chris ballance
Airman 1st Class
- 132
- Jul 21, 2022
Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules
The Swiss always maintained a robust maintenance depot, primarily to support their own national airlines. It would not surprise me if they did overhaul work for the Germans. Their maintenance division eventually became SR TechnicsDid the Luftwaffe have any workshops that specialized in maintaining the sizable number of American and British radial engines they had in their possession? Or was this work subcontracted to civilian workshops in occupied countries? I read where the Germans sent DC-2 & DC-3s to Switzerland for repair. Did the Swiss also rebuild the engines?
I was assuming there had to be a network of companies on the continent with experience maintaining and rebuilding Curtiss-Wright engines (don't know about Pratt & Whitney) given the number of Douglas and Lockheed aircraft flying commercially in Europe before the war. Was Fokker or maybe more logically Gnome et Rhône in the service/repair business? Also, no idea how deep Bristol was embed into the European market before the war, but didn't the Jupiter and Mercury enter license production in some European countries?The Swiss always maintained a robust maintenance depot, primarily to support their own national airlines. It would not surprise me if they did overhaul work for the Germans. Their maintenance division eventually became SR Technics
(I did too.)guess I'm forgetting about all the Lufthansa technicians and repair facilities....
Was going to mention this as well. I know when an airline makes a major purchase they usually buy equipment and material so they can maintain their fleet or set up a facility to do maintenance.guess I'm forgetting about all the Lufthansa technicians and repair facilities....
I thought Lufthansa only bought a single DC-2, but the Germans would have gained access to the facilities of Československá letecká společnost (ČLS), KLM, and LOT.Was going to mention this as well. I know when an airline makes a major purchase they usually buy equipment and material so they can maintain their fleet or set up a facility to do maintenance.
Exactly. And because Germany ran such a small fleet of US aircraft, I wonder about their use and if usage was limitedI thought Lufthansa only bought a single DC-2, but the Germans would have gained access to the facilities of Československá letecká společnost (ČLS), KLM, and LOT.
Would these radials have any special tools? Not just imperial vs metric, but did Wright or Pratt make special tooling that went with the engines?There's really no reason why American and/or British engines couldn't have been overhauled at any of the Luftwaffe's repair depots - the engines already in service at the start of the war would have had technical manuals readily available for civil aircraft maintenance as well as some types in service with the German military.
The BMW132 radial was based on the P&W R-1690 and was used on quite a few Luftwaffe types.
The Bramo323 and Siemens-Halske Sh.22 (which became the Bramo322) were based on the Bristol Jupiter and used on a variety of Luftwaffe types.
Access to replacement parts may have become an issue for upkeep on American or British manufactured engines, but a good quartermaster has "ways" to get what's needed.
Yes - for example they would need special spanner wrenches to remove cylinder heads, Pratt and CW products would be different. There is usually a host of special tools you'll need to work on these engines. I know some of my fellow maintainers will chime inWould these radials have any special tools? Not just imperial vs metric, but did Wright or Pratt make special tooling that went with the engines?
I have read the Germans valued engines like the Wright R-1820 Cyclone to keep their DC-2 and DC-3s in the air.My two cents.
I would have assumed when an allied four engine bomber goes down in Axis territory, its parts are melted down to make Bf-109s and FW-190s.
I would think the radial engines used on the B-17s and B-24s would not be powerful enough for use on German fighter and two engine bombers.
And if an allied fighter, with it's Merlin (running on 130 or 150 octane) crashes in Axia territory, they would have to detune the Merlin to run on axis 89 octane, which I guess offers no worthwhile advantages over something like the DB605.
I have read the Germans valued engines like the Wright R-1820 Cyclone to keep their DC-2 and DC-3s in the air.