 26 October by the BV 222 V8 Werk Nr 0008 X4+HH, but a month later, LTS See 222 suffered its first casualty when the BV 222 V6 was intercepted and shot down by RAF fighters on 24 November when flying unescorted south of Pantelleria. This loss resulted in orders that BV 222s would subsequently fly all missions in formation at low altitude. Despite this precaution, on 10 December, the BV 222 V1, V4 and V8 were intercepted by a trio of RAF Beaufighters while flying in formation at low altitude over the Mediterranean en route to Tripoli. The BV 222 V8 was shot down and the V4 suffered heavy damage but succeeded in reaching Tripoli in company with the V1. The BV 222 VI foundered in the harbour at Athens in February 1943 when it struck a marker buoy at speed, ripping several yards of skinning from its planing bottom. LTS See 222 was therefore stood down and the surviving Wikings returned to Traverniinde for re arming and other modifications. The fact that the BV 222 was manifestly underpowered had been a matter of considerable concern to the Blohm und Voss team from an early stage in the development of the flying boat. The A series boats were not, in fact, to be equipped with the planned methanol water injection system for boosting take¬ off power until the summer of 1942, and then the maximum permissible take off weight was raised from 99,206 lb (45 000kg) to 105,820 lb (48 000 kg). The Bramo Fafnir 323R 2 engines each afforded 1,000 hp at 2,500 rpm, 800 hp at 2,250 rpm and 640 hp at 2,100 rpm, MW 50 boosting take off power to 1,200 hp. From the outset, Junkers Jumo Diesel engines had been favoured for their economy, although in service such engines were proving temperamental and demanding on skilled maintenance. The definitive model planned for DLH had been the BV 222B with six Jumo 208 Diesel engines each rated at 1,500 hp at 2,800 rpm and 1,000 hp at 2,500 rpm, but Junkers had failed to take the Jumo 208 beyond the bench testing stage. Proposals originally made to the RLM in 1939, which included Projekt 97 with six BMW 801 air cooled radials and Projekt 98 with four BMW 801s, were resurrected, but the RLM was adamant that such engines be reserved for other aircraft types. Finally, the Technische Amt of the RLM accepted Blohm und Voss’s proposals that Jumo 207C Diesels affording 1,000hp at 3,000 rpm be installed in the fourth A series flying boat, the BV 222 V7, Junkers promising a further development of this engine, the Jumo 207D with MW 50 boost which would provide the desired short term take off power, for installation in later production boats. The BV 222 V7 was intended from the outset primarily for the long range reconnaissance role. Fuel tank capacity was decreased, each of the six mainspar tanks accommodating 633.5 Imp gal (2 880 1) of Diesel K 1 as compared with the 759 Imp gal (3 450 1) of gasoline of the A¬ series aircraft tanks, the capacity of the six oil tanks each being raised to 37.4 Imp gal (170 lt) from 19 Imp gal (861 lt). Normal loaded weight was 101,390 lb (45990 kg) and maximum overload weight was 108,026 lb (49 000 kg), and at neither weight did the Jumo 207C Diesels deliver sufficient power for take off without an excessively long run. Provision was therefore made for the attachment of four solid fuel take off rockets beneath the wings, these being fired after 10 seconds at full throttle and burning for 30 seconds. The surviving BV 222 flying boats had meanwhile standardised on a revised defensive armament which now incorporated a forward dorsal turret with a 20 mm MG 151 cannon, a similar weapon in each of two turrets mounted in the wings immediately aft of the extreme outer engine nacelles, a 13 mm MG 131 machine gun firing from a forward beam position and two 7,9 mm MG 81s from aft beam positions, the aft dorsal turret and the bow gun being deleted. The BV 222 V7 reinstated the bow position, however, adding an additional forward beam MG 131 and supplanting the rear beam MG 81s with MG 131s. Furthermore, it featured repositioned wing turrets which were now situated in the rear ends of engine nacelles two and five. Search radar was fitted and additional radio aids included FuG 200 Hohentwiel, FuG 16Z VHF radio with direction and range measuring facilities, FuG 25a IFF, and