Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1: the turboprop thing after the Flitzer

[Dizzyfugu]

It has been silent for some time, but actually there are several projects on hold for which I wait for parts... so, in the meantime I present you my interpretation of the Focke Wulf P.VIII project, a (real) derivative of the popular "Flitzer" fighter:

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Some background:
The Focke-Wulf Project VII Flitzer ("streaker" or "dasher", sometimes incorrectly translated as "madcap") was a jet fighter under development in Germany in World War II.

The design began as Focke-Wulf Project VI which had a central fuselage and two booms carrying the rear control surfaces having great similarity with the de Havilland Vampire. Project V had the air inlets still positioned on either side of the nose, just below the cockpit.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The estimated horizontal speed was not satisfactory and in the next development, Project VII, the jet intakes were situated in the wing roots. Further improvements over Project VI were a narrower fuselage and a changed pilot's canopy. In order to improve the rate of climb, a Walter HWK 109-509 hypergolic liquid-propellant rocket was added.
In spite of the fact that a complete mock-up was built and all construction and assembly plans finished, the aircraft was not accepted by the RLM (Reich Air Ministry, or Reichsluftfahrtministerium). But the design was not shelved, though: with the Project VIII, Focke-Wulf began a design study for a turboprop-powered fighter-bomber. It was based on the work previously done on Project VII, but became a very different aircraft.

Biggest change of the Project VIII was its turboprop engine, based on the Heinkel S 011 jet engine. While the engine was still placed in the section behind the wing main spar, the power shaft that ran through the lower fuselage and drove a three-bladed variable pitch propeller required major changes. For instance, the front wheel had to be lengthened in order to make enough room for the propeller.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


To accomodate the new gearbox and a bigger front landing gear well, the whole aircraft nose had to be modified, too. The front wheel now retracted backwards and rotated by 90°, so that it could lie flat under the power shaft, flanked by two machine cannons. Two more were mounted in the wings, which were at an initial stage taken over wholesale from the P.VII, and a heavy 30mm MK 108 autocannon fired through the propeller hub.

Due to the aircraft's "nose-up" position on the ground, the tail arrangement was changed and simplified, too: the Flitzer's twin boom gave way to a more conventional single boom above the jet exhaust, ending in a simple tail with swept surfaces. This had the positive side effects of better aerodynamics, as well as a reduced overall weight.

The design was submitted to the RLM in November 1944 and quickly accepted, despite serious delays with the  DB 109-021 turboprop engine. This was eventually ready in May 1945, when first tests and the Fw 260's maiden flight (how the type was now officially designated, the two prototypes having the suffix A-0) took place.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The turboprop was a very effective engine, especially at low and medium altitude, where the Project VIII would outperfrom any contemporary pure piston engine fighter. It was also more manoueverable than comparable jet fighters (esp. concerning acceleration and rate of climb - the aircraft was able to climb twice as fast as the former pure jet Flitzer design), and operations only required much shorter runways for operations.

The initial Fw 260 A-1 was delivered to front line units in late 1945 and immediately thrown into the defensive battles at the Eastern front, where they flew missions against point targets and even night time missions.

An improved version with new, thinner wings and a slightly increased sweep for even better performance, the A-2, was scheduled to enter production in summer 1946, but the end of hostilities limited overall production to less than 100 Fw 260 A-1.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr



General characteristics:
   Crew: One pilot
   Length: 10,30 m (33 ft 8 3/4 in)
   Wingspan: 8.00 m (26 ft 2 in)
   Wing sweep: 30° at quarter chord
   Height: 3,31 m (10 ft 10 in)
   Wing area: 17.0 m2 (183 ft2)
   Empty weight: 3.396 kg (7.486 lb)
   Gross weight: 4.900 kg (10.802 lb)

Powerplant:
   1× Daimler-Benz DB 109-021 turboprop, rated at 1,491 kW (2,000 hp)
        plus 770 kp (1.697 lb) residual thrust

