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#Post#: 7562--------------------------------------------------
Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: vonofterdingen Date: November 18, 2019, 1:58 pm
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[img width=640
height=428]
HTML https://i.postimg.cc/tRFtyBWt/Screen-Hunter-113.png[/img]
This week’s plane is arguably the best fighter in the Luftwaffe.
Certainly the BF-109 is better known, but by most accounts I
have read, including Adolf Galland, the FW-190 was the better
aircraft. The FW-190’s designer, Kurt Tank, went on to become
one of aviation’s most important figures, and a man who helps
bring us the jet age. I know too that it is a popular plane in
IL-2 based on numerous forum comments and articles I have seen
over the years.
From Wikipedia…
The Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Würger (English: Shrike) is a German
single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt
Tank in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II.
Along with its well-known counterpart, the Messerschmitt Bf 109,
the Fw 190 became the backbone of the Luftwaffe's Jagdwaffe
(Fighter Force). The twin-row BMW 801 radial engine that powered
most operational versions enabled the Fw 190 to lift larger
loads than the Bf 109, allowing its use as a day fighter,
fighter-bomber, ground-attack aircraft and, to a lesser degree,
night fighter.
The Fw 190A started flying operationally over France in August
1941, and quickly proved superior in all but turn radius to the
Royal Air Force's main front-line fighter, the Spitfire Mk. V,
particularly at low and medium altitudes. The 190 maintained
superiority over Allied fighters until the introduction of the
improved Spitfire Mk. IX. In November/December 1942, the Fw 190
made its air combat debut on the Eastern Front, finding much
success in fighter wings and specialised ground attack units
called Schlachtgeschwader (Battle Wings or Strike Wings) from
October 1943 onwards.
The Fw 190A series' performance decreased at high altitudes
(usually 6,000 m (20,000 ft) and above), which reduced its
effectiveness as a high-altitude interceptor. From the Fw 190's
inception, there had been ongoing efforts to address this with a
turbosupercharged BMW 801 in the B model, the much longer-nosed
C model with efforts to also turbocharge its chosen Daimler-Benz
DB 603 inverted V12 powerplant, and the similarly long-nosed D
model with the Junkers Jumo 213. Problems with the turbocharger
installations on the -B and -C subtypes meant only the D model
entered service in September 1944. While these "long nose"
versions gave the Germans parity with Allied opponents, they
arrived too late to affect the outcome of the war.
The Fw 190 was well-liked by its pilots. Some of the Luftwaffe's
most successful fighter aces claimed many of their kills while
flying it, including Otto Kittel, Walter Nowotny and Erich
Rudorffer. The Fw 190 provided greater firepower than the Bf 109
and, at low to medium altitude, superior manoeuvrability, in the
opinion of German pilots who flew both fighters. It was regarded
as one of the best fighter planes of World War II.
The Fw 190 was introduced on the Western Front in August 1941.
For the first few months of its combat career, the Allies,
entirely unaware of the new fighter, attributed pilots' reports
of a new "radial-engine fighter" to Curtiss P-36 Mohawks which
the Germans had captured from the French. The new fighter
outperformed the Spitfire Mk. V, the then top-of-the-line RAF
fighter, in all aspects except turning radius. The Fw 190 was
considerably better in firepower, rate of roll, and
straight-line speed at low altitude. As Allied fighter losses
rose and local air superiority over the Channel front passed to
the Luftwaffe, Allied plans were tentatively made to launch a
commando raid on a Luftwaffe airfield to steal an Fw 190 for
evaluation. However, the British acquired an intact Fw 190 A-3
in late June 1942, when a Jagdgeschwader 2 pilot, Oberleutnant
Armin Faber, landed on a British airfield by mistake.
