Which side would you fly for?....... (12 Viewers)

[cheddar cheese]

I agree.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I think that flying for the Germans might have been really fun actually. You had great aircraft but there is nothing more romantic than fighting a loosing battle. I mean I know it sucks to lose but the whole last stand thing even though it must have been disheartening it is kind of like The Alamo and battles like that. It was heroic.

 

[cheddar cheese]

I would have loved to fly German planes, for that reason but also because I think they had a more diverse range of aircraft. The Brits didnt really have a lot in comparison with the Germans when you think about it, The list of well known British planes is actually curiously short.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Yeah the Germans put a lot of planes out of different types and made different varients of the same planes.

 

[cheddar cheese]

Heres a German plane i'd have liked to fly:

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I think to fly around in the Fw-189 just for fun in a non hostile environment would be fun mostly because of the great view you would have from the cockpit. But this recon aircraft was such an easy target to shoot down I dont think it would be too much fun.

 

[cheddar cheese]

Didnt they also make a ground-attack Fw-189 too though?

And I always thought the 189 was a tough aircraft.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Yes there may have been one but it sill was not that great of an aircraft.

Type: Three seat reconaissance and close support
Manufacturer: Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau GmbH; built under Focke-Wulf control by SNCASO with outer wings by Breguet
First flight: July 1938
First delivery: September 1940
Final delivery: August 1944

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Engine:
Model: Argus As 410A-1
Type: 12 cylinder inverted-vee air-cooled
Number: Two Horsepower: 465 hp

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dimensions:
Span: 60 ft. 4½ in. (18.4m)
Length: 39 ft. 4½in. (12m)
Height: 10 ft. 2 in. (3.1m)
Weights:
Empty: 5,930 lb. (2690 kg)
Loaded: 8,708 lb. (3950 kg)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Performance:
Maximum speed: 217mph (350km/h)
Climb to 13,120ft (4000m): 8 min 20 sec
Ceiling: 23,950ft (7300m)
Range: 416 miles (670km)
Armament:
(A-2)
One 7.92mm MG 17 machine gun in each wing root
Twin 7.92mm MG 81 manually aimed in dorsal position and (usually) twin MG 81 in rear cone with limited field of fire
Underwing racks for four 50kg bombs

As you can see it was quite slow too.

 

[cheddar cheese]

Wow. Still, its a plane I like.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Yeah I bet it was fun to fly around in for fun. The view from that mostly glass cockpit must have been great.

 

[cheddar cheese]

Yup, I suppose it was mainly glass because it was a recon plane.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Pretty much that is what it was designed for but it also says that it was a close support aircraft but I doubt it was used that much for that purpose.

 

[cheddar cheese]

What's meant by a close support aircraft?

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

A close support aircraft is an aircraft that gives close support to ground troops typically infantry. They directly help the ground troops attacking enemy positions and giving the ground commander recon of the ground positions.

 

[cheddar cheese]

Ah right, thanks 8)

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

you may alos have heard it called "battlefield support", however close air support and battlefield support are very different to ground attack.............

 

[cheddar cheese]

Indeed...

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

very much so..............

 

[cheddar cheese]

I agree...

We're going off on one again

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

i agree.............