Heinkel He 116

Heinkel He 116
Type:	Long-haul courier plane
Design country:	German Empire
Manufacturer:	Ernst Heinkel Flugzeugwerke
First flight:	December 9, 1936
Production time:	1936 to 1940
Number of pieces:	3 test aircraft, 12 production aircraft

The Heinkel He 116 from Ernst Heinkel Flugzeugwerke was a four-engine low- wing aircraft that was to be used for mail flights over long distances, possibly also to China and Japan. This required overcoming the Pamir Mountains and a corresponding altitude performance. A later area of ​​application was the mapping and surveying of the German area.

construction and development

The development began in 1936 at the request of Lufthansa , which at that time still considered a connection to China via Persia and Afghanistan possible. Therefore, the machine should not only have the greatest possible range, but also an altitude of 7600 m with a high fuel load. Suitable engines for this were not available in Germany, but Hirth Motoren GmbH was planning a high-altitude engine with around 500 hp. The Günter brothers proposed modified wings of their Heinkel He 70 Blitz with four motors, which - like the He 70 - were planked with plywood. The new hull made of duralumin was riveted tightly and received tight bulkheads so that it could swim for a while in the event of a water landing. The designers were certainly thinking of Lufthansa's only long-haul mail line to South America.

When the first prototype He 116 V1 was completed in 1937, the planned altitude engines were not yet ready and the prototype received eight-cylinder V-engines Hirth HM 508 C with only 270 hp each. Despite this low performance, the machine appeared suitable and in 1938 Lufthansa began testing the V2 (D-AJIE, Lübeck ex Silesia ) and V4 (D-ATIO, Hamburg ). The Hamburg crashed on May 27, 1938 on the beach at Langeoog during a reckless maneuver by the pilot. Among the three dead was head radio machinist Karl Kirchhoff, one of Lufthansa's most experienced Atlantic and long-haul pilots. The Lübeck was used from October 21 to January 1, 1939 at least four times on the post line to South America between Frankfurt am Main and Las Palmas.

The Japanese had also shown interest in the machine and one of the pre-production machines had been used on the Sahara flight in 1938 with a Japanese crew. V5 (J-BAKD, Nogi ) and V6 (J-EAKF, Tojo ) were transferred to Japan in six days in April 1934. They covered the 15,251 km in 54 hours and 17 minutes of flight time. They were then used in Manchukuo .

He 116 V3

The third prototype V3 was converted into a long-distance record machine. The conversion also extended to larger wings with an area of ​​75.6 m² and a span of 25 meters as well as considerably more fuel tanks in the fuselage. Since no high-altitude performance was required for the record, HM-508H motors with only 240 hp each - but with lower consumption values ​​- were installed. Since the low take-off power and the high fuel load made the start considerably more difficult, the He 116 V3, renamed D-ARFD Rostock WNR . 1969 , was provided with four launchable rockets . On the first attempt, one of the missiles broke loose prematurely and severely damaged a wing. After the repair, the second record attempt took place on June 30, 1938. 10,000 km were covered on a closed course between Karlshagen and Leba in a record time of 46 hours and 18 minutes (216 km / h).

He 116 A

The development of the military variant began in December 1938. The He 116 A was to have a fully glazed pulpit. The inspection of the dummy of the He 116 A for special purposes took place on February 3, 1939. Twelve machines were ordered for the "Staffel zbV at the RLM", which were to be used as long-haul aircraft, according to an order from General Aircraft Master Ernst Udet . In April 1940 the first of the series machines took off for the first time. The series machines carried the designation He 116 A , the often used designation He 116 B is incorrect. In 1944 the Luftwaffe only had three He 116s left , two of which were used in flight schools.

Technical specifications

Parameter	Data He 116 A
span	22.00 m
Length, gr.	13.70 m
Height, gr.	3.80 m
Wing area	62.90 m²
Wing extension	7.70
Contents of the fuel tank	2650 l
Contents of the lubricant reservoir	110 l
Empty mass	4220 kg
Payload	2826 kg
Takeoff mass	7046 kg
Payload / unladen weight	0.677
Engine	4 × 8-cylinder V-engine Hirth HM 508 with 240 HP (177 kW) each
Propeller type	Adjustable propellers
Propeller diameter	2.25 m
Propeller blade number	2
Structure	Timber framework, plywood planked
Fuselage	All metal
Tail unit	Timber framework, plywood planked
Flight time with economy performance (0 m)	15.6 h
Range with travel performance (0 m)	3550 km
Range with economy performance (0 m)	4200 km
Fuel consumption for travel performance (0 m)	220 l / 100 km
Fuel consumption with economy performance (0 m)	165 l / 100 km
Top speed (0 m)	325 km / h
Cruising speed (0 m)	305 km / h
Saving speed (0 m)	270 km / h
Landing speed	105 km / h
Takeoff route	460 m
Landing route	310 m
Service ceiling	4700 m
Climbing time to 1000 m	5.5 min
Climbing time to 2000 m	11.0 min
Ascent time to 3000 m	20.0 min
Wing loading	113.50 kg / m²
Power load	7.34 kg / hp
Area performance	15.25 hp / m²
Helical area performance	68.00 hp / m²

literature

• James Graue, John Duggan: Deutsche Lufthansa - South Atlantic Airmail Service 1934–1939. Zeppelin Study Group, 2000.
• Jörg-M. Hörmann: Flugbuch Atlantik, German catapult flights 1927–1939. Delius Klasing Verlag, 2007.
• Heinz J. Nowarra : The German Air Armament 1933-1945. Vol. 2. Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Koblenz 1993.

Web links

Commons : Heinkel He 116  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Volker Koos: Ernst Heinkel Flugzeugwerke 1933–1945. S. Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2003, pp. 74-76.