[img width=594
height=480]
HTML https://i.postimg.cc/J4qNHtTs/Screen-Hunter-112.png[/img]
As tests confirmed the performance characteristics, British
rushed development of the Spitfire Mk. IX with the new two-stage
supercharged Merlin 61 engine. The RAF was also quick to study
the aircraft for any novel design elements. In particular, the
cooling system and installation of Fw 190's radial engine was a
direct influence on Hawker Siddeley's Tempest II.
On the whole, Allied pilots who flew the Fw 190 found it
pleasant to fly, very responsive, and, while the cockpit was
small compared to most Allied fighters, it was well laid out.
Most pilots found the Fw 190's Kommandogerät system (which
automatically controlled the RPM, fuel mixture, ignition timing,
supercharger switchover, and boost pressure) to be more of a
hindrance than a help. German pilots in some instances
reportedly failed to pull up from a steep dive at low altitude,
diving straight into the ground. It was thought that they had
left the powerful, variable incidence tailplane trim mechanism
in the "nose heavy" position, meaning that their aircraft could
not recover from the dive in time.
The first significant operation in which Fw 190s played an
important role was Operation Cerberus, the "Channel dash"
break-out through the English Channel and Dover Strait by the
Kriegsmarine's small battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and
the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen on 12 February 1942. Adolf
Galland, the General der Jagdflieger (General of the Fighter
Arm), insisted that the operation take place during daylight
hours and accepted responsibility for devising a plan to provide
continuous daylight fighter cover against the heavy attacks
expected by the RAF. By the end of the day, JG 26 had been
credited with seven aerial victories and six probables for the
loss of four Fw 190s and their pilots. Adolf Galland was to
later call the success of this operation the "greatest hour" of
his career.
The Fw 190s first significant mass engagement took place on 19
August 1942, during Operation Jubilee, the Allied raid on
Dieppe. Jagdgeschwaders JG 2 and JG 26 had recently converted
from the Bf 109, fielding 115 fighter aircraft during the day's
fighting, including a small number of high-altitude Bf 109G-1
models (although there is doubt as to whether G-1 variants
existed as operational types). The RAF committed over 300
fighter aircraft, consisting mostly of Spitfire VB models, with
just six squadrons of Spitfire Mk. IXBs, and also some of the
new Hawker Typhoons. In addition, several squadrons of Hawker
Hurricanes and RAF Allison-engined Mustangs performed
fighter-bomber and reconnaissance duties. During the action, the
two Jagdgeschwader lost 25 Fw 190s to all causes, including
crashes, but, in return, they claimed 61 of the 106 Allied
aircraft lost that day (JG 26 and JG 2 claiming 40 and 21
respectively. Fighting over occupied territory, the RAF lost 81
pilots and aircrew killed or taken prisoner, against Luftwaffe
fighter losses of 20 pilots killed (14 from JG 26 and six from
JG 2).
From the end of June 1942, the Fw 190 A-3/U3 Jabo (Jagdbomber,
fighter-bomber) equipped 10.(Jabo)/JG 2 and 10.(Jabo)/JG 26,
which operated with considerable success attacking shipping and
port towns around the south-eastern coasts of England. These
high-speed, low-altitude attacks were almost impossible to
defend against, as the Fw 190s came in below effective radar
coverage and were often gone before RAF fighters could intercept
them. The most successful of these fighter-bomber operations was
carried out on 31 October 1942 on Canterbury in retaliation for
RAF bombing raids over Germany. In the largest daylight raid
mounted by the Luftwaffe since the Battle of Britain, about 70
Fw 190s unloaded 30 bombs on the city, killing 32 people and
injuring 116, as well as causing a lot of damage to residential
properties and shops. Only one Fw 190 was lost over England. The
most successful RAF fighters used to intercept these attacks
were the Hawker Typhoons and the Griffon-egine Spitfire Mk XIIs,
which were both fast enough to catch the Fw 190, especially at
low altitudes.