an FuG 101a radio altimeter. An ETC 501 rack was fitted to carry an FuG 302c Schwan (Swan) beacon. Similar equipment was simultaneously installed in the remaining A series boats as it had become obvious that Axis resistance in North Africa was collapsing and that the BV 222s would be best employed in co-operation with the U boat fleet in the Atlantic under the control of the Fliegerfuhrer Atlantik. The Diesel engined BV 222 V7 Werk Nr 0310007 TB + QL flew for the first time on 1 April 1943 as the prototype of the C¬ series, work on several pre production examples of which had been initiated some time before the completion of the last A series aircraft, the BV 222 V8. In fact, the BV 222C 09 Werk¬ Nr 0310009 was completed only six weeks after the V7 and was actually to precede the Diesel engined prototype into service with the Fliegerfuhrer Atlantik, being taken on strength by Aufklarungsstaffel See 222 on 23 July 1943. This unit had been formed in May with the V2, the V3, the V4 and the V5 as a component part of 3./Ku.Fl.Gr.406, but had lost two of the boats, the V3 and the V5, in the following month when they were strafed and sunk at their moorings at Biscarosse. The BV 222C 09 differed from the V7, which was to join Aufklarungs¬staffel See 222 on 16 August 1943, essentially in the positioning of the defensive wing turrets, these being located slightly further forward and between the outboard engine pairs, and extended beneath the wing to provide adequate leg room for their gunners. The BV 222C-010 Werk Nr 031 0010 had been added to the Biscarosse based unit by October 1943, when the Aufklarungs¬staffel See 222 was redesignated 1.Staffel of (Fern)/See Augklarungsgruppe 129, its flying boats ranging far out over the Atlantic on U boat co operation tasks, and in October 1943, one of the BV 222s encountered and shot down a patrolling Lancaster. The BV 222C 011 and C 012 followed the C 010 from the Finkenwerder factory at short intervals, the time to build a hull in the gantry having by now been reduced to six weeks by dint of working shifts around the clock, the complete airframe being produced in an average of 350,000 manhours, the detail manufacturing and sub-assembly being mainly undertaken at the Steinwerder branch factory. The BV 222C 013 was the first airframe in which it was proposed to install the more powerful Jumo 207D Diesels as the prototype BV 222D, but as these failed to materialise, the boat had to be completed with the lower powered Jumo 207C engines. Four additional airframes had been under construction which it had been intended to complete as BV 222Ds, but, meanwhile, the RLM had ordered the cessation of further development and production of Diesel engines and, failing the availability of more suitable power plants, Blohm und Voss had no recourse but to revert to the Bramo Fafnir 323R 2s of the A series. With these radials installed it was intended to designate the four additional boats as BV 222Es, but in the event, early in 1944, it was concluded that the aircraft industry could no longer afford the large labour force demanded by the BV 222, the production programme being cancelled and the four boats under construction being scrapped. The 1.(F)/SAGr. 129 continued operations from Biscarosse, losing the BV 222C 010 to RAF night fighters early in 1944, but in July, following the D Day landings, the unit was disbanded, the four BV 222s remaining on strength being reassigned to the Stab and L(F)/SAGr.130 and 2.(F)/SAGr.131, the former being primarily BV 138 equipped and the latter operating a mix of BV 138s and Ar 196As. As the war situation progressively deteriorated, the BV 222s were increasingly relegated to transport tasks and only one other example, the BV 222C-09, was lost to enemy action before fighting terminated in Europe, this being strafed and damaged beyond repair by RAF fighters at Travermunde early in 1945. Of the boats that survived the conflict, the BV 222 V2 was blown up by British forces in Norway, the V4 was blown up by its own crew at Kiel Holtenau, the V7 was destroyed by its crew at Travemunde, the C 011 and C 013 were captured intact by US forces and taken to the USA for evaluation, and the C 012, was captured by British forces in Norway and flown to the UK.
