BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe; Châteaudun, April 1946

Dizzyfugu · July 16, 2012, 12:50:29 AM

On popular demand, and since I announced it in the SF kit section, I present to you... the BMW-Hütter Hü 324 bomber (in an updated original post).

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Some background
The Hütter Hü 324 was the final development stage of BMW's 'Schnellbomber II' project, which had been designed around two mighty BMW 109-028 turboprops. These innovative engines had been developed since February 1941, but did not receive fullest attention due to the more promising jet engines. Anyway, it soon became clear that no jet engine with the potential to drive a bomber-sized aircraft - considering both performance and fuel consumption - would be available on short notice. Consequently, the BMW 028 received more attention from the RLM from 1943 on. Biggest pressure came from the fact that several obsolete types like the He 111 or Do 217 had to be replaced, and the ill-fated and complicated He 177 was another candidate with little future potential, since four-engined variants had been rejected. Additionally, the promising and ambitious Ju 288 had been stillborn, and a wide gap for a tactical medium bomber opned in the Luftwaffe arsenal.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

In may 1943, new requirements for a medium bomber were concretised. Main objective was to design a fast, twin-engined bomber, primarily intended for horizontal bombing, which would be able to carry a 3.000 kilograms (6.600 lbs) payload at 800 kilometres per hour in a 1.500km (900 ml) radius. The plane had to be fast and to operate at great heights, limiting the threat of interception.
Since many major design bureaus' resources were bound, Ulrich W. Hütter, an Austro-German engineer and university professor got involved in the RLM project and BMW's design team which had been working on appropriate designs. In July 1943, Hütter moved to the Research Institute of the Graf Zeppelin works (FGZ) convened in Ruit near Stuttgart, and as head of the engineering department he was also involved in the development of manned missiles, underwater towing systems and the Hü 211 high altitude interceptor/reconnaissance plane.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Under Ulrich W. Hütter and his brother, Wolfgang Hütter, BMW's original and highly innovative (if not over-ambitious) Schnellbomber designs gave way to a more conservative layout: the so-called BMW-Hütter Hü 324. The plane was conventional in layout, with high, unswept laminar profile wings and a high twin tail. The engines were carried in nacelles slung directly under the wings. The nose wheel retracted rearwards, while the main wheels retracted forwards into the engine nacelles, rotating 90°, and laying flat under the engines. The crew of four (pilot, co-pilot/bombardier, navigator/radar operator and gunner/radio operator) were accommodated in a compact, pressurised "glass house" cockpit section – a popular design and morale element in Luftwaffe bomber and reconnaissance aircraft of that era.

Construction of the first prototype started in February 1945, and while the aircraft cell made good progress towards the hardware stage, the development suffered a serious setback in March when BMW admitted that the 109-028 turboprop engine would not be ready in time. It took until August to arrive, and the prototype did not fly until 6 November 1945.
Initial flight test of the four A-0 pre-production samples of the Hü 324 went surprisingly well. Stability and vibration problems with the aircraft were noted, though. One major problem was that the front glas elements were prone to crack at high speeds, and it took a while to trace the troubole source back to the engines and sort these problems out. Among others, contraprops were fitted to counter the vibration problems, the engines' power output had to be reduced by more than 500 WPS and the tail fins had to be re-designed.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Another innovative feature of this bomber was the "Elbegast" ground-looking navigation radar system, which allowed identification of targets on the ground for night and all-weather bombing. It was placed in a shallow radome behind the front wheel. Performance-wise, the system was comparable to the USAAF's H2X radar, and similarly compact. Overall, the Hü 324 showed much promise and a convincing performance, was easy to build and maintain, and it was immediately taken to service.