In April 1943, the two Jabo units were amalgamated into
Schnellkampfgeschwader 10 (SKG 10) which switched to night
operations over southern England, a role in which the Fw 190
proved unsuccessful, taking heavy casualties from the de
Havilland Mosquito night fighters. On the night of 16/17 April,
on this unit's first operation, four Fw 190s which were
attempting to attack London, got lost over Kent. Three of them
tried to land at RAF West Malling: Yellow H of 7./SKG 10, flown
by Feldwebel Otto Bechtold landed and was captured, his Fw 190
later being evaluated by the RAE at Farnborough; another Fw 190
of 5./SKG 10, flown by Leutnant Fritz Sezter landed several
minutes later. When Setzer realised he had landed on an enemy
airfield and attempted to take off, his aircraft was destroyed
by an armoured car. Setzer surrendered to Wing Commander Peter
Townsend. A third Fw 190 undershot the runway and was also
destroyed, the pilot escaping with a concussion. The fourth Fw
190 crashed at Staplehurst, killing the pilot.
The Fw 190 also saw heavy action in the 1944 Normandy Campaign.
German fighters flew 760 sorties on 6 June 1944 against an
Allied total of 14,000. By 10 June, the dearth of specialised
ground attack aircraft forces meant the Oberkommando der
Luftwaffe (High Command of the Air Force) ordered the Fw 190
Gruppen to install bomb racks for these types of operations.
Just 24 hours later, the Fw 190 units were asked to revert to
air superiority roles again. With conflicting orders and harried
by Allied air forces, losses were heavy. In the space of three
weeks, 200 Fw 190s and 100 pilots were lost to enemy action.
Total losses by the end of June 1944 totalled 230 pilots killed
and 88 wounded. Among the casualties was the 173-victory Fw 190
ace Emil Lang. 551 German fighters were shot down, with another
65 destroyed on the ground. A further 290 were damaged. In
return, German pilots claimed 526 Allied aircraft destroyed.
[img width=545
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In game…
As I noted earlier, this is a very popular plane in our game.
Not with me, though. I am much more at ease in a BF-109. Perhaps
it is due to my poor skills, or my style of flying, but I always
feel very clumsy in the FW-190. It has wonderful fire power, and
though I realize it is meant for a “boom and zoom” type attack,
I cannot seem to make the slightest turn without stalling. I am
also frustrated by the lack of visibility. I know there has been
discussion in the past regarding the bar that goes over the
cockpit and that is part of the problem. I know many of you just
love this plane though, I just don’t quite understand why.
#Post#: 7563--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: JG51_Ruski Date: November 18, 2019, 4:04 pm
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Very good job Von Thanks
#Post#: 7564--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: MADMICK71 Date: November 18, 2019, 6:17 pm
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Thanks! great read.
#Post#: 7565--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: ben_wh Date: November 18, 2019, 10:57 pm
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Great plane.
The Fw-190 requires a different type of flying in IL-2 1946 to
maximize its strengths. Once one adapted, however, the
combination of firepower, agility and speed makes the 190 a very
effective fighter. There were some great tutorials from way
back, and here's one example:
HTML https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df5_N5WTlNw&t=1s
Cheers,
#Post#: 7566--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: vonofterdingen Date: November 18, 2019, 11:34 pm
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Interesting video Ben. Thanks.
#Post#: 7567--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: Beowolff Date: November 19, 2019, 3:12 am
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Ah... the infamous Butcherbirds!
[img width=640
height=480]
HTML http://static.warthunder.com/upload/image/news_fw190_d12(1).png[/img]
They killed EVREYTHING. What a surprise when they first
appeared and literally the Allies had nothing much to stand
against them. And they did everything; air superiority,
intercept, fighter/bomber, ground attack, virtually every role.
I confess I've not flown them much in IL2... oh I've wanted to
(and have on rare occasions) but as I usually selfishly fly
Allied, I'm in the hot seat when these planes appear in a
mission and I as an Allied pilot have to try and deal with them.
No doubt I'm the poorer pilot for not flying them more. I must
do better.
