Henschel Hs 123
Henschel Hs 123A showing the Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen c. 1942-1943
Type	Dive bomber/Close-support
Manufacturer	Henschel
Maiden flight	First public display 8 May 1935
Introduced	1936
Retired	Spring 1944
Primary user	Luftwaffe. An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing building testing selling and maintaining Aircraft, Aircraft parts Henschel & Son (Henschel & Sohn is a German company situated in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment including The maiden flight of an Aircraft is the first occasion on which an aircraft leaves the ground of its own accord Events 589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo 1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen This is a list of Aviation -related events from 1935: Events January January 11 - 12 – Amelia Earhart 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 1944: Events January January 11 - in one of their largest air raids to ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force.

The Henschel Hs 123 was a single-seat biplane dive bomber and close-support attack aircraft flown by the German Luftwaffe during the Spanish Civil War and the early to mid-point of World War II. Henschel & Son (Henschel & Sohn is a German company situated in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment including A biplane is a Fixed-wing aircraft with two main Wings The first powered heavier-than-air Aircraft, the Wright brothers' Wright Flyer A dive bomber is a Bomber aircraft that Dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of 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military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Although an obsolete design, it was not withdrawn from frontline service until 1944. Its biplane wings were of a "sesquiplane" configuration, whereby the lower wings were significantly smaller than the top wings.

Contents 1 Design and development 2 Operational history 2.1 Prior to World War II 2.2 Spanish Civil War 2.3 Second Sino-Japanese War 2.4 World War II (service from Poland to Greece) 2.5 World War II (Eastern Front) 3 Legacy 4 Operators 5 Specifications (Hs 123A-1) 6 See also 7 References 7.1 Notes 7.2 Bibliography 8 External links

Design and development

Henschel was a German locomotive manufacturer. Henschel & Son (Henschel & Sohn is a German company situated in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment including A locomotive is a railway Vehicle that provides the motive power for a Train. Soon after Hitler's rise to power, Henschel decided to start designing aircraft, one of the first being the Hs 123. Hitler's rise to power began with Hitler's NSDAP as a fringe political party within the government of the Weimar Republic. The aircraft was designed to meet the 1933 dive bomber requirements for the reborn Luftwaffe. A dive bomber is a Bomber aircraft that Dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. Both Henschel and rival Fieseler (with the Fi 98) competed for the production contract requirement, which specified a single-seat biplane dive-bomber. The Gerhard Fieseler Werke was a German Aircraft manufacturer of the The Fieseler Fi 98 was a prototype ground-attack aircraft produced by German aircraft manufacturer Fieseler as a rival to the Henschel Hs 123. General Ernst Udet, a World War I ace, flew the first Hs 123V1 prototype on its first public demonstration fight on 8 May 1935. Colonel General Ernst Udet ( April 26 1896 – November 17 1941) was the second-highest scoring German Flying World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy Aircraft during aerial combat The first three Henschel prototypes, powered by 650 hp (485 kW) BMW 132A-3 engines, were tested at Rechlin in August 1936. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout A reciprocating engine, also often known as a piston engine, is a Heat engine that uses one or more reciprocating Pistons to convert Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Only the first prototype had "smooth" cowlings, from that point on, all aircraft had a tightly-fitting cowling that included 18 fairings covering the engine valves. A cowling is a covering of a vehicle's Engine, most often found on automobiles and aircraft The Henschel prototypes did away with bracing wires and although they looked slightly outdated with their single faired interplane struts and cantilever main landing gears attached to smaller (stub) lower wings, the Hs 123 featured an all- metal construction, clean lines and superior maneuverability. An interplane strut is an aircraft Airframe component used on Biplanes and other aircraft with multi-wing designs A cantilever is a beam supported on only one end The beam carries the load to the support where it is resisted by moment and Shear stress. In Aviation, the undercarriage or landing gear is the structure (usually wheels that supports an Aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxi

The overall performance of the Hs 123 V1 prototype prematurely eliminated any chances for the more conventional Fi 98 which was cancelled after a sole prototype had been constructed. During testing, the Hs 123 proved capable of pulling out of "near-vertical" dives, however, two prototypes subsequently crashed due to structural failures in the wings that occurred when the aircraft were tested in high-speed dives. The fourth prototype incorporated improvements to cure these problems, principally, stronger centre-section struts were fitted. After it had been successfully tested, the Hs 123 was ordered into production with an 880 hp (656 kW) BMW 132Dc engine. ( BMW) (Bavarian Motor Works is an independent German automobile manufacturer founded in 1916

The Hs 123 was intended to replace the Heinkel He 50 biplane reconnaissance and dive bomber as well as acting as a "stop-gap" measure until the Junkers Ju 87 became available. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka (from Stu rz' ka' mpfflugzeug, " Dive bomber " was a two-seat (pilot and rear gunner As such, production was limited and no upgrades were considered, although an improved version, the Hs 123B was developed by Henschel in 1938. A proposal to fit the aircraft with a more powerful (960 hp (716 kW) "K"-variant of its BMW 132 engine did not proceed beyond the prototype stage, the Hs 123 V5. The V6 prototype fitted with a similar powerplant and featuring a sliding cockpit hood was intended to serve as the Hs 123C prototype. An aircraft canopy is the transparent enclosure over the cockpit of some types of Aircraft.

