Focke-Achgelis Fa 223
| Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 Dragon | |
|---|---|
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| Type: | Multipurpose helicopter |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
October 1940 |
| Commissioning: |
1941 |
| Production time: |
1941 to 1945 |
| Number of pieces: |
more than 20 |
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The Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 was a helicopter with two side-mounted three-bladed rotors, which was developed by Focke-Achgelis in Germany in the late 1930s . The Flettner Fl 282 and the Fa 223 were the first helicopters to be mass-produced in 1941.
history
Henrich Focke , one of the founders of the Focke-Wulf company , had already presented the Fw 61 , the first usable draft of a helicopter type. After the company Focke-Achgelis & Co GmbH was founded by Henrich Focke and the German aerobatic master Gerd Achgelis in 1937, a larger operational helicopter was developed, which was given the designation Fa 223 and the nickname "Drache".
After the flight demonstrations of the Fw 61 by Carl Bode and Hanna Reitsch in the Deutschlandhalle in 1938, the Reich Ministry of Aviation (RLM) commissioned the Focke-Achgelis company with the development of a helicopter that could be used for military purposes and that was supposed to lift a load of 700 kg.
BMW was to take over the design of the engine, transmission and rotor hubs . This was the first time that the arrangement with ball-bearing swashplate, which is still in use today, was used, with which the setting angle of the rotor blades was controlled cyclically and collectively.
The testing of the Fa 223 V1 prototype began in October 1939, initially with various vibration problems. Less than a year later, flight captain Carl Bode was able to begin the free flight test.
For series production from 1941 onwards, an agreement was reached on the Fa 223 E version for a multi-purpose helicopter. Production was to take place in the Focke-Achgelis factory in Hoykenkamp near Delmenhorst , but was relocated to Laupheim near Ulm after a bomb attack . Towards the end of the war the Weser Flugzeugbau plant in Berlin-Tempelhof was also included in the production. All in all, only about 20 copies could be built.
In mid-February 1945, the deployment of Transport Squadron 40 and pilot training began at the “ Führerhorst Ainring ” under Squadron Captain Sepp Stangl, who later became the commander of the 3rd Air Regiment of the Austrian Army . This squadron should be equipped with 20 Fa 223 and 24 Fl 282 . Because of the American air raids, the squadron was transferred to the Aigen air base in the Ennstal . Because of the advance of the Soviet troops, the transport relay with the entire fleet was relocated to the Salzachtal on May 5, 1945. Upon initial contact with the American armed forces, they refrained from arrest, so that the entire unit could be relocated to Ainring. Here the entire transport team was handed over to the Americans.
In Czechoslovakia , the Avia company assembled two other Vr-1s from spare parts. The helicopter was also manufactured in France as a further development with the designation SE 3000 by SNCASE . This was the beginning of the helicopter development at Aérospatiale .
Calls
Fa 223 with the identification GW + PA has probably flown the first helicopter rescue operation under war conditions from the airfield near Danzig-Praust . Pilot Gerstenhauer barg on 6 March 1945 at a pilot Goschin break landed Bf 109 G-8 , who had not found back in a snowstorm to the airfield to Gdansk-Praust.
Record flights
During the flight tests, some world records were set, which, however, were not internationally recognized because of the state of war. For example, a speed of 182 km / h and a climbing speed of 8.80 m / s were achieved with a total weight of 3705 kg.
After the end of the Second World War , the test pilot Hans-Helmut Gerstenhauer from the Focke-Achgelis company and his crew made the first non-stop crossing of the English Channel in a helicopter on September 6, 1945 . The Fa 223 used for this (the prototype V14) was then tested and examined in Great Britain until it crashed during a test flight due to lack of maintenance and was destroyed.
Construction and drive
The fuselage was a welded tubular steel construction, which was covered with fabric in the rear area. At the stern was a conventional tail unit with a trimmable elevator mounted on top. The front area with the cockpit and the engine was covered with sheet metal. The crew of two men (pilot and observer) were accommodated side by side in a fully glazed cockpit with very good all-round visibility. In the middle, near the center of gravity, the motor-gear unit was mounted. A BMW Bramo 323 “Fafnir” nine-cylinder radial engine was used for this. The two rotors running in opposite directions were fastened next to each other on a tubular structure at a distance of 12.50 m. Each had three sheets of steel spars and wooden ribs, with a wooden leading edge and fabric covering.
There was a hold with an electric winch between the cockpit and the drive unit. Either cargo or a rescue cage hanging on a hook could be lowered and pulled up. The helicopter could also be equipped with a 300 liter drop tank to increase its range.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 1 |
| Passengers | 3 |
| length | 12.25 m |
| height | 4.35 m |
| Trunk width | 1.65 m |
| Rotor Ø | 2 × 12.0 m |
| Empty mass | 3180 kg |
| Max. Takeoff mass | 4434 kg |
| Top speed | 182 km / h |
| Cruising speed | 122 km / h |
| Range | 300 km (700 km with additional tank) |
| Service ceiling | 2010 m |
| Engine | Radial engine BMW Bramo 323 D |
| power | 735 kW (1000 hp) |
literature
- Hans Bayr et al .: Salzburg 1945–1955. Destruction and rebuilding . Ed .: Robert Kriechbaumer. Salzburg Museum Carolino Augusteum, Salzburg 1995, ISBN 3-901014-43-8 .
- Uwe W. Jack: Focke Achgelis Fa 223 . In: FLiEGERREVUE X . No. 43 . PPVMedien, 2013, ISSN 2195-1233 , p. 30-53 .
- Yves Le Bec: The True Story of the Helicopter: from 1486 - 2005 . Publishing house Jean Duvret, Chavannes-près-Renens 2005, ISBN 2-8399-0100-5 .
- Uwe W. Jack: Focke-Achgelis Fa 223: Technical details. In: FliegerRevue X , No. 73, Volume 16, PPVMedien 2018, pp. 84–93
Web links
- Pictures at www.luftarchiv.de
- Video about Fa 223 with original film clips on YouTube
- Army helicopter Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 "Drache"
- Overview of the helicopter developments from Focke-Achgelis
Individual evidence
- ↑ The true story of the helicopter: from 1486–2005 , p. 10.
- ^ Hermann Hinterstoisser: The end of the war in Pinzgau in Salzburg 1945–1955. Destruction and Reconstruction , pp. 41–55.
- ↑ Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 in FliegerRevue X 2013/43
- ↑ Hans Helmut Gerstenhauer: Experience report on the operational capability of the 8-223 EO after the special mission from February 26th - March 11th , 1945 (PDF; 830 kB) March 27, 1945. Accessed March 30, 2016.
- ↑ Description of the transfer flight on www.luftarchiv.de