Great article, Von... and nice conversation guys over this truly
classic WW2 fighters!
Salute! :D
Beowolff
#Post#: 7568--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: FZ49 Date: November 19, 2019, 4:10 am
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... sorry, but this nice painting doesn't show FW190As butcher
birds (with BMW radial engine), but FW190Ds 11 or 13, with a V12
Junker Jumo 213 inline engine (air intake on the right and 3
cannons and no engine cowling MGs) ... ;)
#Post#: 7569--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: cafs Date: November 19, 2019, 5:05 am
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Quote from Von:
"It has wonderful fire power, and though I realize it is meant
for a “boom and zoom” type attack, I cannot seem to make the
slightest turn without stalling."
This remenber me what USAF's 4th FG pilots said when they
transitioned from the Spitfire to the big and heavy P-47
Thunderbolt, they spent months complaining about the change,
with a very poor performance in combat, untill the USAF changed
the "Jug" for the Mustang.
When you got confortable, and "understand", a plane behavior, is
dificult to change to another, totally different, aircraft.
Good POTW Von, thanks.😀👍
#Post#: 7570--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: larsresult Date: November 19, 2019, 5:50 am
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Good choice Von. I am comfortable with the 109 but not so with
the 190. Ben's video is interesting and I will try to adapt my
attack as suggested. I am puzzled why in game the throttle never
goes over 88%. I work with what I have and usually get 3 times
the kills that the 109 gives me. As pointed out it is easy to
stall and tricky to take off if you are impatient. I also notice
the flaps and undercarriage are damaged quicker than the 109 if
there is too much speed. This despite the 109 undercarriage
being much weaker. As said above it is a matter of learning to
fly differently.
A few years ago I talked to some ex Luftwaffe pilots. Some
preferred the 190 for the wider undercarriage, better roll rate
for change of direction, better guns and armour, and the radial
engine which took more hits than the inline and survived. The
109 pilots didn't mind the weak undercarriage because it broke
off in a crash landing which increased survivability. They also
preferred it for dogfighting and hated flying fighter bomber
missions. Still, as they told me any pilot favoured the aircraft
he flew most.
#Post#: 7572--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Focke-Wulf FW-190
By: Beowolff Date: November 19, 2019, 9:57 am
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[quote author=FZ49 link=topic=1141.msg7568#msg7568
date=1574158258]
... sorry, but this nice painting doesn't show FW190As butcher
birds (with BMW radial engine), but FW190Ds 11 or 13, with a V12
Junker Jumo 213 inline engine (air intake on the right and 3
cannons and no engine cowling MGs) ... ;)
[/quote]
I'm sorry, but being no complete German war expert I must ask
when did they change the actual name of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190
Würger (Würger in English meaning Shrike, that bird's name being
derived from the Latin word for " butcher ", with shrikes known
as butcherbirds?) I understand there were 'nicknames' (I.E.
Dora and so on) for other models, but I was under the
impressions that the actual name was 'still' Würger, alas I
could be wrong as again I am no expert.
Nevertheless, no need to be sorry on your end... the picture I
posted wasn't intended to be anything other than a
representation of ALL FW's in service during the war and not any
particular one. You mistakenly linked my words above the
picture to the picture itself which was an incorrect assumption
on your part though there's no need to be sorry about it. My
statement was merely a 'remembering' of a comment I once heard
in Hyper Lobby when someone in an Allied squadron yelled;
'Butcherbirds at 12 O'clock!'
The picture was just a nice picture, not connected to the words
above it.
Anyway, it doesn't matter does it, as we're not playing the
silly game of one-upmanship here are we?
If they changed the main name of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 (Würger,
or Shrike in English, also known as Butcherbirds), then that's
good information that I wasn't aware of and appreciate knowing.
I did a (rather hasty search just to see what I could quickly
come up with) search and did not find anything, so any new
knowledge appreciated.
S!
Beo
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