Best Luftwaffe fighter
Fight lights up the clouds
"Skipper 190s on a starboard ... roger ... (rumble of bursts) ... comes in from behind ... gunner yu save ... gunner ..."
("Commander, 190 on the right, I understand ...")
But the shooter did not have time to answer the commander - in an instant the entire tail section was torn off by a cannon burst. Debris rushed to the ground: "Maidai! Mayday! Mayday! "
The Browning stuck from overheating, but those damned FW-190 didn't seem to feel hits. A deafening cannon volley - and the "fortress" went to the ground, in parts. After a few minutes it was all over. Göttingen was burning below. In the sooty sky settled the domes of American parachutes.
The sky was decorated with swastikas and black crosses. The heroes of the Luftwaffe declined, but the 50 caliber barriers blocked their path - belated Mustangs pulled up to the battle site.
A few minutes later it was all over - the domes of German parachutes hung over the destroyed Göttingen.
Twenty-nine FW-190 at the cost of losing one P-51.
Descriptions of the battle in various sources differ in the details and modifications of the aircraft, but the overall picture is unambiguous. Bombers burned the city, they were burned by the Fokke Wolves, whom the Mustangs burned.
September 1944, the 75 anniversary of those events is dedicated
The 445-I bomber group got lost, went to the wrong target, was left without cover and clashed in battle with the "assault staffels" from the 3, 4 and 300-th Luftwaffe squadrons.
Air defense squadrons equipped with a special modification of the FW-190 - "Sturmbock" ("Taran") and manned fanatics and fines. According to legend, the pilots of the “assault on staffels” who returned without victories were awaiting execution on the ground. But these are just legends.
445-I bomber group died almost at full strength. Only four of the 35 Liberators (according to other sources, 37) returned to the base, of which three could not be restored.
The ease with which the Sturmbocks defeated the Liberators shows how effective the FW-190A-8 / R8 fighters were when meeting with four-engine fortresses.
However, the speed with which the Fokke-Wolves “leaked” the Mustangs air battle raises even more questions.
Even with the unaccounted for losses from the fire of the bombers recorded as a result of the Mustang victories (there were at least six of them), the general picture of the battle over Göttingen indicates that there was something wrong with the FW-190A-8 / R8 fighters. Suspicions are confirmed throughout history and tactics for using the Sturmbocks.
The siege of "fortresses"
For those who are not used to reading long texts, the whole point is in one paragraph. A typical front-line fighter of that period was a single-engine piston aircraft with a take-off mass of about 3,5 ... 4 tons, of which up to 40% could fall on the payload (fuel, weapon, ammunition, avionics) had little chance to cope with the "flying fortress." To do this, he would need to make several visits, which in practice was unlikely. Not enough time or ammunition.
Readers can cite the raid on Schweinfurt and Regensburg (1942) as an example. But he only confirms my thesis. The Luftwaffe had to pull almost 400 Me-109G and FW-190 to the scene, which "bit" the armada of bombers throughout the raid - an hour before the target reached and on the way back. 60 “fortresses” were shot down, but how much did they take in time? B-17 managed to bomb, the target is destroyed.
Most fighters of that era were at best armed with one or two 20 mm cannons. The Germans at the height of the war appeared four-gun modifications of the Focke-Wolves, but their number was several times inferior to the Messerschmitts.
The second pair of guns on most FW-190 until the end of 1943 was comprised of MG-FF. The mass of the projectile and the combination of other characteristics of the MG-FF only vaguely resembled other artillery systems of the caliber 20 mm. In terms of muzzle energy, it was even inferior to the 12,7-mm UBS machine gun. That is why the MG-FF turned out to be light enough to be an addition to the MG-151 / 20 pair of Fokke-Wolf fighters. Or did someone believe that Uber engineers are our way to radically increase% payload?
Most of the fighters and we, and the Germans, and the allies were armed at about the same level. "Messers", "Yaks" - the one and only motor gun. Two-gun "Lavochkin" appeared only in the middle of the war.
The absolute alloy of steel and fire. ShVAK gun mounted in the collapse of the cylinders of the M-105 engine
Where can ordinary fighters take firepower to cope with the "flying fortress"?
Its wing area is like that of three Junkers, four motors, multiple duplication and dispersal of all important systems covered by 900 kg of armored plates.
