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Fi 156 Storch
Type Reconnaissance & communications
Manufacturer Fieseler
Maiden flight 1936
Introduced 1937
Primary user Luftwaffe
Produced 1937-1949
Number built Over 2,900

The Fieseler Fi 156 Storch (stork) was a small German liaison aircraft built by Fieseler before and during World War II, and production continued in other countries into the 1950s for the private market. An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing building testing selling and maintaining Aircraft, Aircraft parts The Gerhard Fieseler Werke was a German Aircraft manufacturer of the The maiden flight of an Aircraft is the first occasion on which an aircraft leaves the ground of its own accord This is a list of Aviation -related events from 1936: Events February British Marine Aircraft Ltd This is a list of Aviation -related events from 1937: Events March March 5 - Imperial Airways opens a new ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. A liaison aircraft is a small usually unarmed Aircraft developed before World War II and primarily used by military forces for artillery observation or transporting The Gerhard Fieseler Werke was a German Aircraft manufacturer of the World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive It remains famous to this day for its excellent STOL performance, and French-built later variants are a common fixture at air shows. STOL is an Initialism for short take-off and landing, a term used to describe Aircraft with very short Runway requirements

Contents

Design and development

In 1935, the RLM (Reichsluftfahrtministerium, Reich Aviation Ministry) put out a tender for a new Luftwaffe aircraft (suitable for liaison, army co-operation today called Forward Air Control), and medical evacuation, as required to several companies. Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Reich Air Ministry (Reichsluftfahrtministerium was a government department during the period of Nazi Germany (1933-45 ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. A forward air controller (FAC is a qualified individual who from a forward position on the ground or in the air directs the action of Military aircraft engaged Medical evacuation, often termed MEDEVAC or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to the wounded being Penned by chief designer Reinhold Mews and technical director Erich Bachen, Fieseler's entry was the most advanced in terms of STOL performance, by far. A fixed slat ran along the entire leading edge of the long wings, while the trailing edge, inspired by earlier 1930s Junkers aircraft wing control surface designs, including the ailerons, was a hinged and slotted flap. Slats is also a nickname for Australian cricketer Michael Slater, and NHL executive Glen Sather Slats are Aerodynamic For the band with a similar name see The Ailerons Ailerons are hinged control surfaces attached to the Trailing edge of the Wing of a Fixed-wing The wings could be folded back along the fuselage, allowing it to be carried on a trailer or even towed slowly behind a vehicle. The long legs of the landing gear contained oil and spring shock absorbers that compressed about 450 mm (18 inches) on landing, allowing the plane to set down almost anywhere. In flight they hung down, giving the aircraft the appearance of a very long-legged, big-winged bird, Hence its nickname, Storch. With its very low landing speed the Storch often landed "at place" or even backwards, in case of wind from directly ahead.

Versions

Swiss Air Force Fi 156C-1
Swiss Air Force Fi 156C-1

The first Fi 156 V1 prototype flew in the spring of 1936. The Swiss Air Force ( Schweizer Luftwaffe, Forces aériennes suisses, Forze Aeree Svizzere) is the air component Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. It was powered by a 180 kW (240 hp) inverted-vee Argus As 10C V8 engine, which gave the plane a top speed of only 175 km/h (109 mph), enabling the Storch to fly as slow as 50 km/h (32 mph), take off into a light wind in less than 45 m (150 ft), and land in 18 m (60 ft). WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout It was followed up by the second V2 prototype and third V3 prototypes, the ski-equipped V4, plus one V5 and ten Fi 156A-0 pre-production aircraft. It was immediately ordered into production by the Luftwaffe with an order for 16 planes, and the first Fi 156A-1 production aircraft entered service in mid-1937. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Fieseler then offered the Fi 156B, which allowed for the retraction of the leading edge slats and had a number of minor aerodynamic cleanups, boosting the speed to 208 km/h (130 mph). The Luftwaffe didn't consider such a small difference to be important, and Fieseler instead moved on to the main production version, the C.

The Fi 156C was essentially a "flexible" version of the A model. A small run of C-0s were followed by the C-1 three-seater liaison version, and the C-2 two-seat observation type (which had a rear-mounted MG 15 machine gun for defense). The MG 15 was a 792 mm (031 in Machine gun designed specifically as a hand manipulated defensive gun for combat aircraft during the early 1930's Both models entered service in 1939. Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1941, both were replaced by the "universal cockpit" C-3, suited to any role. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Last of the Cs was the C-5, a C-3 with a belly hardpoint a camera pod or drop tank. A hardpoint is any part of an Airframe designed to carry an external load The term drop tank (or belly tank) is used to describe auxiliary fuel tanks in both aeronautics and spaceflight Some were fitted with skis, rather than wheels, for operation on snow.

