Heinkel He 176 Rocket-Powered Demonstrator (1939)
Lackluster performance doomed the all-liquid fueled Heinkel He 176 rocket plane.
Under the direction of Wilhelm Benz and Hans Regner, work began on a private venture design which became the "He 176". To begin with, the aircraft would be powered by a refined Walter HWK-R1rocket engine outputting 1,373lbs of thrust. The airframe would house the required fuel stores, avionics and single-seat cockpit. Key to its design would be the smallest possible airframe in an effort to delete all unnecessary aerodynamic-defeating protrusions and save on overall weight. The fuselage took on an aerodynamic approach with a glazed-over acrylic nose cone, cylindrical center section and tapered empennage. The tail unit included a conventional vertical tail fin and applicable horizontal tail planes. As speeds were projected to be rather intolerable for the feat at hand, the pilot would be given a reclined position to counter the effects of g-forces. The wings were short, small-area straight assemblies added to the middle of the fuselage sides, shoulder-mounted in place and slightly reminiscent of those as seen on the Heinkel He 111 Medium Bomber prior. The fuselage proved just large enough to house the intended components - measuring just 2.7 feet in diameter while the undercarriage was of the typical "tail-dragging" configuration of the time to include a pair of main landing gear legs and a tail skid along a narrow-track design. Due to this, skids were added to the wing tips to counter any possible tipping. The main landing gear legs themselves were fully retractable to help maintain aerodynamic qualities.
One of the more interesting design features of the He 176 was its pilot escape feature. As the intended airspeeds to be reached were truly monumental and very new territory, the He 176 was given a completely jettisonable cockpit section in the event of a catastrophic event during flight, leaving the rest of the fuselage to fall to its destruction with the pilot escaping (hopefully) without injury.
The first He 176 prototype was first flown on June 20th, 1939. However, the aircraft's performance was such that attending German Reich Air Ministry (RLM) officials were rather underwhelmed by the attempt. This particular rocket-fueled approach was not held in high regard both for its rather noisy execution and inherent dangerous nature concerning the combustible fuel. The He 176 even failed to surpass 435 miles per hour in her first flight attempt. As such, the He 176 project was not pursued beyond this developmental "peak" despite a second prototype on the drawing board. In the end, the airframe proved too heavy for the intended rocket powerplant - the thrust output rating not nearly consistent enough particularly during take-off actions and generally lackluster in straight-level flight. Additionally, the wing surface area was deemed too small for the required lift and control at the expected speeds, further dampening the performance numbers. From then on, the He 176 was sentenced as a museum piece, being sent to Berlin from Heinkel for public display in 1942. However, the Allied bombing campaign saw to it that the German capital was not out of its reach and responded accordingly, the He 176 being destroyed an air raid during 1943.
With the loss close of the He 176 rocket-propulsion project, Heinkel moved on to other endeavors. With Germany fully committed to war by this point - having moved politically and militarily across Europe to begin World War 2 - thought still centered on the use of high performance interceptor aircraft especially to counter the ever-growing threat of the allied bomber campaign wreaking havoc on German infrastructure and war-making capabilities. The RLM therefore moved on another similar aircraft initiative which ultimately produced the famous rocket-powered Messerschmitt Me 163 "Komet" - the first (and only) operational rocket-powered fighter anywhere in the world. This aircraft utilized an evolved form of the Walter rocket engine coupled with swept-back wings to which some 370 examples were ultimately produced, eventually seeing combat action against Allied aircraft in the air war over Europe. However, advances in jet technology made the age of the rocket-powered fighter short-lived. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
MilitaryFactory.com does NOT sell equipment/weaponry. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Please consult manufacturers for such information. Our disclaimer. Email corrections / Comments to MilitaryFactory at Gmail dot com.
Specifications for the
Heinkel He 176
Rocket-Powered Demonstrator
Country of Origin: Nazi Germany
Manufacturer: Heinkel - Nazi Germany
Initial Year of Service: 1939
Production: 1
Focus Model: Heinkel He 176 V1
Crew: 1
Length: 16.40ft (5m)
Width: 13.12ft (4.00m)
Height: 4.92ft (1.50m)
Weight (Empty): 7,617lbs (3,455kg)
Weight (MTOW): 9,700lbs (4,400kg)
Powerplant: 1 x Walter HWK-R1 rocket engine developing 1,323lbs of thrust.
Maximum Speed: 435mph (700kmh; 378kts)
Maximum Range: 68miles (109km)
Service Ceiling: 29,528ft (9,000m; 5.6miles)
Rate-of-Climb: 199 feet per minute (61m/min)
Hardpoints: 0
Armament Suite:
None.
