SECTION
World War II Support Aircraft
06
CARD
08
YEARS
1938-1945
Focke-Wulf
Fw 189 Uhu Luftwaffe ‘flying eye’
Nazi Germany
Eastern Front markings
Possessing only modest performance but offering great agility and strength, the Fw 189 operated almost exclusively over the Eastern Front and provided the Luftwaffe with an exceptional tactical reconnaissance capability in support of the German army. Serving in the East, this example wears the theatre markings of yellow bands around the boom and wingtips.
Wearing yellow Eastern Front tactical markings, this Fw 189A-2 of 2./NAGr. 16 was captured by US forces at Graz-Thalerhof, Austria, in 1945.The slender wing, thin booms and small Argus engines of the Fw 189 did not give rise to much optimism when viewed for the first time, yet the type achieved an enviable reputation with its pilots. The Fw 189A-2 variant introduced the MG 81Z twin machine-gun installation to both dorsal and tailcone positions.
Reconnaissance camera pack
One Rb 20/30 camera was normally installed, but optional installations were the Rb 50/30, Rb 21/18 or Rb 15/18 cameras, and a hand-held HK 12.5 or HK 19 camera was usually carried.
2./NAGr. 16
NAGr was the Luftwaffe’s abbreviation for Nahaufklärungsgruppe or tactical reconnaissance unit. The second staffel or flight of NAGr 16 was formed in Russia in October 1942, and served in the southern sector. In 1944 it fell back with the retreating Wehrmacht through Bessarabia, being based at Kishinev (today Chisinau, the Moldovan capital) for much of the spring and summer. The subsequent retreat took the unit through Hungary and into Austria.
Crew
The Fw 189 had a crew of three, consisting of a pilot sitting to port, with a navigator beside him on a swivelling seat that gave access to the glazed nose and to the twin defensive MG 81Z 7.9-mm (0.31‑in) machine-guns mounted in the rear part of the main canopy. A dedicated gunner manned the Ikaria tailcone turret, with its second pair of MG 81 machine-guns.
Fw 189 roles
Configuration
Undercarriage
The Fw 189’s tailwheel retracted to port to lie within the tailplane, while the main undercarriage units retracted aft into the engine nacelle/ tail boom junctions.
Easy to start
The Fw 189’s cockpit layout was basically simple, and after ensuring that the canopy hatches were secured, the fuel safety cock levers checked, the main power supply switched on, and the temperature and pressure gauges working, the single cockpit switch automatically controlling the Argus two-blade vane-operated controllable-pitch propellers was set to start.
The Fw 189 featured two small engines, with interchangeable oval-section twin booms supporting the tail unit, and with a central crew nacelle. Of all-metal construction, the Fw 189 had a three-spar stressed-skin wing, with a rectangular centre-section supporting the crew nacelles and tail boom/engine nacelles, and with tapering outer panels. The fabric-covered split trailing-edge flaps were electrically operated, while the fabric-covered, metal-framed ailerons, rudders and elevator were manually operated.
Kurt Tank designed the Fw 189 to be a modular aircraft, with interchangeable fuselage nacelles to allow the basic design to fulfil a variety of roles. An Fw 189B was schemed as a five-seat trainer, while the Fw 189C was designed with a small, heavily armoured nacelle housing pilot and gunner for the assault role. Neither version was selected for major production. The Fw 189A was intended as a reconnaissance type for the Aufklärungsstaffeln (H).
SPECIFICATION Focke-Wulf Fw 189A-2 Production
Production of the Fw 189 at Bremen built up rapidly, but attrition of the Hs 126A in France was such that a second production line was set up at the former Aero factory in Prague. Production at Bremen tailed off during 1941, as a result of the plant’s commitment to Fw 190 production, and jigs were transferred to Mérignac in France, which became the sole source of Fw 189 production during early 1943. A total of 828 production Fw 189s was produced, 293 of them from Mérignac and 337 from Prague.
