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This Plane Traded a BMW Radial for a Daimler-Benz V12, Won the Hearts But Not the War

When Nazi overlords favored the Messerschmitt factory over the Focke-Wulf, it was another mistake that made them lose air superiority, and especially the Battle of Britain.
FW190 in USA 11 photos
Photo: Clemens Vasters/Flckr
Drawing FW190FW_190_DFW_190_D CockpitFW190 in hangarFW190 BMW 801 EngineFW_190_D in flightFW_190_D in flightFW_190_D V12 Junkers EngineFW_190_D in flight Chino Show 2014FW_190_D in flight in WWII
Feared by Allied pilots, the Focke-Wulf FW-190 was also a respected aircraft. It proved to be successful in many battles and behind its success stood the genius of a single man: Kurt Tank. As a former soldier in WWI, he understood that the battlefield's reality was completely different from that of the office's. For example, most engineers didn't think about working on a plane during an assault. Meanwhile, a field mechanic had to cope with the rush of having the plane back in the sky as quickly as possible, and harsh environments with rain, wind, cold or hot temperatures.

Back in 1935, the German Air Ministry launched a call for a new aircraft. Four manufacturers entered their projects: Focke-Wulf, Arado, Heinkel, and Messerschmitt. Focke-Wulf not only that it lost the bid, but it was the first to be kicked out. Its plane, named FW-159, was far from even looking like a fighter plane. But the odds turned towards the planemaker in 1937, when the Ministry made another call for an additional aircraft. This time it won with the FW-190 project.

FW_190_D in flight in WWII
Photo: kitchener.lord/Flckr
Kurt Tank designed the new concept from scratch, unlike the FW-159, which was an evolution of a 1933 trainer airplane. He started with the idea of a high-speed, high-maneuverability aircraft. He noticed that the Me-109 featured a liquid-cooled, inline engine, which suffered from many problems, especially if it was hit. Thus, he chose the air-cooled 14-cylinder twin-radial BMW-801 powerplant. Thanks to the advanced aerodynamic systems placed at the front, such as the NACA cowling and the cone in front of the main propeller, Tank fixed the most significant drawbacks of this kind of engine: air resistance.

Another essential feature was the wing-mounted landing gear, with an inboard retracting system. Thus, the wider track and more robust struts allowed pilots to land on grass airfields with bumps and potholes. The Messerschmitt had a problem with its outboard system, which led to many accidents while landing. Also, their fragile struts tend to break if the pilot is not very skilled (nevertheless, the aircraft's overall construction was very sturdy, and it could fly back with the fuselage full of holes from bullets, and even with damages to the engine). The new plane's oil-cooler and oil tank were protected by an armored plate, unlike the Me-109 who featured exposed radiators.

FW_190_D in flight Chino Show 2014
Photo: Airfowlfhund/Wikimedia
Kurt Tank also made things easier for mechanics and installed electric systems instead of hydraulic ones. He knew that wires were thinner than fluid lines and, therefore, more challenging to hit. Also, have you ever tried replacing a pipe? Imagine doing that in a very tight space, under enemy fire and compare it with replacing a wire that had to be attached between two accessible plugs.

But what made this aircraft so marvelous was its high maneuverability. It was outclassed only by the Supermarine Spitfire. However, despite its speed at low and medium altitudes, it lacked performance above 20,000 ft (6,000 m). To solve that problem, Focke-Wulf replaced the BMW radial engine with an inverted V12 from Daimler-Benz in 1944. It featured the crankshaft on the upper side and the cylinder heads on the lower side. Thus, it could easily fit in the same circular engine bay. The only problem was that it was longer, and the aircraft's nose had to be extended. Since the center of gravity moved forward, Tank lengthened the rear part of the fuselage by about 3.5 ft (1 m). This was the long-nose FW-190D (Dora in German aeronautic language). Focke-Wulf also installed switches that could turn on and off the machine guns and the cannons. Thus, pilots could save ammunition and fire with only one weapon at a time.

Drawing FW190
Photo: B Huber/Wikimedia
The 190D could fly at up to 430 mph (692 kph) at 20,000 feet and reach up to 480 mph (850 kph) in a dive. Only the P-51D Mustang was a true competitor for it. Focke-Wulf fitted the aircraft with 2x20mm Mauser-151/20 cannons in the wings and 2x13mm Rheinmetall MG-131 machine guns above the engine.

But the manufacturer didn't stop upgrading the warbird and produced other versions of the 190D. The 190D9, for instance, was able to reach up to 440 mph (709 kph) in late 1944. Worth noticing that the Air Ministry increased the orders for the FW-190 in 1944 by 375 % compared to the previous year. It tried to fix the mistake it made by relying too much on the Messerschmitt ME-109, but it was too late. The ME-109 was a truly remarkable aircraft, but it lacked the sturdiness and speed of the FW-190.

Actual production figures for this warbird are not accurate. Still, several sources indicate that Focke-Wulf built almost 20,000 of them as fighters and fighter-bombers. Four of them are in the U.S., including one at the U.S. Air Force Museum in Ohio and the Smithsonian National Air Space Museum in Washington DC.
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About the author: Tudor Serban
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Tudor started his automotive career in 1996, writing for a magazine while working on his journalism degree. From Pikes Peaks to the Moroccan desert to the Laguna Seca, he's seen and done it all.
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