Heinkel He 111

Designed by brothers Walter Gunter and Siegfried Gunter, the He 111 had its roots in the Heinkel He 70, and four prototypes would be produced. The He 111 V1 was the first prototype, powered by two 660-hp BMW V1 6.0 engines and with Flugkapitan Gerhard Nitschke at the controls, it flew for the first time on the 26th February 1935 from Rostock-Marienehe, Germany. Two of the next three prototypes, the He 111 V2 and He 111 V4, would be civil versions, and the true prototype of the military version was the third prototype, the He 111 V3.

The He 111 would normally house a crew of five, consisting of pilot, navigator/bombardier, wireless operator/gunner, flight engineer/gunner and gunner. The next stage in the aircraft's development saw ten pre-production examples, designated He 111A-0, which were similar to the He 111 V3 prototype built. Two of these were sent to Rechlin, Germany for trials. These showed that the aircraft underperformed in handling, power and performance, so these ten aircraft were rejected, before being sold to China. To try and solve these problems, a fifth prototype, the He 111 V5, was produced and it would be powered by Daimler-Benz DB 600A engines. Making its first flight in early 1936, it was this aircraft that would be the basis for the first production variant, the He 111B.

The He 111B was powered by the 950-hp Daimler-Benz DB 600CG engine, its top speed was 230 mph, range 662 miles with a service ceiling of 22,965 ft. Armament consisted of three 7.9mm machine-guns, one each in nose, dorsal and ventral positions, bomb load was 3,330lb. These began to enter service with 1./KG 154, based at Fassberg, Germany, in late 1936. Thirty aircraft would equip the Luftwaffe's Condor Legion, which was fighting in the Spanish Civil War (1936 – 1939) in February 1937. During their service with the Condor Legion they would take part in the bombing of Guernica on the 26th April 1937.

The He 111D was next and was powered by the 1,050-hp Daimler-Benz DB 600Ga engine, but with fighter production having priority for the Daimler-Benz DB 600 engine, only twenty were produced.

The He 111E followed and it was powered by the 1,000-hp Junkers Jumo 211A-1 engine, giving the aircraft a top speed of 252 mph, a range of 1,100 miles and a service ceiling of 27,900 ft. Armament was one 20mm cannon and six 7.92mm machine-guns, with a bomb load of 4,410lb.

A small number of He 111Fs were built and twenty four would be sold to Turkey.

The He 111H was powered by the 1,200-hp Junkers Jumo 211D-2 engine, its top speed was 252 mph, range 1,212 miles with a service ceiling of 21,980 ft. Armament consisted of one 20mm cannon and six 7.92mm machine-guns, bomb load was 4,410lb. One sub-variant, the He 111H-22, was modified to carry a pair of V-1 flying bombs, commonly known as the doodlebug, one under each wing.

Developed for the Kriegsmarine, the He 111J was to be used as a torpedo bomber, however, after ten aircraft had been built, the project was abandoned and the next eighty aircraft were built as bombers.

The He 111P had been developed at the same time as the He 111H, but it was the He 111P that entered service first. This featured a major redesign to help the pilot's view, seeing the nose gun moved and the introduction of a glazed nose and cockpit. It was powered by the 1,100-hp Daimler-Benz DB 601A-1 engine, giving the aircraft a top speed of 242 mph, a range of 745 miles and a service ceiling of 25,590 ft. Armament was three 7.92mm machine-guns, with a bomb load of 4,410lb.

The He 111Z would see two He 111H-6s, with the introduction of a new wing centre section, where a fifth engine would be fitted, merged together. Powered by the 1,350-hp Junkers Jumo 211F-2 engine, these would primarily be used to tow the Messerschmitt Me 321 glider. In total, ten were produced.

The He 111 would be the Luftwaffe's main bomber at the beginning of the Second World War (1939 – 1945), taking part in the invasion of Poland, Norway, Denmark, the low countries, the Battle of France (10th May 1940 - 25th June 1940) and the Battle of Britain (10th July 1940 - 31st October 1940). The type was also used as a transport aircraft and was involved in the operation supplying German troops trapped at Stalingrad in November 1942.

A number of He 111s were built under licence in Spain, designated CASA2.111, they were powered by either Junkers Jumo engines or Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, finally retiring in 1973.

In total, over 7,000 He 111s were built.