Powerplant: two Argus As 410A-1 12-cylinder inverted-Vee engines, each rated at 465 hp (347 kW) for take-off Performance: maximum speed 217 mph (350 km/h) at 7,875 ft (2400 m); maximum cruising speed 202 mph (325 km/h) at 7,875 ft (2400 m); economical cruising speed 189 mph (305 km/h); normal range 416 miles (670 km); endurance 2 hours 10 minutes; service ceiling 23,950 ft (7300 m) Weights: empty 6,239 lb (2830 kg); normal loaded 8,708 lb (3950 kg); maximum loaded 9,193 lb (4170 kg) Dimensions: wingspan 60 ft 4½ in (18.40 m); length 39 ft 5 ½ in (12.03 m); height 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m); wing area 409.04 sq ft (38.00 m2) Armament: two 7.9-mm (0.31-in) MG 17 fixed forward-firing machine-guns in the wing roots, two 7.9-mm MG 81 trainable rearward-firing machine-guns in the dorsal position, and two 7.9-mm MG 81 trainable rearward-firing machineguns in tail of the fuselage nacelle, plus four 50-kg (110-lb) SC 50 bombs on ETC 50/VIIId underwing racks
Powerplant
The Fw 189 was powered by a pair of Argus As 410A-1 air-cooled inverted Vee-12 engines. Each was rated at 465 hp (347 kW) and drove a variablepitch, two-blade Argus propeller. A distinctive feature of the engine was a finned spinner ahead of the propeller; driven by the airflow as a windmill, this was used to power the propeller actuator. The As 410 also powered the Arado Ar 96 trainer.
Type: three-seat tactical reconnaissance and army co-operation aircraft
Uhu nicknames
The Fw 189’s cockpit, where ‘one was literally cocooned in glass’, resembled the compound eye of an insect, and the propaganda department of the RLM nicknamed the type ‘das Fliegende Auge’ (‘the flying eye’). The Russian nickname ‘Rama’, meaning frame, came from its distinctive tail boom shape.
Codes
This Fw 189 has its individual aircraft letter painted in red and outlined in white, indicating its assignment to a second Staffel (2., 6., 10. or 14. Staffel), while the last letter – K – denotes the I Gruppe, narrowing it down to 2. Staffel.
Armament
Although intended for the reconnaissance role, the Fw 189 was surprisingly well armed. In addition to the two pairs of 7.9-mm (0.31in) MG 81Z machine-guns in the crew nacelle (single MG 15s of the same calibre in the Fw 189A-1), the aircraft had a pair of 7.9-mm MG 17 machine-guns in the wing roots and bomb racks for up to eight 50-kg (110‑lb) SC 50 bombs. The final major production version, the Fw 189A-4, had increased armour protection and introduced 20-mm MG FF cannon in the wing roots.
World War II Support Aircraft
Comparison
Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Uhu Luftwaffe ‘flying eye’ Left: At the time of its appearance, the Fw 189 represented a radical solution to providing a battlefield reconnaissance type, with Luftwaffe officials being familiar with more conservative single-engined designs. In terms of defensive firepower, it was notably well armed. Below: The Fw 189 was capable of absorbing the worst that the Russian winter could throw at it, as well as being agile enough to escape the attentions of many enemy fighters. Sturdy landing gear eased operations from unprepared airstrips.
From the cockpit “…Once settled into cruising flight, the Fw 189 gave a delightful armchair ride”
Armament Focke-Wulf Fw 189A-1
Compared to the Hs 126, its predecessor with the Luftwaffe’s tactical reconnaissance squadrons, the Fw 189 boasted far superior defensive and offensive firepower. With a well-trained crew, the Uhu could put up defensive fire to dissuade the attentions of enemy fighters. The British Lysander could carry 500 lb (227 kg) of bombs on its optional spatmounted stub wings, compared to the Uhu’s typical load of four 50-kg (22.7-kg) bombs underwing.
Henschel Hs 126B-1
Westland Lysander Mk I SECTION
4 x 7.9-mm machine-guns, 440 lb (200 kg) of bombs
06
CARD
Among the most experienced and distinguished test pilots of his generation, Captain Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown of the Royal Navy flew numerous examples of captured German aircraft at the end of World War II. Postwar, he regularly used an Fw 189 as a personal transport between Germany and the UK, and recalls the type with a certain fondness:
19
3 x 7.7-mm machine-guns, 500 lb (227 kg) of bombs
2 x 7.9-mm machine-guns, 110 lb (50 kg) of bombs
Good visibility from the flying glasshouse
Briefing
He 46 and Henschel Hs 126 were conventional, single-engined, highwing monoplanes, the Fw 189 introduced a far more advanced oon dubbed ‘the flying eye’ configuration, with t win t ail (‘das fliegende Auge’) after it booms, twin engines and a central was publicly revealed in 1941, fuselage nacelle conferring excelthe Focke-Wulf Fw 189 was one lent visibility, useful performance of the most versatile, reliable and and all-round defensive cover. popular aircraft to enter Luftwaffe The Uhu was designed in service. response to a requirement to sucThe type otherwise known as ceed the Hs 126 and its initial triUhu (owl), represented little short als in summer 1938 soon demonof a revolution in the design of strated the aircraft’s considerable tactical reconnaissance and battle- potential. field co-operation aircraft. While its While the Luftwaffe entered predecessors, such as the Heinkel World War II with the Hs 126 spear-
S
heading its tactical reconnaissance squadrons, this type suffered during the French campaign, and Uhu production was assigned high-priority status in summer 1940. The first examples were delivered to service units that autumn, and by spring 1942 the Fw 189 was appearing in the ranks of the
Aufklärungsstaffeln on the Russian front. It was the war in the East in which the Uhu made its name. In the Russian campaign, the agile Fw 189 had supplanted the Hs 126 by the end of 1942, and proved to be capable of operating in the most adverse conditions and of absorbing considerable punishment.