Bv 222 A-0 Viking Engine : 4 x Bramo Fafnir 323 R-2, 1184 hp Length : 119.751 ft / 36.5 m Height : 35.761 ft / 10.9 m Wingspan : 150.919 ft / 46.0 m Max take off weight : 99749.8 lb / 45238.0 kg Weight empty : 62452.2 lb / 28323.0 kg Max. speed : 167 kts / 310 km/h Cruising speed : 139 kts / 257 km/h Initial climb rate : 492.13 ft/min / 2.5 m/s Service ceiling : 21325 ft / 6500 m Range : 4023 nm / 7450 km Armament : 1x MK108 30mm, 2x MG151 20mm, 2x MG131 13mm, 2x MG 81Z
BV222A Engines: Six Bramo Fafnir 323R 2 nine cylinder radial air cooled, 1,200 hp with MW 50 boost for take off, 1,000 hp at 2,500 rpm, 800 hp at 2,250 rpm and 640 hp at 2,100 rpm Propellers: three bladed variable pitch VDM Schwarz Prop diameter: 10 ft 9in (3,30 m) Internal fuel capacity, 759 Imp gal (3 450 1) in each of six tanks. Max speed (at 100,530 lb/45 600 kg) at sea level: 184 mph (296 km/h) Max speed (at 77,162 lb/35 000 kg): 193 mph (310 km/h) Max continuous cruise (at 100,530 lb/45 600 kg) at sea level: 158 mph (254 km/h) Max continuous cruise (at 77,162 lb/35 000 kg) at sea level: 173 mph (278 km/h) Econ cruise (at 100,530 lb/45 600 kg): 155 mph (250 km/h) Econ cruise (at 88,185 lb/40 000 kg): 160 mph (257 km/h) Max range: 4,350 mls (7 000 km) at sea level Max range: 4,630 mls (7 450 km) at 16,075 ft (4 900 m) Optimum flight endurance: 33 hrs at sea level Optimum flight endurance: 23 hrs at 16,075 ft (4 900 m) Climb to 19,685 ft (6 000 m): 49 min Service ceiling: 21,325 ft (6 500 m) Empty equipped: 62,941 lb (28 550 kg) Max loaded: 100,530 lb (45 600 kg) Span: 150 ft 11 in (46,00 m) Length: 119 ft 9 in (36,50 m) Height: 35 ft 9 in (10,90 m) Wing area, 2,744.8 sq ft (255 sq.m).
BV222C Engines: Six Junkers Jumo 207C six cylinder two stroke. Rating: 1,000 hp at 3,000 rpm for take off, 750 hp at 2,500 rpm (for 30min) and 680 hp at 2,400 rpm Propellers: three bladed variable¬ pitch VDM Schwarz Prop diameter: 10 ft 97 in (3,30 m) Internal fuel capacity, 633.5 Imp gal (2 880 1) in each of seven tanks Max speed (at 101,390 lb / 45990 kg): 205 mph (330km/h) at sea level Max speed (at 101,390 lb / 45990 kg): 242 mph (389 km/h) at 16,405 ft (5 000 m) Max continuous econ cruise: 189 mph (304 km/h) at sea level Max continuous econ cruise: 214 mph (344 km/h) at 18,210 ft (5 550 m) Optimum endurance: 28 hrs at 152 mph (245 km/h) at sea level Max range: 3,790 mls (6 100 km) Initial climb (at 101,390 lb / 45990 kg): 473 ft/min (2,4 m/sec) Time to 19,685 ft (6 000 m): 52 min Service ceiling: 23,950 ft (7 300m) Empty equipped weight: 67,572 lb (30 650 kg) Normal loaded weight: 101,390 lb (45 990 kg) Max overload weight: 108,026 lb (49 000 kg) Wing span: 150 ft 11 in (46,00 m) Length: 121 ft 4.66 in (37,00 m) Height, 35 ft 9 in (10,90 m) Wing area: 2,744.8 sq ft (255 sq.m) Crew: 11 Armament: 3 x 20mm cannon, 5 x 13mm machine guns
Bv 222C-0 Engines: 6 x Junkers Jumo 207C 12-cylinder diesel, 1,000hp each. Length: 121.39ft (37m) Wingspan: 151 ft (46.00m) Wing area: 2,744.8 sq.ft Height: 35.76ft (10.90m) Empty Weight: 67,638lbs (30,680kg) Maximum Take-Off Weight: 110,231lbs (50,000kg) Maximum Speed 16,400 ft: 242mph (390kmh; 211kts) Max speed: SL: 189 mph Maximum Range: 3,790miles (6,100km) Rate-of-Climb: 472ft/min (144m/min) Service Ceiling: 23,950ft (7,300m) Armament: 5 x 13mm machine gun, 3 x 20mm cannon Crew: 11-14 Passenger capacity: 92