Variants:
He 176 - Base Series Designation
He 176 V1 - Sole Prototype
Operators: Nazi Germany
BY DECADE:
• 1900 to 1909
• 1910 to 1919
• 1920 to 1929
• 1930 to 1939
• 1940 to 1949
• 1950 to 1959
• 1960 to 1969
• 1970 to 1979
• 1980 to 1989
• 1990 to 1999
• 2000 to 2009
• 2010 to 2019
• 2020 to 2029
• VIEW ALL
• Compare Aircraft
BY TYPE:
• Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW)
• Attack Helicopters
• Bomber Aircraft
• Medium Bombers
• Heavy Bombers
• Close-Air Support (CAS)
• Commercial Aircraft
• Dive Bombers
• Electronic Warfare Aircraft (EWA)
• Experimental / X-Planes
• Fighter Aircraft
• Floatplane Aircraft
• Flying Boat Aircraft
• Aerial Refueling Tankers
• Helicopters (ALL)
• Interceptor Aircraft
• Multi-Role Aircraft
• Navy Carrier Aircraft
• Night Fighters
• Reconnaissance / Scout
• Search & Rescue (SAR)
• Scout Helicopters
• Special Purpose
• Torpedo Bombers
• Trainer Aircraft
• Transport Aircraft
• Transport Helicopters
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
• Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAVs)
COLLECTIONS:
• 4th Generation Fighter Aircraft
• 5th Generation Fighter Aircraft
• US X-Planes
• Classic US Warbirds
• French Military Helicopters
• Grumman "Cats"
• Howard Hughes Aircraft
• Indian Air Force
• Israeli Air Force
• Libyan Aircraft
• Modern Chinese Aircraft
• Modern Chinese Fighters
• Modern Military Aircraft
• Modern North Korean Aircraft
• Modern Trainer Aircraft
• Modern US Aircraft
• Mikoyan Aircraft
• Sukhoi Aircraft
• Syrian Aircraft
• Top 10 Fighter Aircraft of All Time
AIRCRAFT BY CONFLICT:
• Arab-Israeli War (1948)
• Cuban Missile Crisis (1959-1962)
• Falklands War (1982)
• Indo-Pak War (1965, 1971)
• Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988)
• Lebanon War (1982)
• Operation Allied Force (1999)
• Operation Desert Storm (1991)
• Six Day War (1967)
• Spanish Civil War (1936)
• Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989)
• Yom Kippur War (1973)
MISCELLANEOUS:
• Aircraft Cockpits
• Aircraft Manufacturers List
• Aircraft Timeline
WORLD WAR 2:
• 1939 Aircraft
• 1940 Aircraft
• 1941 Aircraft
• 1942 Aircraft
• 1943 Aircraft
• 1944 Aircraft
• 1945 Aircraft
• 1946 Aircraft
• Australian Aircraft
• Battle of Britain Aircraft
• Bombers
• Four-Engine Bombers
• British Aircraft
• British Bombers
• British Transports
• Dive Bombers
• Canadian Aircraft
• Fighters
• Chinese Aircraft
• French Aircraft
• German Aircraft
• German Fighters
• German Flying Boats
• German Jets
• Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe
• Italian Aircraft
• Imperial Japanese Aircraft
• Imperial Japanese Fighters
• Mitsubishi Bombers
• Navy Aircraft
• Pearl Harbor
• Polish Aircraft
• Romanian Aircraft
• US Aircraft
• US Bombers
• US Navy Aircraft
• Soviet Aircraft
• Torpedo Bombers
• Trainer Aircraft
• Transport Aircraft
• Tuskegee Airmen Aircraft
• W.A.S.P. Aircraft
• WW2 Aircraft Ranked by Speed
• VIEW ALL
WORLD WAR 1:
• 1914 Aircraft
• 1915 Aircraft
• 1916 Aircraft
• 1917 Aircraft
• 1918 Aircraft
• Aircraft Timeline
• Austro-Hungarian Aircraft
• Bomber Aircraft
• British Aircraft
• Fighters
• Flying Boats
• French Aircraft
• Imperial German Aircraft
• Italian Aircraft
• Scout Aircraft
• Russian Empire Aircraft
• US Aircraft
• WW1 Aircraft Ranked by Speed
• VIEW ALL
KOREAN WAR:
• Australian Aircraft
• Korean War Aces
• Korean War Jets
• North Korean Aircraft
• US Military Aircraft
• VIEW ALL
VIETNAM WAR:
• Helicopters
• North Vietnam Air Force
• US Airpower
• VIEW ALL
COLD WAR:
• 1950s French Aircraft
• British V-Bombers
• Cold War Bombers
• Soviet Aircraft
• Soviet Bombers
• Soviet Interceptors
• Soviet Helicopters
• Strategic Air Command
• US Aircraft
• US Bombers
• US Interceptors
• VIEW ALL
©2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • Content ©2003-2013 MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Site Contact Email: militaryfactory at gmail dot com. The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® trademarks and protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws.
Top MF Stuff: 2013 Military Pay Scale | Military Ranks | WW2 Weapons | Sniper Rifles | Kts to Mph | WW1 Aircraft | Automatic Rifles | Aircraft Cockpits | Vietnam War Weapons | Main Battle Tanks | Submachine Guns | Shotguns | French Military Victories
Most photographic images appearing on this site are courtesy of the United States Department of Defense and are approved for public use. Other images acquired through the public domain. Digital art work courtesy of Dan Alex. Business Consulting by Kyle Williams. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Please consult manufacturers for such information.