With black-painted undersides, this Fw 189A-2 flew with Stab/NAGr. 15, which operated in the night reconnassiance role from Naglowice in German-occupied Poland during October 1944. Earlier, the Gruppe had parented a specialist Nachtkette for nocturnal operations.
Timeline
The Fw 189 was designed from the outset as a battlefield reconnaissance machine. Accordingly it offered a remarkable field of view in all directions except directly downward for the crew of three, which comprised (from front to rear) a pilot, navigator and flight mechanic/rear gunner. Almost all of the central nacelle was covered with flat Plexiglas planels; those in the pointed tailcone were curved. The entire nose was glazed, giving the pilot an excellent view of the battlefield situation below.
y first impression on climbing into the cockpit was that the “M view surely must be terrific, as one was
Fw 189 plan view The Fw 189’s heavily glazed nacelle provided the crew with a cumulative field of view of 360° on the horizontal plane. The crew’s view to the sides were partially obscured by the engine nacelles and wings.
Fw 189 lateral view
1938
Initial prototype
The Fw 189 V1 (D-OPVN) began its flight test programme in July 1938, with a maiden flight in the hands of Kurt Tank. The first three prototypes (V1 to V3) were followed by four more trials aircraft, the first of which was a production prototype for the initial A-series.
1939
Fw 189 Uhu trainers
First flown in 1939, the Fw 189B featured a redesigned fuselage and dual controls for service as a crew trainer; it was ordered into production before the Fw 189A. A pre-production batch of three aircraft was followed by 10 Fw 189B-1s, and these entered service with the Luftwaffe.
1940-41
Early production
Initial production version of the Uhu was the Fw 189A-1, essentially similar to the V4 prototype, albeit with aerodynamic refinements and As 410A-1 engines. The first batch of 20 A-1s came off the Bremen line by late 1940, and the A-1 was in production until mid-1941.
1941
Foreign manufacture
The high priority assigned to Fw 189 deliveries, and the demands of Fw 190 manufacture, saw Uhu production undertaken at a second assembly line at the Aero factory in Prague, Czechoslovakia (pictured). Assembly was also undertaken at Bordeaux-Mérignac in France.
The view in the vertical plane was equally impressive, although the type’s pilots often found that the forward view was distorted by the flat glass panels.
1941
Improved armament
The Fw 189A-2 was the second production version and differed from its predecessor in having strengthened defensive armament of two twin 7.9-mm (0.31-in) machine-gun installations. This example was operational in the Demyansk area in the summer of 1942.
literally cocooned in glass, but a disappointment was in store for, in flight, the view forward was to prove somewhat poor. The cockpit layout was basically simple. Engine starting was easy and reliable, which must have been a boon on the Eastern Front. ”Climb at 112 mph (180 km/h) was a steady plod and by the time 10,000 ft (3,280 m) had been reached I had usually had enough, but once settled into cruising flight, the Fw 189 gave a delightful armchair ride at a speed of about 180 mph (290 km/h). ”One drawback that I encountered with the Fw 189 while using it for crossChannel operations was a certain unpleasantness in bad visibility. In fact, view ahead through the sloping glass panels left something to be desired as these tended to produce a refraction effect and distorted ones vision.”
1941-45
Later war service
The Fw 189 began reaching Luftwaffe units in strength in 1942. Later it served with the Slovakian and Hungarian air forces. Late in the war 30 A-1s were converted as night-fighters (above) with upward-firing guns and FuG 212 Lichenstein C-1 intercept radar in the nose.