jfb@ihlpm.att.com (Joseph F Baugher) (07/11/90)
From: jfb@ihlpm.att.com (Joseph F Baugher) In light of the recent discussion of assault gliders, I thought you might be interested in this description of a glider fighter. That's right!...a glider FIGHTER! In 1943, American daylight bombers such as the B-17 and B-24 began to strike at the German homeland, and the Luftwaffe had to start looking for new and more effective ways of attacking and destroying these bombers. An early analysis showed that a radial-engined fighter such as the Fw 190 had such a large cross-section area that the fighter stood a fairly good chance of being hit by the defensive machine guns operated by the bomber crewmen. It was reasoned that if by some means the cross-section area of a fighter could be markedly reduced, it could approach a bomber formation unseen, fire its weapons, and be gone before defensive firepower could be directed onto it. Dr.-Ing Richard Vogt, chief designer and technical director of the Blohm und Voss aircraft division, reasoned that the only way that any significant reduction in cross-sectional area could be realized would be to eliminate the engine! Such a glider fighter would be towed to operational altitude by a conventional aircraft and then released. The glider would make a single, head-on pass at an enemy bomber formation, hopefully getting within firing range before being seen, and then would dive away to safety. Dr. Vogt was invited to submit a proposal, which was assigned the letters BV 40. The aircraft was to be simplicity itself, and was to be constructed out of non-strategic materials to the extent possible. Vogt achieved an even further reduction in cross-section area by having the pilot lie in a prone position, with his chin resting on a padded mount. The pilot was protected inside a "cocoon" of heavy steel and armor-plated glass. The aft fuselage and the wings were made of wood. The glider took off on a jettisonable trolley, and landed on a semi-retractable skid. Two 30-mm MK 108 cannon were fitted as armament. The first prototype flew in May 1944. There were some initial handling problems, and it was found that lying in a prone position for a long time was very tiring for the pilot. By July 1944, the flight test program had been completed and the flying characteristics had proven to be acceptable. Speeds as high as 290 mph had been achieved, and it was estimated that a speed of 560 mph could be attained in a steep dive! 200 BV 40A production aircraft were ordered. However, the entire program was cancelled in the autumn of 1944 before any of these could be delivered. I don't think that the BV 40 was ever used operationally. I don't even know if its pair of 30-mm cannon were ever actually fired, even in tests. In any case, the necessity of building a fleet of towing aircraft in order to support massive numbers of BV 40 fighters may have been an important factor in the Luftwaffe deciding not to continue with the project. I am indebted to William Green's "The Warplanes of the Third Reich" for most of the details in this description. Joe Baugher ************************************** AT&T Bell Laboratories * "Of all the gin joints in all the * 200 Park Plaza * towns in all the world, she walks * Naperville, Illinois 60566-7050 * into mine." * (708) 713 4548 ************************************** ihlpm!jfb jfb200@cbnewsd.att.com Who, me? Speak for AT&T? Surely you jest!