The 37-mm guns "Aerocobra" and the Yak-9T became real "exotic". Firepower was never excessive, but overly strong recoil and meager b / c made them a controversial decision in aerial combat. Only sniper fire with single shots. It is no coincidence that the potential of Aviakobra was revealed only in the USSR, where they fell into the guard regiments. They were piloted by real aces and sniper pilots who are able to "saddle" any equipment and take advantage of its hidden virtues.
The Germans had neither an “Aerocobra” nor a Yak-9T. But there were armadas of “fortresses” overhead.
The best that the Uber engineers could come up with was to replace two 20-mm guns in the outer part of the Fokke-Wulf wing with 30 mm guns with an 55 round of ammunition for the barrel. The second pair of guns in the root of the wing was left unchanged (MG.151 / 20 with the ammunition load of 250 shells).
The increase in caliber passed without significant consequences. Indeed, in terms of maneuverability and LTX, the FW-190A-8 fighter had nowhere to degrade. The creators of the MK.108 gun tried a lot, creating a compact "sawn-off shotgun" with a barrel length of only 18 calibers.
To save weight on many Fokke Wolves, the synchronized MG.131 machine guns were dismantled due to the lack of sense in the presence of such a powerful cannon weapon. However, this measure could not save the Foku from overload.
No matter how much the wolf feeds, the elephant is still bigger
The disgusting ballistics of the German 30-mm air guns were partly offset by the size of the air targets. In the same way, the problem of choosing the lead when shooting with different calibers (2x20 mm, 2x30 mm) was solved. The main thing is to get close and give a queue, filling the space with red-hot metal. Unlike the Me.262 “whistles”, due to the significant difference in the speed of spending a split second near the target (to shoot once and hide in the clouds at 800 km / h), the low-speed “Sturmbock” had enough time to draw closer from the tail , take aim and “feed” the fortress with bicaliber fire.
This beautiful plan was incomplete without one circumstance. With the indicated attack scheme, the fighter was guaranteed to fall under intensive shelling.
For WWII front-line bombers, the number of defensive "barrels" often exceeded the number of crew members (a striking example is Yu-88). As soon as the enemy left the zone of shelling one machine gun, the shooter (navigator, scorer) in a cramped cockpit had to crawl to the next, bring him into a fighting position and aim again. This circumstance greatly depreciated the importance of defensive means.
It is for this reason that 90% of air victories on the Eastern Front, both on our side and on the German side, were won by fighters from a distance of less than 100 meters. They came from the tail - and beat at point blank range. Long-range shooting was universally recognized as ineffective, on the verge of complete futility.
But everything changed at a meeting with B-17 and B-24.
B-17 and B-25 in a joint flight. In fact, the B-25 "Mitchell" is not the best example in this comparison; one of the largest twin-engine bombers, with a take-off mass greater than that of two Pe-2 or three Yu-87 dive bombers. But even he was radically inferior in size to the B-17. Eloquent evidence of how unusual the flying fortress was.
There was enough space on board to accommodate 10-11 crew members. Each sector of space was covered by one or several turrets, with its own arrows - the density of fire did not allow them to approach with impunity even for a short time.
Units owned the art of firing sniper fire in the Luftwaffe. Ballistics of German air guns also did not encourage attempts to shoot from distances of more than 150 meters. The German fighters raised for interception should have learned to “hold” at least a few hits of 12,7-mm bullets, while their cannon line from a short distance does not hit a four-engine target.
The main feature of the Sturmbock: exceptional security by aviation standards
The factory kit R-8 (Rustsatze 8) for field conversion of the FW-190A-8 into an "assault" fighter, in addition to replacing the guns, provided for 30 mm thick armored glass for the movable part of the cockpit light. Outside, the cabin was wrapped in lining made of steel, shells of cannons received additional protection. All this was mounted on the Fokke-Wool of a late modification of the A-8, which already had impressive protection:
- windshield - 57 mm;
- side front bevels of the lamp - 30 mm;
- armor ring around the air intake - 5 mm;
- armored ring around the previous ring - 3 mm;
- lower part of the hood - 6 mm;
- plate in front of the wing box MK108 - 20 mm vertically;
- plate above the wing box MK108 - 5 mm horizontally;
- lining on the sides of the cab - 5 mm;
- tiles under the compartment MG131 - 5 mm horizontally;
- tile from the previous tile to the frontal bulletproof glass - 5 mm;
- armored back - 5 mm;
- armor plate protecting the shoulders at the back - 8 mm;
- armored head - 12 mm.