The origins of the Blohm & Voss Bv 155 lay in a meeting held at the Messerschmitt’s Augsburg plant in May 1942 to discuss the “Special High Altitude Fighter”. Both Messerschmitt and Fock-Wulf expressed interest in developing a special high altitude fighter, Messerschmitt had already done some design work on a related project. Messerschmitt’s preliminary study, known as the Bf 109 ST, had been allocated the official RLM 8-series aircraft designation Me 155. The number 155 had previously been assigned to the Klemm firm but since it had not taken up the number the RLM reassigned it to Messerschmitt. At the same time, numbers 152, 153 and 154, which had also been allocated to Klemm but not used, were re-assigned to Focke-WuIf. The original Me 109 ST was advanced in three variants; A, B & C (version A) called for a carrier/aircraft fitted with the DB 605, while (version B) called for a similar fighter powered by the high altitude DB 628. In order to relieve his already over committed design bureau and to speed development, Messerschmitt decided to transfer the Me 155B to Paris. Due to various problems work progressed only slowly throughout the remainder of 1942. By early 1943 things were starting to go wrong with the project. Fock-Wulf were progressing well with their Ta 152, little had been achieved with the Me 155B. During the first half of 1943, Messerschmitt’s design engineers had evolved basic parameters of an (extreme high altitude fighter) design study under the company designation Me P1091. By mid 1943 the Messerschmitt people were pursuing the Me 209H in competition with the Ta 152H and turning there Me P1091 in to the Me 155B. Development passed to Blohm & Voss as the Bv 155. The V1, V2 and V3 prototypes were outwardly very different, mainly by relocation of the radiators. The final Bv 155C had the cooling systems under the nose. A contract for 30 production aircraft was issued in the finals days of WWII. Never flown. The V1 prototype first flew on 01 September 1944, and V2 in February 1945. Three prototypes were built.
Engine: Daimler Benz DB 603A,1610 hp with turbocompressor TKL 15 (1,450 hp at 49,210 ft. (15,000m)) Propeller: metal three-bladed variable pitch Wingspan: 20,30 m / 67 ft. 3 in Length: 11,90 m / 39 ft 4 1/2 in Height: 2,98 m / 9 ft 9 1/2 in Wing area: 39,00 sq.m Empty weight: 4868 kg / 10,716 lb Maximum weight: 13,262 lb. (6016 kg) Wing loading: 141,025 Kg/sq.m Power loading: 3,105 Kg/hp Max speed: 690 Kmh Ceiling: 16950 m Range: 1440 km Armament: 1 x 30 mm MK 108, 2 x 20 mm MG 151/20
High-wing transport built in occupied France by Breguet, designed for Lufthansa after the war. The Bv 144 was a shoulder-wing aircraft. It had a variable incidence wing, turning round a tubular spar. Two were built, but only one made a few flights.
Engines: 2 x BMW 801A, 1560hp Span: 26.90m Length: 21.90m Height: 5.10m Wing area: 89.40 sq.m Empty weight: 9910kg Max Take off weight: 14100kg Max speed: 460km/h Cruising speed: 410km/h at 4000m Service ceiling: 8,600m Range: 1550km Crew: 3 plus 18 passengers
Designed as an armed reconnaissance aircraft incorporating the wings, fuselage and tail unit of the Ha 139. Powered by four BMW 132H engines.