Nonetheless, production of the type ended in October 1938 with less than 1000 aircraft in all series.

Operational history

Prior to World War II

A small pre-production batch of Hs 123A-0s was completed in 1936 for service evaluation by the Luftwaffe. This initial group was followed by the slightly modified Hs 123A-1 series, the first production examples. The service aircraft flew with an armoured headrest and fairing in place (a canopy was tested in the Hs 123V6) as well as removable main wheel spats and a faired tailwheel. For body armour see Armour, for armoured forces see Armoured warfare, for other uses see Armour (disambiguation. A fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag. A fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag. Conventional landing gear describes an Undercarriage arrangement consisting of two main weight-bearing wheels forward of the aircraft's Centre of gravity, the The main weapon load of four SC50 110 lb (50 kg) bombs could be carried in lower wing racks along with an additional SC250 550 lb (250 kg) bomb mounted on a "crutch" beneath the fuselage. A hardpoint is any part of an Airframe designed to carry an external load The fuselage (from the French fuselé "spindle-shaped" is an Aircraft 's main body section that holds crew and passengers or Cargo The usual configuration was to install an auxiliary fuel "drop" tank at this station that was jettisoned in emergencies. Two MG 17 machine guns (7. The MG 17 was a 792 mm Machine gun produced by Rheinmetall-Borsig for use at fixed mountings in many World War II Luftwaffe aircraft For other uses of the phrase see Machine Gun (disambiguation. 92 mm/0. 312 in) were mounted in the nose synchronized to fire through the propeller arc. A propeller is essentially a type of fan which transmits power by converting Rotational motion into Thrust for propulsion of a vehicle such as an

The aircraft entered service at StG 162 in autumn 1936. Its career as a dive bomber was cut short when the unit received its first Ju 87A the next year. Remaining Hs 123s were incorporated into the temporary Fliegergeschwader 100 at the time of the Munich Crisis. The Munich Agreement (Mnichovská dohoda Mníchovská dohoda Münchner Abkommen Accords de Munich was an agreement regarding the Sudetenland, which were areas along borders The Geschwader (squadron) had been created as an emergency measure, equipped with obsolete aircraft and tasked with the ground attack role. With the signing of the Munich agreement, the crisis was over and the Geschwader was disbanded, the Gruppen being transferred to other established units. By 1939, despite its success in Spain, the Luftwaffe considered the Hs 123 obsolete and the Schlachtgeschwader (close-support wings) had been disbanded with only one Gruppe, II. (Schl)/LG2 still equipped with the Hs 123.

Spanish Civil War

During the same time, at the request of Oberst (later Generalfeldmarschall) Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen, chief of staff of the Legion Kondor, five aircraft had been deployed to Spain as a part of the Condor Legion, intended to be used as tactical bombers. The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of The Condor Legion (Legion Condor was a unit composed of "volunteers" from the German Air Force ( Luftwaffe) which served with the Nationalist The Condor Legion (Legion Condor was a unit composed of "volunteers" from the German Air Force ( Luftwaffe) which served with the Nationalist A tactical bomber is a relatively small Aircraft used in the battle zone to attack troops and military equipment for Tactical bombing.

In their intended role, the Hs 123s proved to be somewhat of a failure, hampered by their small bomb capacity and short range. Instead, the Hs 123s based in Seville were used for ground support, a role in which their range was not such a detriment, and where the ability to accurately place munitions was more important than carrying a large load. Seville ( Spanish: Sevilla, see also different names) is the artistic cultural and financial capital of southern Spain. In Military tactics, close air support ( CAS) is defined as air action by fixed or rotary winged aircraft against hostile targets that are in close proximity to The combat evaluation of the Hs 123 demonstrated a remarkable resiliency in close-support missions, proving able to absorb a great deal of punishment including direct hits on the airframe and engine. The Nationalists in Spain were suitably impressed with the Hs 123 under battle conditions, purchasing the entire evaluation flight and ordering an additional 11 aircraft from Germany. The Spanish Hs 123s were known as "Angelito" (dear angel or little angel) and at least one Hs 123 was in service with the Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire) after 1945.