The choice of the type of fighter for the role of a hunter for "fortresses", for which it made sense to carry out work to increase security. Here, the choice of FW-190 before Me-109 was obvious. The Fokke-Wulf wide 14 cylinder air-cooled motor protected the cockpit. At the same time, he had sufficient survivability to continue working if one or even several cylinders were lost. Finally, the FW-190, according to the Germans, still retained its modernization potential. Unlike the Messerschmitt, whose take-off weight was almost a ton less, and the design capabilities reached the limit back in the 1942 year.
The Germans took the heaviest 4-gun modification of the "one hundred and ninetieth", which was already inferior in maneuverability to all peers, and added more protection and weapons!
And now we’ll try to take off with all this ...
18 square meters of wing allowed the 5-ton machine to break away from the runway, but further obvious difficulties began.
During the evolution of the FW-190, many parameters were affected: weapons were added and decreased, survivability increased, engine power increased, new engines appeared that weren’t even thought about when creating this fighter (Dora project), the internal layout changed, the fuselage length was adjusted . Everything changed except the wing area. A new wing would mean the creation and launch of a series of new aircraft. The Germans could not afford this.
More than 270 kg per sq. m wing on takeoff! Even with a “combat weight” with 50% fuel remaining, the specific load on the FW-190A-8 / R-8 wing remained too large for the fighter of his era.
Later modifications of the Fokke-Wolves gained speed and altitude too slowly. The Germans did not have engines of sufficient power for the 5-ton fighters.
There were two solutions to this: bad and very bad.
A very bad decision was to leave it as it is. It’s bad to try to create at least something based on existing technologies. As a result, the Luftwaffe got the afterburner system MW-50 (Methanol-Wasser), which many military historians from aviation considered a model of German prudence.
Why does Hans stall motor
The Germans did not have their own counterpart, “Merlin” or “Double Wasp” with a turbocharger from exhaust gases, but it was not necessary either. A mixture of water and methanol was enough for 20 minutes - for the entire duration of the air battle. The power of the BMW-801D-2 in the Fokke-Wolf fighter increased by an impressive 20%, reaching hp at the peak of 2100, like the best allied fighters with air-cooled engines.
The truth about the MW-50 system is this: regardless of the tank capacity, the duration of continuous operation of the motor using the mixture could not exceed 10 minutes. But the most unpleasant thing was that the system could not be activated where it was needed most of all, at high altitudes. Where was the enemy. To launch the MW-50, it was required to drop below 5000 m. This circumstance violated the whole organization of air combat by the Germans.
These are far from all restrictions on the injection of a water-methanol mixture. Hans pressed the red button, the engine roared - and died out.
A typical example of German engineering. Future technologies.
Heavenly slug
To accelerate in a dive, competing in speed with other fighters, the FW-190A-8 / R-8 was prevented by the aerodynamic appearance, spoiled by hinged protection elements. Plus, the wing mutilated by guns. Plus a blunt fuselage with a "star" air cooling. Designers of fighters with such engines (La-5, Thunderbolt) needed to make significant efforts to achieve performance similar to the sharp-nosed Yaks, Mustangs, Spits, and other fighters with liquid-cooled engines. The designers of FW-190, at some point, simply “scored” everything ...
All FW-190A-8 could count on in aerial combat was its excellent survivability.
Even without the use of the Rüstzac-8, he could withstand several hits more than a conventional fighter. But when enemy fighters appeared in the air, he came to an end. For the Mustang, such an adversary was a slow-moving, low-maneuverable target. An analogue of a front-line bomber, also devoid of a tail defensive installation. Entering the tail after the first bend - and turn at point blank range. And no defense will save anyone who allows himself to be shot from six "Browning", spewing 70 bullets per second.
I will try to choose the right words to suit the tastes of the discerning public. Fortress hunter, Sturmbock, as well as its “base version” FW-190A-8, are not fighters in the classical sense.
All enthusiasm for their high survivability and powerful weapons (four 20-mm long-barreled (!) Guns or 2х20 + 2х30 mm) should be accompanied by an explanation: by the middle of 1944, the FW-190 ceased to be a fighter.