H1 142 V1 operated by Rowehl’s unit
Few built and used as transports by the Luftwaffe.
Ha 142 V2 PC+BC
Ha 142 V2 received factory code PC+BC and was used for transport duties by the Aufklärunsgruppe Ob.d.L.in France during the autumn of 1940 where re-coded T5-CH.
Ha 142 V2 T5-CH
Engines: 4 x BMW 132H, 735kW Take-Off Weight: 16700 kg / 36817 lb Empty Weight: 6390 kg / 14088 lb Wingspan: 29.5 m / 96 ft 9 in Length: 19.7 m / 64 ft 8 in Wing Area: 130.0 sq.m / 1399.31 sq ft Max. Speed: 400 km/h / 249 mph Cruise Speed: 350 km/h / 217 mph Ceiling: 6800 m / 22300 ft Range W/Max.Fuel: 4400 km / 2734 miles Crew: 4-5
Resulting from a 1937 requirement for a short-range reconnaissance plane with a single engine and accommodation for a crew of three, Richard Vogt, the technical director of Blohm und Voss’s aircraft subsidiary, Ham¬burger Flugzeugbau, proposed that an official RLM requirement could best be met by an asymmetric design. The result was the company financed Ha 141 0, flown in Feb¬ruary 1938 with Major General Ernest Udet at the controls. An unorthodox machine with an extensively glazed crew nacelle offset to starboard of the centerline and the 865-hp (645-kW) BMW 132N radial engine to port at the front of the boom supporting the tail unit. A perspex-glazed crew gondola on the starboard side housed the pilot, observer and rear gunner, while the fuselage on the port side led smoothly from the engine to a tail unit.
The engine was a conventional radial piston powered machine spinning a three-bladed propeller system. The engine of choice became a single BMW 801A 14-cylinder radial of 1,560 horsepower providing for a 272mph maximum speed, a 1,181 mile range and a 31,810 foot service ceiling. The later pre-series Bv 141s would make use of only a single tail system, hence its asymmetrical arrangement. Despite this appearance, the weight of the aircraft was spread out quite well when in flight, relating to the Bv 141s good handling characteristics.
It proved to be quite successful, so much so that an order was placed for three planes including the original, since that one was built with private funds. The original BV-141-V and A models had a conventional stabilizer.
The aircraft’s design prompted a mixed response from the RLM and had no impact on their decision to build the Fw 189. Indeed, an urgent need for BMW 801 engines for use in the Fw 190 fighter aircraft further reduced any chance that the BV 141 would see production. Though the RLM officials remained uncertain of its potential they awarded a contract for further for five Bv 141A developed versions with 960L hp BMW 132N engine and armament of two fixed and two rear movable 7.92 mm (0.312¬in) MG 17 and four 50 kg (110 lb) bombs. Lengthy trials in 1939 40 were favourable, but the RLM claimed that the oddity was under-powered as an excuse to avoid large scale orders.
The German air ministry preferred the competing Focke-Wulf Fw 189, but the manufacturer’s enterprise in building three prototypes, the last two somewhat larger than the first, paid off in an order for five pre-production By l4lAs. These were evaluated up to April 1940, but no production was ordered even of the more powerful Bv 141B.
Vogt had anticipated this and in January 1941 flew the first completely redesigned Bv 141B with 1560 hp BMW 801 and larger airframe of different shape, including an asymmetric tailplane, first tested on the V2 prototype, designed to improve the rear gunner’s field of fire and which had resulted in no noticeable deterioration in handling qualities.
Only five B series aircraft were built, making 13 of all versions. No 10 was used operationally in the autumn of 1941, but this unique aircraft was eventually dropped as the twin boom Fw 189 was an adequate tactical reconnaissance aircraft and the Blohm und Voss shops were needed to help make the Fw 200C Condor after an air raid had damaged the Focke Wulf factory complex at Bremen.
All further development was cancelled in 1942.