Despite the relatively high speed and agility for a plane of its size, the Hü 324 bore massive defensive armament: the original equipment of the A-1 variant comprised two remotely operated FDL 131Z turrets in dorsal (just behind the cockpit) and ventral (behind the bomb bay) position with 2× 13 mm MG 131 machine guns each, plus an additional, unmanned tail barbette with a single 20mm canon. All these guns were aimed by the gunner through a sighting station at the rear of the cockpit, effectively covering the rear hemisphere of the bomber.
After first operational experience, this defence was beefed up with another remotely-controlled barbette with 2× 13 mm MG 131 machine guns under the cockpit, firing forwards. The reason was similar to the introduction of the chin-mounted gun turret in the B-17G: the plane was rather vulnerable to frontal attacks. In a secondary use, the chin guns could be used for strafing ground targets. This update was at first called /R1, but was later incorporated into series production, under the designation A-2.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Effectively, almost 4.500kg ordnance could be carried in- and externally, normally limited to 3.000kg in the bomb bay in order to keep the wings clean and reduce drag, for a high cruising speed. While simple iron bombs and aerial mines were the Hü 324's main payload, provisions were made to carry guided weapons like against small/heavily fortified targets. Several Rüstsätze (accessory packs) were developed, and the aircraft in service received an "/Rx" suffix to their designation, e. g. the R2 Rüstsatz for Fritz X bomb guidance or the R3 set for rocket-propelled Hs 293 bombs.
Trials were even carried out with a semi-recessed Fieseler Fi 103 missile, better known as the V1 flying bomb, hung under the bomber's belly and in an enlarged bomb bay, under deletion of the ventral barbette.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

The Hü 324 bomber proved to be an elusive target for the RAF day and night fighters, especially at height. After initial attacks at low level, where fast fighters like the Hawker Tempest or DH Mosquito night fighters were the biggest threat, tactics were quickly changed. Approaching at great height and speed, bombing was conducted from medium altitudes of 10,000 to 15,000 feet (3,000 to 4,600 m). The Hü 324 proved very successful, striking against a variety of targets, including bridges and radar sites along the British coast line, as well as ships on the North Sea.

From medium altitude, the Hü 324 A-2 proved to be a highly accurate bomber – thanks to its "Elbegast" radar system which also allowed the planes to act as pathfinders for older types or fast bombers with less accurate equipment like the Ar 232, Ju 388 or Me 410. Loss rates were far lower than in the early, low-level days, with the Hü 324 stated by the RLM as having the lowest loss rate in the European Theatre of Operations at less than 0.8 %.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

BMW-Hütter Ha 324A-2, general characteristics:
Crew: 4
Length: 18.58 m (60 ft 10 in)
Wingspan: 21.45 m (70 ft 4½ in )
Height: 4.82 m (15 ft 9½ in)
Wing area: 60.80 m² (654.5 ft.²)
Empty weight: 12,890 kg (28,417 lb)
Loaded weight: 18,400 kg (40,565 lb)
Max. take-off weight: 21,200 kg (46,738 lb)

Performance:
Maximum speed: 810 km/h (503 mph) at optimum height
Cruising speed: 750 km/h (460 mph) at 10,000 m (32,800 ft)
Range: 3.500 km (2.180 ml)
Service ceiling: 11.400 m (37.500 ft)
Rate of climb: 34.7 m/s (6,820 ft/min)

Powerplant:
Two BMW 109-028 'Mimir' turboprop engines, limited to 5.500 WPS (4.044 WkW) each plus an additional residual thrust of 650kg (1.433 lb), driving four-bladed contraprops.

Armament:
6× 13mm MG 131 in three FDL 131Z turrets
1× 20mm MG 151/20 in unmanned/remote-controlled tail barbette
Up to 4.500 kg (9.800 lbs) in a large enclosed bomb-bay in the fuselage and/or four underwing hardpoints.
Typically, bomb load was limited to 3.000 kg (6.500 lbs) internally.

