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1941-1942 should have been a watershed year for the production of advanced types: the Me 210 should have replaced much of the the Me 110, Ju 88 and Ju 87 fleet. The Ju 288 should have begun replacing much of the Ju 88, He 111, Do 217
and the He 177 should have been debugged replacing many of the twin engine bombers as well as the Fw 200.
The He 177 should have been easiest save as the Heinkel firms owner, Earnest Heinkel had begged to develop a 4 separate engine version early enough but was at that time denied. Not much could be done about the DB606/610 engine problems or those of the Jumo 222. Both were essentially solved by 1944 but then it was too late.
Supposing the Ju288 with its Jumo 222 engine, Me210, and He177 with the DB606 engine all worked out by 1941-1942 as planned, what would it have functionally have meant for the Luftwaffe in the second stage of the war?
Not a lot. None of them could fly without fuel or aircrew.
Cheers
Steve
Not really, been covered before. In July 1942 (at Karinhall) Goering received the unpalatable news that due to fuel shortages for training command only 40% of required fighter pilots and 20% of required bomber crews could be produced.
The average monthly allotment of fuel to training command was 27,000 tonnes in 1941, cut to an average of just 15,000 tonnes in 1942. In September 1942 training command was allotted just 3,000 tonnes for the subsequent five week period which virtually brought all flying training to a halt.
Cheers
Steve
Given those troubles then, wouldn't technically superior aircraft have been what was needed to maximize the potential of the declining numbers of experienced pilots?
Yes, but how technically superior was the Me 210/410 to allied fighters? Same goes for everything, with the possible exception of the jets. Who was going to crew the He 177s?
There is a lesson to be learned from experiences on the ground. German tanks, in fact almost all German weapons, were superior to those of the allies (until the late advent of the Pershing et alter) but quality does not necessarily compensate for quantity. The Luftwaffe would have been overwhelmed in any case.
Cheers
Steve
The problem with the Me410 (and Me210 had it been problem free from the onset) is that it required additional fighter protection to conduct it's mission.
So instead of being an asset, it was an additional drain on resources.
The Me210 was faster than all of the above carrying bombs, even faster than the Do217;
But not many bombs. None of these were game changers.
Cheers
Steve
In making reference to the Me210, I am talking about like types...How did the Ju88, He111, and Bf110 operate historically? The Me210 was faster than all of the above carrying bombs, even faster than the Do217; that's the point of the design.
In making reference to the Me210, I am talking about like types...
The Bf110 was designated as a "heavy fighter", not a "schnell bomber". The Me210, with all of it's problems, would (in theory) do 350mph (564kph)...load it down with 2,200 pounds (1,000 kg) of bombs and it will be much slower. The Me410 was faster by 30mph, but again load it down with bombs and it pays a penalty in performance.
This is not a world beater.
Additionally, the heavy fighter concept is a notion carried through from the late 20's and 30's...the only way the Bf110 was going to be successfully replaced, is by a type that could produce adequate speed and performance. This would not be the Me210/Me410 by a long shot.
Messerschmitt Bf 162 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not exactly true.
Bf-162 fast bomber came first. When that was rejected Messerschmitt modified the design and sold it to Luftwaffe as Me-110 "zerstorer".
Exactly why focusing on the likes of the Fw-187, Fw-190 (including emphasizing DB-603 powered variants as soon as such engines were available), and possibly He-100s would have been more significant.Given those troubles then, wouldn't technically superior aircraft have been what was needed to maximize the potential of the declining numbers of experienced pilots?
Yes, Fw-187 as the LW's definitive long range day fighter and heavy interceptor, possibly fighter-bomber as well, similar to the P-38. (and similarly adaptable to the night fighter role once combat radar units came online)Look how much time was lost flogging the corpse of the Me210...
They could have done much better with the Fw187 (fighter) and Ar240 (in lieu of the Me210) as a replacement for the Bf110