Performance:
   Maximum speed: 900 km/h (559 mph) at 9.000 m (30.00 0ft)
   Range: 1.020 km (633 miles) on internal fuel at 7.000 m (23.000 ft)
   Endurance: 1 hour  17 min at full load and at 7.000 m (23.000 ft)
   Service ceiling: 13,000 m (42,500 ft)
   Rate of climb: 39 m/s (128 ft/sec)

Armament:
   1× 30 mm (1.18 in) MK 108 cannon (40 RPG), firing through the propeller hub
   4× 20 mm MG 213 cannons, one pair in the lower front fuselage and one in each wing,
   each with 100 RPG.
   Up to 1.000kg (2.202 lb) of external ordnance at two wing hardpoints, including bombs
   of up to 500 kg (1.100 lb) caliber, drop tanks, racks with unguided missiles, or podded  
   cannons



The kit and its assembly:
I had this Luft '46 project on the list for  a while, and while waiting for parts for other projects I decided to dig a Revell "Flitzer" kit out of the pile and start a quick conversion.

Yes, this one is based on a real German project: Fact is that this one was a turboprop-powered derivative of the pure jet Flitzer, with swept surfaces and a conventional tail boom. And it was intended as an attack aircraft, not a fighter.

Its designation, be it internally or through the RLM, varies widely, though. Some sources call it "Project VIII" (because the Flitzer was Project VII), but that's doubtful because there were several iterations with twin and single boom arrangements, as well as different wing shapes (ranging from the Flitzer's clipped delta shape to swept, slender wings that remind of the F-86).
Unicraft did a resin kit of this paper project, calling it  "P.127" for whatever reason, and they also did a kit of its twin-boom predecessor - the latter being christened Fw 258 by Unicraft, even though this number had not been allocated by the RLM.

I took that idea up and gave my creation the fictional designation Fw 260 - the "260" was never used by the RLM, too, and it is even uncertain which number the Flitzer would have had, had it been built or accepted for Luftwaffe service.

Anyway, changing the Revell Flitzer into its successor was not an easy task. It started with a new nose that would not only carry the scratched propeller, it would also have to blend into the trapezoid diameter of the original "pod" fuselage. The solution was found through a rear drop tank end from a vintage Revell F4U that was cut in two pieces: the rear tip would become the propeller spinner (onto which single, deep blades from a vintage Frog Ta 152 were glued), while the rest replaced the original Flitzer nose and holds a 6x6mm, square styrene tube inside that carries the propeller on a round styrene axis. It's even spinning!

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Because this scratched arrangement needed space, the original front landing gear well had to be cut away, as well as parts of the cockpit floor. Lots of putty created some new nose lines, and before the hull was glued together as much lead as possible was hidden behind the cockpit and even inside of the front landing gear well.

The cockpit was taken almost OOB: I just used a deeper seat - the original part looks tiny, but the cockpit is really cramped so that a replacement was not easy to fit in.

At the pod's rear end, a new tail had to be created. First measure was to "reverse" the original exhaust position, flipping it from top to bottom, and adding a tail boom as a spine extension. The boom is actually a tail from a Hobby Boss P-39, which was considerably modified and cut into shape. Again, lots of putty smoothed out the lines.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


With the tail in place and the new, longer nose, the wings'  position was not right anymore. Consequently, the wings were moved forward by 7mm - an easy task, thanks to the kit's construction. New stabilizers were scratched from the spares box, too.

Speaking of the wings: the Flitzer's toeholds for the twin tail booms had to disappear, too - done through cutting and putty inserts on/in the wings' trailing edges. Worked pretty well.

The landing gear was taken OOB from the original kit. The front wheel wa not inserted as deep as in the Flitzer (there's no space anymore, anyway...) and slightly offset - profile drawings from Focke Wulf suggest such an arrangement, probably due to the power shaft that had to run somewhere under the cockpit floor.

Another issue became the new, forward position of the wings: this would push the tail even more down. So, I added a 3mm console at the main gear struts' bases - just enough to get the tail high enough for a plausible ground position. The real aircraft would have had a high nose, too, so the odd look is not as farfetched as it might seem.