Other versions of the Fi 156 were the C-3/Trop, which was a tropicalised version of the Fi 156C-5, and the Fi 156D which was an air ambulance version. The first two Fi 156D models were the D-0 pre-production aircraft, and the D-1 production aircraft, powered by an Argus As 10P engine. Ten Fi 156E pre-production aircraft were fitted with tracked landing gear. The Fi 256 was a five-seat civil version, only two were built at the Morane-Saulnier factory at Puteaux in France. Puteaux is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

Operational history

Fi 156 in Luftwaffe markings
Fi 156 in Luftwaffe markings
Fi 156 in flight
Fi 156 in flight

The Storch could be found on every front throughout the European and North African theaters of operation in World War II. It will probably always be most famous for its role in the rescue of deposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini from a boulder-strewn mountain top near Monte Cassino, surrounded by Italian troops. For information about the World War II battle see the Battle of Monte Cassino. German commando Otto Skorzeny dropped with 90 paratroopers onto the peak and quickly captured it, but the problem remained of how to get back off. In Military science, the term commando can refer to an individual a Military unit, or a raiding style of military operation. Otto Skorzeny ( June 12 1908 – July 6 1975) was an Obersturmbannführer in the German Waffen-SS Paratroopers are Soldiers trained in Parachuting and generally operate as part of an airborne force. A Focke Achgelis Fa 223 helicopter was sent, but it broke down en route. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout History Since 400 AD Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys. Instead, pilot Walter Gerlach flew in a Storch, landed in 30 m (100 ft), took aboard Mussolini and Skorzeny, and took off again in under 80 m (250 ft), even though the plane was overloaded. The involved Storch rescuing Mussolini bore the radio code letters, or Stammkennzeichen, of "SJ + LL" in motion picture coverage of the daring rescue.

On 26 April 1945 a Storch was one of the last planes to land on the improvised airstrip in the Tiergarten near the Brandenburg Gate during the Battle of Berlin and the death throes of the Third Reich. Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. TiergartenViewjpg|thumb|right|View within the Tiergarten]] Tiergarten ( German for Animal Garden) is the name of both a large Park in the The Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor is a former City gate and one of the main symbols of Berlin and Germany. For the bombing campaign on Berlin by the RAF from November 1943 to March 1944 see Battle of Berlin (air. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers It was flown by the test pilot Hanna Reitsch, who flew her lover Field Marshall Robert Ritter von Greim from Munich to Berlin to answer a summons from Hitler. Hanna Reitsch ( 29 March 1912 &ndash 24 August 1979) was a German Aviatrix who was once Adolf Hitler 's Robert Ritter von Greim (Robert Greim 22 June, 1892 &ndash 24 May, 1945) was a German Field Marshal, pilot Once in Berlin von Greim was informed that he was to take over command of the Luftwaffe from Hermann Goering. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member [1]

A Storch was the victim of the last dog fight on the Western Front and another was fittingly downed by a direct Allied counterpart of the Storch - a Piper L-4 Grasshopper-from the L-4's crew directing their pistol fire at it. A dogfight or dog fight is Aerial combat between Fighter aircraft. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The involved Storch was the only aircraft known to have been downed by handgun fire in the entire war.

A total of about 2,900 Fi 156s, mostly Cs, were produced from 1937 to 1945. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar When the main Fieseler plant switched to building Bf 109s in 1943, Storch production was shifted to the Mráz factory in Choceň, Czechoslovakia. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Choceň (ˈxotseɲ Chotzen is a town in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. A large number were also built at the captured Morane-Saulnier factory in France, starting in April 1942, as the M. Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier is a French aircraft manufacturer formed by Raymond Saulnier(1881-1964 and the Morane Brothers Leon(1885-1918 & Robert(1886-1968 in October This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. S. 500 Criquet. Both factories continued to produce the planes after the war for local civilian markets (in Czechoslovakia it was made as K-65 Čáp, 138 were made by 1949).

During the war at least 60 Storchs were captured by the Allies, one becoming the personal aircraft of Field Marshal Montgomery. Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, KG, GCB, DSO, PC, (məntˈgʌmərɪ əv ˈæləmeɪn

Because of its superb STOL characteristics (which would be of obvious great benefit to bush pilots, for example) there have been many attempts to recreate or outright copy the Storch in modern form, namely in the form of various homebuilt aircraft. Bush flying is a term for air operations carried out in remote regions of the world Also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, homebuilt aircraft are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity [1] One of the most successful recent examples of this is the Slepcev Storch designed by Nestor Slepcev. It is a 3/4 scale reproduction of the original with some modification for simplicity. Through the use of modern materials the aircraft features better STOL performance than the original with a take-off run of 30m and landing-roll of 50m with no headwind.

Operators

Spanish Air Force Fi 156 and Argus As 10 engine
Spanish Air Force Fi 156 and Argus As 10 engine
Swedish Air Force S14 (Fi 156)
Swedish Air Force S14 (Fi 156)
Rudolf Langhanns collection
Rudolf Langhanns collection




Specifications (Fi 156)

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

See also

Related development

Related lists

References

Notes
  1. ^ Antony Beevor. The MG 15 was a 792 mm (031 in Machine gun designed specifically as a hand manipulated defensive gun for combat aircraft during the early 1930's WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout This list of military aircraft of Germany includes prototype pre-production and operational types Berlin: The Downfall 1945, Penguin Books, 2002, ISBN 0-670-88695-5. p. 322
Bibliography

External links

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