Second Sino-Japanese War

Twelve Hs 123s were also exported to China, where they were used extensively as dive bombers against Japanese warships along the Yangtze River, especially in 1938. The Second Sino-Japanese War ( July 7, 1937 to September 9, 1945) was a major war fought between the Republic of China and the China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. ^[1]

World War II (service from Poland to Greece)

At the outbreak of hostilities, the surviving 39 Hs 123s assigned to II. (Schl)/LG 2, were committed to action in the Polish Campaign. The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied This single unit proved to be particularly effective. Screaming over the heads of enemy troops, the Hs 123s delivered their bombs with devastating accuracy. A frightening aspect of an Hs 123 attack was the staccato noise of its engine that a pilot could manipulate by changing rpm to create "gunfire-like" bursts. ^[1] The Hs 123 proved rugged and able to take a lot of damage and still keep on flying. Operating from primitive bases close to the front lines, ground crews considered the type reliable in field conditions, being easy to maintain.

The Polish campaign was a success for an aircraft considered obsolete by the Luftwaffe high command. Within a year, the Hs 123 was again in action in the blitzkrieg attacks through the Low Countries and France. Blitzkrieg (German for "lightning war" is a popular name for an Offensive operational-level Military doctrine which involves an initial In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries General Guderian was continually impressed by the quick turnaround time offered by II. Heinz Günther Guderian ( August 23 1914 &ndash September 25 2004) was a German officer in the Wehrmacht and later (Schl)/LG 2. Often positioned as the Luftwaffe's most-forward based combat unit, the Hs 123 flew more missions per day than other units, and again proved their worth in the close-support role. With Ju 87s still being used as tactical bombers rather than true ground support aircraft and with no other aircraft capable of this mission in the Luftwaffe arsenal, the Hs 123 was destined to continue in service for some time more, although numbers were constantly being reduced by attrition.

The Hs 123 was not employed in the subsequent Battle of Britain as the English Channel proved a formidable obstacle for the short-ranged aircraft. The Battle of Britain (German ''Luftschlacht um England'' is the name given to the sustained strategic effort by the German Luftwaffe during the summer and The sole operator, II. (Schl)/LG 2 went back to Germany to re-equip with the Messerschmitt Bf 109E fighter bomber (Jabo) variant. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Ground-attack aircraft are military aircraft designed to attack targets on the ground and are often deployed as Close air support for and in proximity to their own ground forces The Bf 109E fighter bomber was not capable of carrying any more bombs than the Hs 123. It did however, have a greater range and was far more capable of defending itself. On the downside were the notoriously tricky taxiing, ground handling and takeoff/landing characteristics, especially exacerbated with a bomb load.

At the beginning of the Balkans Campaign, the 32 examples of the Hs 123 that had been retired after the fall of France were taken back into service to equip 10. The Balkans Campaign was the Axis Powers ' invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia during World War II. (Schl)/LG 2. The aircraft performed well enough to warrant its use in Operation Barbarossa. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II

World War II (Eastern Front)

At the start of Operation Barbarossa, the single Gruppe of the Luftwaffe that was dedicated to ground support was II. (Schl)/LG 2, operating 38 Bf 109Es and 22 Hs 123s. In service use on the Eastern Front, the remaining aircraft had been "field" modified with the main wheel spats removed, additional armour and extra equipment fitted as well as mounting extra machine guns and even cannons in under-wing housings. For body armour see Armour, for armoured forces see Armoured warfare, for other uses see Armour (disambiguation.

During the initial drive, the unit participated in action along the central and northern parts of the front, including a brief time in support of the fighting around Leningrad, and participating in the battles for Bryansk and Vyazma. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Bryansk01jpg|thumb|left|200px|Forest Museum in Bryansk]]Ziu-9 Bryansk 2056 Vyazma (Вя́зьма Wiaźma is a town in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk and The first weeks revealed problems associated with using the Bf 109E which was plagued by undercarriage and engine problems in the fighter-bomber role. Its liquid-cooled inline engine was also more vulnerable to small arms fire than the Hs 123's radial. The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion Engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central

The winter brought hardship to all German forces in Russia, and the pilots in the open cockpits of the Henschels suffered accordingly. Despite this, they took part in the Battle of Moscow. The Battle of Moscow (Битва под Москвой Romanized: Bitva pod Moskvoy, Schlacht um Moskau is the name given by the Soviet historians to the two In January, the unit was re-designated as the first dedicated ground attack Geschwader, SchlG 1. The Hs 123 became a part of 7. /SchlG 1.