Some 38 Bv 141 examples were known to have been produced though none survive today. Several were recovered by the Allies. In all, there were three V-series prototypes designated as V1, V2 and V3. The pre-series models numbered five examples under the Bv 141 A-0 branding and became V4 through V8. These were followed by the revised Bv 141 B-0 pre-series models from V9 through V18. There were eight Bv 141 B-1 series models thereafter.
The Ilmavoimat / Maavoimat / VL team evaluated this aircraft and conducted a series of test flights over April/May 1938. The performance was found to be good and the observation visibility excellent although STOL capability was lacking. Overall though, the design was rather too radical for the Finns and while it remained in consideration, it was as a “possibility” rather than up for firm consideration.
Bv 141A five pre-production aircraft Engine: 1,000-hp/746-kW BMW-Bramo 323 Wing span: 50 ft 8.25 in/15.45m
Bv 141B three-seat short-range reconnaissance plane. Engines: one 1,560-hp (1,163-kW) BMW 801A radial piston Maximum speed: 230 mph (370 km/h) at sea level Service ceiling: 32,810 ft (10,000 m) Range: 746 miles (1,200 km). Empty Weight: 10,362 lb (4,700 kg) Maximum take-offweight: 13,448 lb (6,100 kg). Span: 57 ft 3.5 in (17.46 m) Length: 45 ft 9.25 in (13.95 m) Height: 11 ft 9.25 in (3.60 m) Wing area: 570.51 sq ft (53.00 sq.m) Rate-of-Climb: 1,860ft/min (567m/min) Crew: 3 Armament: two fixed MG 17 and two trainable MG 15 0.312-in (7.92-mm) machine guns, and four 110-lb (50-kg) bombs.
German patrol flying boat. The Blohm und Voss shipyard’s aircraft subsidiary was Hamburger Flugzeugbau, so the first two prototypes were designated Ha 138. Both flown in 1937, they were powered by three 600 hp / 447kW Junkers Jumo 205C-4 heavy oil diesel engines. The third machine, the Bv 138A 01 of 1938, was greatly modified with larger hull and flat (as distinct from gull) wing, and the tail booms were redesigned. Fuel oil was carried inside the tubular main spar. In 1939 delivery began of 25 Bv 138A 1 ocean patrol boats, but they seldom carried their armament and were soon relegated to transport, serving in this role during the invasion of Norway in April 1940.
In October 1940, when the A 1 was first deployed to French bases, the 21 Bv 138B 1 began to enter service. These were much better performers, with 880 hp Jurno 205D diesels and a turret at each end of the hull mounting a 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon.
In 1941 43 Blohm und Voss delivered 227 of the C 1 version, with many detail refinements and a 13 mm (0.51 in) MG 131 in an open cockpit behind the centre engine. Constant speed propellers were standard, the centre unit having four blades and the outers reversing for water manoeuvres. The inner wing carried four stores racks, each rated at 150 kg (331 lb), usually occupied by depth charges.
The Bv 138 finished its career in a mine-sweeping role, carrying a large degaussing “hoop” around its fuselage to explode magnetic mines. A total of 273 production Bv 138s were completed.
Ha 138 Engines: 3 x 600 hp / 447kW Junkers Jumo 205C-4 heavy oil diesel
Bv 138A 01 Engines: 3 x 600 hp / 447kW Junkers Jumo 205C-4 heavy oil diesel
Bv 138A-1 Engines: 3 x 880 hp Jumo 205D diesels Armament: 2 x 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon.
Bv 138B-1 Engines: 3 x Junkers Jumo 205C-4
Bv 138C-1 Engine: 3 x 746kW Junkers Jumo 205D 12-cylinder diesel engines Max take-off weight: 17650 kg / 38912 lb Wingspan: 26.94 m / 88 ft 5 in Length: 19.85 m / 65 ft 1 in Height: 5.90 m / 19 ft 4 in Max. speed: 285 km/h / 177 mph / 154kt Ceiling: 5000 m / 16400 ft Range: 4300 km / 2672 miles Armament: 2 x 20mm MG 151/20 cannon, 13mm (0.51 in) MG 131 + 1 x 7.92mm machine-gun, four stores racks, each rated 150 kg (331 lb)
All Aero 