The kit and its assembly
This project/model belongs in the Luft '46 category, but it has no strict real world paradigm - even though Luftwaffe projects like the Ju 288, the BMW Schnellbomber designs or Arado's E560/2 and E560/7 had a clear influence. Actually, "my" Hü 324 design looks pretty much like a He 219 on steroids! Anyway, this project was rather inspired by a 'click' when two ideas/elements came together and started forming something new and convincing. This is classic kitbashing, and the major ingredients are:

● Fuselage, wings, landing gear and engine nacelles from a Trumpeter Ilyushin Il-28 bomber
● Nose section from an Italeri Ju 188 (donated from a friend, leftover from his Ju 488 project)
● Stabilisers from an Italeri B-25, replacing the Il-28's swept tail
● Contraprops and fuselage barbettes from a vintage 1:100 scale Tu-20(-95) kit from VEB Plasticart (yes, vintage GDR stuff!)

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) - WIP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) - WIP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Most interestingly, someone from the Netherlands (fellow member zuid99 from here?) did had a similar idea for a kitbashing some years ago: <a href="http://www.airwar1946.nl/whif/L46-ju588.htm" rel="nofollow">www.airwar1946.nl/whif/L46-ju588.htm</a>. I found this during research for my project - but it is funny to see how some ideas manifest independently, and how some ideas seem to make common sense?

Execution differs widely, though!

Building the thing went pretty straightforward, even though Trumpeter's Il-28 kit has a rather poor fit. Biggest problem turned out to be the integration of the Ju 188 cockpit section: it lacks 4-5mm in width! That does not sound dramatic, but it took a LOT of putty and internal stabilisation to graft the parts onto the Il-28's fuselage.
The cockpit was completely re-equipped with stuff from the scrap box, and the main landing gear received twin wheels.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

The chin turret was mounted after the fuselage was complete, the frontal defence had been an issue I had been pondering about for a long while. Originally, some fixed guns (just as the Il-28 or Tu-16) had been considered. But when I found an old Matchbox B-17G turret in my scrap box, I was convinced that this piece could do literally the same job in my model, and it was quickly integrated. As a side effect, this arrangement justifies the bulged cockpit bottom well, and it just looks "more dangerous".

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Another task was the lack of a well for the front wheel, after the Il-28 fuselage had been cut and lacked the original interior. This was also added after the new fuselage had been fitted together, and the new well walls were built with thin polystyrene plates. Not 100% exact and clean, but the arrangement fits the bill and takes the twin front wheel.

The bomb bay was left open, since the Trumpeter kit offers a complete interior. I also added four underwing hardpoints for external loads (one pair in- and outboard of the engine nacelles), taken from A-7 Corsair II kits, but left them empty. Visually-guided weapons like the 'Fritz X' bomb or Hs 293 missiles would IMHO hardly make sense during night sorties? I also did not want to overload the kit with more and more distracting details.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Painting & markings:
Even though it is a whif I wanted to incorporate some serious/authentic late WWII Luftwaffe looks. Since the Hü 324 would have been an all-weather bomber, I went for a night bomber livery which was actually used on a He 177 from 2./KG 100, based in France: Black (RLM 22, I simply used Humbrol 33) undersides, and upper surfaces in RLM 76 (Base is Humbrol 128, FS36320, plus some added areas with Testors 2086, the authentic tone which is a tad lighter, but very close) with mottles in RLM 75 (Grauviolett, Testors 2085, plus some splotches of Humbrol 27, Medium Sea Grey), and some weathering through black ink, some enhanced panel lines (with a mix of matte varnish and Panzergrau), plus some dry painting all over the fuselage.

All interior surfaces were painted in RLM 66 (Schwarzgrau/Black Grey, Testors 2079), typical for German late WWII aircraft. Propeller spinners were painted RLM 70 (Schwarzgrün) on the front half, the rear half was painted half black and half white.

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Pretty simple scheme, but it looks VERY cool, esp. on this sleek aircraft. I am very happy with this decision, and I think that this rather simple livery is less distracting from the fantasy plane itself, making the whif less obvious. In the end, the whole thing looks a bit grey-in-grey, but that spooky touch just adds to the menacing look of this beefy aircraft. I think it would not look as good if it had been kept in daytime RLM 74/75/76 or even RLM 82/83/76?

