The Focke-Wulf Fw-190 is a German, single-engine, all-metal fighter aircraft with a cockpit covered in the low-wing design of World War II. Pilots considered the Fw-190 to be a better aircraft than the Messerschmitt Bf-109. The Luftfahrtministerium ordered a self-supporting low wing with a functional Fw-190 skin, assembled in the autumn of 1937. Kurt Tank presented two propulsion proposals: the first with a liquid-cooled Daimler-Benz DB 601 engine and the second with the new engine BMW 139 radial. The latter was chosen and the work begun in the spring of 1938 was carried out by Obering R. Blaser. The first prototype of the Fw-190V1 was ready in May 1939 and was flown in Bremen on June 1, 1939 by Captain Hans Sander. The second prototype, the FW-190V2, armed with two MG131 and two MG17 machine guns, all of 7.92 mm caliber, flew in October 1939. To reduce aerodynamic drag, both were equipped with a tunnel air inlet in the propeller cover, but problems with engine overheating resulted in a return to NACA's proven shield design. Before testing of these prototypes began definitively, the decision was already made to replace the BMW 139 engine with a stronger, but longer and heavier BMW 801. It required many changes, strengthening the structure and moving the cabin rearward, which later became a source of problems with the center of gravity. The advantage was the elimination of problems with exhaust gas permeation and overheating of the cabin interior due to its direct proximity to the BMW 139 engine. The third and fourth prototypes were abandoned, and the Fw-190V5 with the new engine it was completed in early 1940. Later, it received wings with a wingspan extended by one meter (from the original 9.5 m), making it 10 km. / h slower, but increased climb speed and improved maneuverability. It was marked Fw-190V5g, and the variant with the shorter wing was Fw-190V5k. The first seven machines of the Fw-190A-0 information series had a short wing, the rest - a longer one. The first operational unit equipped with the Fw-190 - 6./JG 26 stationed at Le Bourget, declared its operational readiness in August 1941 and from the first meeting of the new fighter with the British Supermarine Spitfire, its advantage over them became evident. . During the war, a dozen versions of this large aircraft were created. The machines of the "A" version, along with a dozen modernizations, served as fighter aircraft. The versions marked "B" and "C" were only prototypes of high-altitude fighters intended to combat strategic bombers, but did not enter serial production. The "D" variant, as the only one of the Fw-190s, was powered by the new 1750HP Jumo 213A engine and was the German answer to the P-51 Mustang. The new engine lengthened the fuselage by several tens of centimeters. This variant also primarily performed high-altitude hunting and combat duties. Numerous variants of the "F" version were used as fighter-bombers for direct battlefield support. The "G" version played the same role as the "F" version, but had a longer range. During the entire war, more than 20,000 examples of this one of the best fighters of the Second World War were produced. Technical data (Fw-190A-8 version): length: 9m, wingspan: 10.51m, height: 3.95m, maximum speed: 656km/h, climb rate: 15m/s, maximum range: 800km, maximum ceiling 11410m , armament: fixed-2 MG131 13 mm machine guns and 4 MG151 20 mm cannons (2 MG 151/20E cannons for the D-9 version).
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