Drop tank in German?

• Feb 25, 2021

• #1

A

A.G. Williams

Airman 1st Class

182

239

Oct 10, 2020

Can anyone tell me the official German name for an aircraft drop tank in WW2? The literal translation appears to be Abwurftank.

 

• Feb 25, 2021

• #2

Crimea_River

Marshal

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Nov 16, 2008

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FW190 Manuals call it the "Zusatzkraftstoffbehälter" which translates to Additional Fuel Holder.

 

• Feb 25, 2021

• #3

CATCH 22

Staff Sergeant

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Sep 15, 2006

Canada

Another common word is "Zusatztank" with no clarification if it is a belly- or under wing tank. A longer description of the same is "Abwerfbarer Zusatztank" = "Abwurftank".
Cheers!

 

• Feb 25, 2021

• #4

Prop Duster

Airman

88

154

Feb 9, 2009

So Cal near the Birth Place of Naval Aviation.

I first thought of "oops-panzer" but then I rethought my idea

 

• Feb 26, 2021

• Thread starter
• #5

A

A.G. Williams

Airman 1st Class

182

239

Oct 10, 2020

Thank you gentlemen!

I have a follow-up question: one web source says that the usual German 300 litre drop tank virtually doubled the range of the Bf 109E, from 650 km for the E-3 to 1,350 km for the E-7 plus tank. Any idea of the effective combat radius of these examples?

I also understand that both the Ju 87 and the Me 110 used drop tanks extensively during the Norway campaign. Were they used much in the BoB?

 

• Feb 26, 2021

• #6

tomo pauk

Creator of Interesting Threads

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Range is very easy to do (fuel consumed per mile at set engine power setting, multiplied by fuel available, minus fuel allowance - 30 min worth for USAF later in war, for example). Combat radius is very hard to judge unless we know the required cruise speed, number of minutes of combat requirement, and again reserves/allowances (all of this was different for different air forces/services).
After all of these disclaimers - rule of thumb I've often saw was that combat radius is 1/3rd of the range.

The Bf 110C in BoB carried the ugly 'slipper' tank, I'm not sure it was droppable.
The drop-tank outfitted Ju 87 in 1940 was the 'R' version, seems like it's main area of operations was against and from Norway?

 

• Feb 27, 2021

• #7

D

Denniss

Tech Sergeant

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Oct 15, 2006

Bf 110D carried the large Dackelbauch tank that was not droppable, 110C were without drop tanks.
The small 400l internal tank of the Bf 109 had to cover engine start and warm-up on the ground + take off and climb to alt. One could assume 150l gone for this. Doubling the range with additional 300l sounds reasonable.

 

• Feb 27, 2021

• #8

S

stona

Major

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Mar 28, 2009

tomo pauk said:

The drop-tank outfitted Ju 87 in 1940 was the 'R' version, seems like it's main area of operations was against and from Norway?

Click to expand...

12 of them were used in operations during the Norwegian campaign, 3./St.G.1 was the first to get them in April.

By August 1940 I./St.G.1 (Hozzel) and II./St.G.2 (Enneccerus) had some on strength for the Battle of Britain in Luftflotte 3.

 

• Mar 5, 2021

• #9

E

Escuadrilla Azul

Tech Sergeant

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Feb 27, 2020

Denniss said:

Bf 110D carried the large Dackelbauch tank that was not droppable, 110C were without drop tanks.
The small 400l internal tank of the Bf 109 had to cover engine start and warm-up on the ground + take off and climb to alt. One could assume 150l gone for this. Doubling the range with additional 300l sounds reasonable.

Click to expand...

Yes, the D version was the long range one, first the Dackelbauch tank.

 

• Mar 5, 2021

• #10

M

mozit

Airman

28

19

Jan 11, 2020

Escuadrilla Azul said:

Yes, the D version was the long range one, first the Dackelbauch tank.

View attachment 614967

Click to expand...

IIRC the Dackelbauch tanks were only used for a very short time as they found to be the cause of previously inexplicable mid-air explosions.

 

• Mar 5, 2021

• #11

N4521U

Colonel

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Nov 1, 2009

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Oxygen pleeeze.....................
I tried pronouncing any one of them!