Unusual Nazi Aircraft And Other Bold Aviation Concepts. The Dornier Do. 335, Blohm & Voss Bv P.163

1,419,095
0
Published 2023-02-07
Some of the most unusual German aircraft of World War 2, such as the Dornier Do 335 Pfeil (Arrow), or the Blohm & Voss Bv P.163, and the American Douglas XB-42 Mixmaster.
The Do 335 was a heavy fighter built by Dornier for Germany during World War II. The two-seater trainer version was called Ameisenbär ("anteater"). The Pfeil's performance was predicted to be better than other twin-engine designs due to its unique push-pull configuration and the lower aerodynamic drag of the in-line alignment of the two engines. It was Nazi Germany's fastest piston-engined aircraft of World War II. The Luftwaffe was desperate to get the design into operational use, but delays in engine deliveries meant that only a handful were delivered before the war ended.

General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 13.85 m (45 ft 5 in)
Wingspan: 13.8 m (45 ft 3 in)
Height: 5 m (16 ft 5 in)
Wing area: 38.5 m2 (414 sq ft)
Airfoil: root: NACA 23018-630; tip: NACA 23012-635
Empty weight: 7,260 kg (16,006 lb)
Gross weight: 9,600 kg (21,164 lb)
A-6 10,085 kg (22,234 lb)
Fuel capacity: 1,230 L (320 US gal; 270 imp gal) main fuel tank (single-seat) with various extra tankage in the weapons bay and wings, depending on the variant
Powerplant: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 603E-1 V-12 inverted liquid-cooled piston engines, 1,342 kW (1,800 hp) each for take-off
1,417 kW (1,900 hp) at 1,800 m (5,900 ft)
Propellers: 3-bladed VDM, 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) diameter constant-speed tractor and pusher propellers
Performance

Maximum speed: 763 km/h (474 mph, 412 kn) at 6,500 m (21,300 ft)
A-6 690 km/h (430 mph; 370 kn) at 5,300 m (17,400 ft)
Cruise speed: 685 km/h (426 mph, 370 kn) at 7,200 m (23,600 ft)
Economical cruise speed: 452 km/h (281 mph; 244 kn) at 6,000 m (20,000 ft)
Range: 1,395 km (867 mi, 753 nmi) on full internal fuel at max. continuous power
2,060 km (1,280 mi; 1,110 nmi) at economical cruise power
Service ceiling: 11,400 m (37,400 ft)
Time to altitude: 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in 55 seconds; 8,000 m (26,000 ft) in 14 minutes 30 seconds
Armament
Guns: 1 × engine mounted 30 mm (1.18 in) MK 103 cannon with 70 rounds plus 2 × 20 mm (0.79 in) MG 151/20 cowl-mount, synchronized autocannon with 200 rpg
Bombs: Up to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bombload in internal weapons bay and two underwing pylons

The Blohm & Voss P 163 was a design project for an unconventional bomber during World War II. Constructed mainly from steel, its crew were accommodated in large wingtip nacelles, giving it a triple-fuselage appearance. Its propeller drive system was also unusual, with the central fuselage containing twin engines coupled to a front-mounted contra-prop.

The P 163 was one of several highly unusual bomber configurations studied by the Blohm & Voss aircraft division under Chief Designer Richard Vogt. It was developed in response to a 1942 Luftwaffe requirement for a Heinkel He 111 replacement.

The Douglas XB-42 Mixmaster was an experimental bomber aircraft, designed for a high top speed. The unconventional approach was to mount the two engines within the fuselage driving a pair of contra-rotating propellers mounted at the tail in a pusher configuration, leaving the wing and fuselage clean and free of drag-inducing protrusions.

Two prototype aircraft were built, but the end of World War II changed priorities and the advent of the jet engine gave an alternative way toward achieving high speed.

Various offensive bomb loads were considered, between 2,000 kilograms (4,400 lb) and 2,500 kilograms (5,500 lb). Large bombs would be recessed into the fuselage, while multiple smaller bombs would be carried under the wing, inboard the undercarriage.

General characteristics

Crew: 4
Length: 15.15 m (49 ft 8 in)
Wingspan: 20.73 m (68 ft 0 in)
Height: 3.6 m (11 ft 10 in)
Wing area: 55.30 m2 (595.2 sq ft)
Empty weight: 9,400 kg (20,723 lb)
Gross weight: 15,200 kg (33,510 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Daimler-Benz DB 613C 24-cyl. liquid-cooled twin inline piston engine, 2,833 kW (3,799 hp)
Performance

Maximum speed: 510 km/h (320 mph, 280 kn) at 7,000 meters (23,000 ft)
Range: 2,500 km (1,600 mi, 1,300 nmi)
Service ceiling: 10,000 m (33,000 ft)
Wing loading: 275 kg/m2 (56 lb/sq ft)
Armament
Guns: multiple MG 151 installations
Bombs: 2,000 kg

#aircraft #dornier #ww2

All Comments (21)
  • @joemck74
    That old pilot is a contender for the real-life 'Most Interesting Man in the World'. Imagine having just 10% of his experiences.
  • @Paiadakine
    Mr Brown's stories are just fantastic. Flying around Germany doing almost what he wanted to do What a job.
  • @MikeG42
    Another good video , I enjoyed Eric's story about his search for the Bv 141 and learning about the strange looking Bv 163.
  • @omenaccipio
    Those interviews must have been done at least 20 years ago. Wow! It is, was and will be SO important to record the actual people that were there while we still had them! God bess them all.
  • 13:10 Captain Eric "Winkle" Brown, Royal Navy. Badass and crazy man. Voluntarily flew a Me 163.
  • The reason the BV-141 was not accepted was not because it was unconventional, but because it used the much sought after BMW 801 engine also used by the FW-190. The FW-189 used the Argus AS-410 and had two of them, that also counted in its favour when operating deep into enemy territory.
  • @dave8599
    20:20 Those color movies of the Ar- 234 jet bomber are fantastic, the close up of the engine! Excellent movie that covers much more than what the you tube title implies! The interviews with the men that flew these planes are assume Thank You!
  • I swear “Secret Weapons Over Normandy” and “Blazing Angels 2” is right up their alley.
  • @kentl7228
    Great little documentary. Anything with Eric Brown is always fascinating.
  • @mrpicky1868
    looks like a spaceship from Star Wars ) so many original designs in that era, mind blowing
  • @tkskagen
    It's all about "Research & Design", not all designs are going to work, but the Original Design may allow better design in the future.
  • @TJ-xmm
    Blohm und Voss makes very cool Aircraft designs
  • You have to admire some of the ingenuity , of some of the German Aircraft , that could've made it during the Second World War . Fascinating
  • Personally, I think it would be interesting to see some of these designs computer simulated, to see if some of these weird ideas could have actually worked.
  • @jeffpiatt3879
    Just when I think I know German WW2 aircraft, a new one appears I have never seen.
  • @thegreat_I_am
    Flying an aircraft from a wingtip cockpit would’ve been like the World’s wildest rollercoaster ride!
  • @fazole
    Only an engineer could think a cockpit on the wingtip is a good idea and is someone who never had to circle to land in low cloud. In fact, you pretty much can only circle in one direction and see anything.
  • Whoever did the surface texture on the Do. 335 CGI model... these weren't ships with thick, pitted and corroded iron plates, they were airplanes with a much smoother skin. Steampunk doesn't work on aircraft.