Rafwaffe Horten

[Mossie]

Posted here for those who don't get to the GB threads.

RAF Gotha Ho.229 of 1426 (Enemy Aircraft) Flt based at RAF Collyweston.  Captured by the British after the pilot force landed in a field in France due to sustaining damage from ground fire.  The damage was found to be repairable & the aircraft was quickly returned to Britian, where it was evaluated for it's performance.

The Ho-229 was found to have exceptional speed, rate of climb & ceiling.  It's flying wing configuration gave some nasty handling charateristics, although these were considerably less than with British designed tailless aircraft.  After the wars end, the Horten was continued to be used for high speed & high altitude research, as well as investigating the characteristics of flying wings.

One company in particular was very interested in the Ho-229.  Armstrong Whitworth had looked at the flying wing in several wartime bomber designs was building it's own experimental aircraft, the AW.52.  Research with the Ho-229 led to many refinements to the AW.52, which in turn led to further bomber projects.  The work started with the Ho-229 eventually culminated in the extrordinary tailless AW.56 Vanguard nuclear bomber, which entered service alongside the Vulcan & Sperrin.

Revell 1/72 kit.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

With the exception of that huge nose wheel, that is an impressive build.  I often wonder what Brothers' Horten would have eventually chosen for a smaller nose wheel on the -229.

[Mossie]

Thanks Jeff.  I'm academic about the nosewheel, while it looks odd, I can understand the reasons for it.  They could have gone with an extendable nose gear as the nose up attitude was pretty essential, but this would have added weight.  I think if the war had carried on & there was less emphasis on using rough strips, we might have seen Hortens with a smaller nosewheel, along with other types such as the Arado Ar.234.

In researching this, I got feel for just how agricultural the Ho.229 was, despite the advanced aerodynamics & powerplant.  It's construction was firmly set in the thirties, tublar steel framing skinned with plywood.  There were no firewalls between the enignes & the rest of the structure & the pilot was barely protected, any fire would have soon gutted the aircraft.  It seems that all the Horten Bros research went on the flying wing & jet.