It was a "gunship", a flying firing point, which, before entering the ranks of the bombers, was required to be covered by "ordinary" Messerschmitts. In truth, the Me-109 had to be covered from the Allied fighters themselves, the LTX of German fighters was so backward by the end of the war.
Could the Soviet MiG-3 intercept the B-17?
The direction of evolution of the FW-190 and the fact of the appearance of "Sturmbocks" indicates the following. Discussions and comparisons of the power of fighter weapons made on the basis of their ability to intercept four-engine bombers make no sense.
Could the high-altitude MiG-3 bring down the B-17 in the event of a hypothetical conflict with the Anglo-Saxons? Or La Xnumx? Answer: the question was asked incorrectly. It is necessary to clearly distinguish tasks.
Typical weapons of WWII era fighters (1-2 guns or several machine guns) fully met their purpose. Fight against air targets, which in their take-off mass (and all related parameters) were many times different from “flying fortresses”.
The Germans created a unique fighter capable of effectively fighting four-engine bombers in the light of day. At least in the design conditions, he showed outstanding results.
And this is not some small experimental series.
The heaviest FW-190A-8 - the most famous and most massive modification of the Fokke-Wulf, released in the amount of 6655 units
Given the priorities and the main nature of the Luftwaffe tasks in the 1944 year, as well as the fact that the German aircraft 2 / 3 operated on the Western Front, the FW-190A-8 with its removable factory kits can confidently claim the role of the best German fighter.
Due to the inevitable progress and time of its appearance (the late period of the war), the Fokke-Wulf 190A-8 can also be considered the most technically advanced of the fighters created in the Third Reich. Of those that managed to take part in the hostilities.
The weakness of the Sturmbock concept was that the "fortresses" rarely appeared without escort. Due to the significant take-off mass (on take-off - 5 tons, “barrels of gasoline”) and the laminar wing, which increased fuel efficiency in long-distance raids, the escorted Mustangs learned to accompany strategic bombers along the route. In case of alarm, they could drop bulky PTBs and turn over any point in Europe into ordinary fighters, not inferior in terms of performance characteristics to their so-called. front-line colleagues.
"Storm Staffel" managed to win several high-profile victories. In addition to the massacre of Göttingen, the defeat in the sky over Leipzig in November 1944 is also known. At that time, tactics in which the 109 Messerschmitts tied an escort with Mustangs were avoided at that time. More frankly, they sacrificed themselves.
But it soon became clear that it was becoming impossible to ensure the interaction of “assault” groups and cover groups. For this, the Luftwaffe did not have enough fuel, nor airfields, nor equipment. The territory of the Reich was rapidly declining - in the last months of the war, flying out to intercept the "fortresses", one could encounter in the air the Soviet La-5.
The final evolution of the FW-190 is attempts to lighten the car. To return to her the opportunity to conduct an air battle, acting in conditions of absolute dominance of the enemy's fighter forces.
Materials have also ceased to be available for the production of protective kits. By the way, there were several variants of the Ruststats - for turning fighters into airplanes for various purposes. The most famous were the R-2 and R-8, body kits for the interceptors of the "fortresses". According to model historians, R-2 and R-8 existed only in theory. In the field, all aircraft had different arms and defenses, often the kits were not used in full force. The very concept of “Sturmböcke” appeared in the late fall of 1944, when the history of over-protected interceptors came to an end.
Finale
The Sturmbock was such one, and there was simply no one to compare it to. In aggregate, the LTX is not similar to all known fighters, but such were the priorities of the Luftwaffe.
The main drawback of Sturmbock was that he promised to protect the sky of the Reich, but did not fulfill his promise. In the era of piston engines, it was impossible to build a fighter with powerful weapons, capable of independently, without significant losses, break through to the formation of bombers through a fighter escort.
The ability to build such aircraft appeared after the war, with the development of jet engines. MiG-15 was able to fight on equal terms with any enemy, while maintaining the ability to knock down a four-engine bomber with one volley. But slow piston "fortresses" have already gone down in history.
As for the debate about the best Luftwaffe fighters, it will undoubtedly require continuation. The Germans had other interesting models of aircraft. Which of them and in what period could claim the title of best? I dare to assure, there will be many surprises.
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