Markings and squadron code were puzzled together from an Authentic Decal aftermarket sheet for a late He 111 and individual letters from TL Modellbau. The "F3" code for the fictional Kampfgruppe (KG) 210 is a random choice, "EV" marks the individual plane, the red "E" and the control letter "V" at the end designate a plane from the eleventh squadron of KG 210. My idea is that the Hü 324 would replace these machines and literally taking their place in the frontline aviaton units. So I tried to keep in line with the German aircraft code, but after all, it's just a whif...

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

So, after some more surgical work than expected, the Hü 324 medium bomber is ready to soar! And - to modify PR19_Kit's motto: Every plane looks better when you fit ~~bigger wings~~ contraprops

TomZ · July 16, 2012, 01:10:01 AM

Great model, fantastic story.

Love it

(And indeed, the Ju-588 is mine

)

TomZ
www.airwar1946.nl/index.htm

Dizzyfugu · July 16, 2012, 01:15:34 AM

Ah, thanks for the confirmation, TomZ. I was suprised that someone else had had this idea - but it is so logical to mate these things for a Luft '46 bomber, it's no surpise. But it is funny to see how similar ideas take different shapes.

comrade harps · July 16, 2012, 02:26:23 AM

So cool. Everything looks right (like it was from a Tony Butler secret projects book).

I've got a He219 in the stash and this has got me think about how to whiff it up.

Dizzyfugu · July 16, 2012, 02:52:21 AM

Thank you. A 219 with turboprops would be cool, but I'd assume that the Il-28 wings would be a little too big?
Anyway, I have a 'juiced-up' Me 410 conversion with different wings and engines as well as an MK 214b cannon in the pipeline, there's more high end propeller stuff to come.

Spey_Phantom · July 16, 2012, 04:06:16 AM

very nice and yet mean looking aircraft, a winning kitbash combination

NARSES2 · July 16, 2012, 07:41:11 AM

Yet more inspirational work, lovely

Dizzyfugu · July 16, 2012, 08:20:42 AM

Thanks a lot - I throw in some WIP pics:

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) - WIP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

ysi_maniac · July 16, 2012, 08:36:06 AM

Just Wonderful!

Gondor · July 16, 2012, 12:42:11 PM

Looks really good as if it was a real project.

Gondor

kitbasher · July 16, 2012, 01:13:05 PM

Very nice indeed. I've something not dissimilar in the to do file rattling around my mead at the moment. May be a while before I cut plastic though.

Dizzyfugu · July 17, 2012, 12:17:40 AM

Thanks a lot. The only thing that could have been done slightly different was the cut behind the cockpit section, or, from another perspective, the ration between the wing position and the cockpit. Once you get rid of the swept Il-28 tail, the wings are set relatively far back, so - looking back - I should have cut away 1-2cm more of the front fuselage. The long engine nacelles with the double spinners make up for this "flaw", but the new tail surface are also a bit far forward. Alternatively, the wings could have been moved slighty forward. I think it is O.K. the way it turned out, but this is one of the things I learned from the project: looks and proportions can be deceiving, beware!

Tophe · July 18, 2012, 05:14:38 AM

interesting...

Dizzyfugu · January 15, 2017, 04:12:10 AM

A thread revival after five years... I recognized that I missed some in-flight pics of this beast when I originally posted it, so this is a late addition. The reason for this "delay" is that the model is actually too big for my normal "model-in-front-of-A3-paper-background" method. But with some more experience and scrathed, bigger backgrounds (A2 size, 60x45cm), the Hü 324 finally took off...

Anyway, here we go:

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

...and, finally, a filter-edited version of the first pic (done with FlickR's integral editor app 'Aviary' of ):

1:72 BMW-Hütter Hü 324A-2/R2; "F3+EV", XI./KG210 Deutsche Luftwaffe, Châteaudun, France; April 1946 (Whif/Luft '46/kit bashing) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Cheers!

dumaniac · January 15, 2017, 11:58:57 PM

nice concept - lovely build