This "new" unit participated in operations in Crimea in May 1942, after which it operated on the southern sector for some time, participating in the Second Battle of Kharkov and going on to take part in the Battle of Stalingrad. Crimea (kraɪˈmiːə or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Крим Автономна Республіка Крим Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Крым The Second Battle of Kharkov, so named by Wilhelm Keitel was an Axis counteroffensive against the Red Army Izium bridgehead offensive conducted from May 12 to The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the In the meantime, the small number of operational Hs 123 continued to slowly dwindle. Aircraft had been salvaged from training schools and even derelict dumps all over Germany to replace losses. ^[1] The aircraft that had supposedly replaced the Hs 123, the Ju 87, also started to be assigned to ground support units, leaving tactical bombing to newer aircraft.

The greatest tribute to the Hs 123 usefulness came in January 1943 when Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen, then commander-in-chief of Luftflotte 4, asked whether production of the Hs 123 could be restarted because the Hs 123 performed well in a theater where mud, snow, rain and ice took a heavy toll on the serviceability of more advanced aircraft. Colonel General is a senior Military rank which is used in some of the world’s militaries This Luftwaffe Detachment was based in Romania, Bulgaria, South east Poland, Hungary, Ukraine and Russian occupied territories for However, the Henschel factory had already dismantled all tools and jigs in 1940. ^[1]

After taking part in the Battle of Kursk, SG 1 returned to Crimea, and there during late spring 1944, they finally gave up the aircraft that had served all over Europe from Spain to Leningrad. The Battle of Kursk (Курская битва refers to a series of German and Soviet operations on the Eastern Front of World War II 7. /SG 1 traded its last Hs 123s in mid-1944, for Ju 87s, a type that was to have replaced it back in 1937.

By 1945, the Hs 123s that remained serviceable were reassigned to secondary duties such as supply dropping and glider towing. Terminology A "glider" is an unpowered Aircraft. The most common types of glider are today used for sporting purposes ^[2]

Legacy

The Henschel Hs 123 proved the adage that a rugged and reliable aircraft could be an effective combat weapon. Despite its antiquated appearance, the sesquiplane dive-bomber and close-support machine proved itself a formidable adversary in every World War II battlefield in which it fought. ^[3] No Hs 123s are known to have survived.

Operators

 China

Nationalist Air Force operated 12 aircraft using them as dive bombers. REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES

 Germany

Luftwaffe

Spain

Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire) purchased all remaining aircraft of Legion Condor and ordered an additional 11 aircraft from Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Spanish Air Force ( Spanish: Ejército del Aire; literally "Army of the Air" is the Air force of Spain. The Condor Legion (Legion Condor was a unit composed of "volunteers" from the German Air Force ( Luftwaffe) which served with the Nationalist

Specifications (Hs 123A-1)

Aircraft of World War II: The Aviation Factfile. ^[4] General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 8. 33 m (27 ft 4 in)
• Wingspan: 10. The wingspan (or just span) of an airplane or a Bird, is the distance from the left wingtip to the right wingtip 50 m (34 ft 5. 5 in)
• Height: 3. 20 m (10 ft 6 in)
• Wing area: 24. 85 m² (267. 49 ft²)
• Empty weight: 1,500 kg (3,307 lb)
• Loaded weight: 2,215 kg (4,884 lb)
• Powerplant: 1× BMW 132Dc 9-cylinder radial engine, 880 hp (656 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 341 km/h at 1200 m (211 mph at 3,900 ft)
• Combat radius: 860 km (533 mi)
• Service ceiling 9,000 m (29,530 ft)
• Rate of climb: 900 m/min at sea level (2,950 ft/min at sea level)

Armament

• 2× 7. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion Engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central In Aviation, V-speeds or Velocity-speeds are standard terms used to define Airspeeds important or useful to the operation of Aircraft, such In Aeronautics, a ceiling is the maximum Density altitude an aircraft can reach under a set of conditions In Aerodynamics, the rate of climb RoC is the speed at which an Aircraft increases its Altitude. 92 mm MG 17 machine guns (field modification of 2× 20 mm (0. The MG 17 was a 792 mm Machine gun produced by Rheinmetall-Borsig for use at fixed mountings in many World War II Luftwaffe aircraft 79 in) MG FF cannon
• Up to 450 kg (992 lb) of bombs under wings and under fuselage

See also

Comparable aircraft

• Curtiss SBC Helldiver
• Fiat CR.42
• Heinkel He 50
• Junkers Ju 87
• Henschel Hs 129
  

Related lists

• List of military aircraft of Germany

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

• Luftwaffe Resource Center: Henschel Hs 123
• Henschel Hs 123

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