Final touches included additional underwing hardpoints and a pair of 250 kg bombs (IIRC, from an Italeri Ju 188), outfitted with scratched fuze extensions for soggy ground, suitable ordnance for the intended ground attack role.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Painting and markings:
The late WWII canon for German aircraft leaves not much room for paint scheme experiments, but I did not want to repeat myself. So I was lucky to find a real Me 262 in the rather odd night paint scheme that I eventually used - and the result is... interesting.

Top cammo basically consists of RLM 81 and 82 (Braunviolett and Light Green enamels, from Modelmaster's Authentic line) in wavy, but sharply defined fields. On the fuselage flanks, RLM 81 and 82 also feature "counter-blotches" of the respective other tone. The undersides are painted black (RLM 22) - originally, this could also have been dark grey (RLM 66), but I found black more attractive, also as a contrast to the dark grey landing gear.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Markings were minimal on the Me 262 paradigm: all insignia in a simplified version, and even in black on the flanks. The only code was red number (outlined in white) - that's all! On the kit I added the heart emblems and the red spinner with a white spiral as a personal touch, but the aircraft still looks murky and purposeful - for night attack sorties.

The basic tones were shaded with lighter colors, including Humbrol 120, 155 and 32. Since the putty work on the fuselage made almost any engraving disappear, I added painted panel lines (with the help of some Tamiya "Smoke"). The exhaust area was painted with Modelmaster Metallizer and treated with grinded graphite, which was also used to add soot stains around the many gun nozzles.

The decals were puzzled together, stencils were taken over from the Flitzer Sheet - and these many red bits make the dark aircraft a bit more lively. Finally, everything was sealed under a coat of matt Revell Acrylics varnish.

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Focke Wulf Fw 260 A-1, aircraft "Red 2" of 10./NAGr. 11, Deutsche Luftwaffe; Burg near Magdeburg, autumn 1945 (Whif/Luft '46, Revell kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr



Even if this model does not look like it: it was a major surgery job (despite only 4 days of work). Especially the nose and the landing gear caused severe headaches. But the result looks pretty cool and sleek, and the unique paint scheme adds to the mysterious look of this Luft '46 whif.

[dumaniac]

nice concept

[zenrat]

4 days?!

Very good.

[NARSES2]

4 days?!

Yup but they are Dizzy Days. Man lives in a time warp somewhere at the end of somewhere as I've said many times before 

Nice build

[Dizzyfugu]

Thank you. It's pretty rough, though - half of the model is held together by putty, the finish is not the best. Started with an urge on Saturday evening (nothing on TV, you know... ) and things unfolded until Tuesday evening.

[Army of One]

Pretty great work there.......my only thought of whiffing one was a pusher prop between the tail booms......pretty lame compared to this......

[DogfighterZen]

4 days?!

Very good.

No doubt... The scheme is great, dark as i like'em! 

[Sticky Fingers]

I know I've said it before but, man, not only do I really like your builds, I  the action photography!

[Dizzyfugu]

Pretty great work there.......my only thought of whiffing one was a pusher prop between the tail booms......pretty lame compared to this......

That would be the "easy way" - but it's not a bad idea, either, even though the landing gear would have to be lengthened somewhat, too. The Flitzer sits OOB very low on the ground, much like a D.H. Vampire or Venom.
There was also another interim version: still with the Flitzer's twin booms, but with the propeller in the nose just like on my build. It's even available as a kit, too, IIRC also from Unicraft as "FW 281". Cannot remember a pusher, but would make sense?

[Army of One]

Yeah.....not wrong there re the landing gear. Maybe telescopic....?  Anyway of mounting in the boom than the wing.....? Probably need to widen the boom........i was thinking the rear facing engine may be mounted a bit higher than the jet exhaust.....telescopic u/c may work......

[Dizzyfugu]

The Flitzer's original engine is higher, the exhaust is flush with the spine (I changed that for my conversion), so you could easily put a fat spinner over the opening, and the landing gear would not need to be as high as mine - especially the front wheel strut. The main landing gear was extended by 2-3mm here, that should suffice for a pusher prop, too, and is not that obvious. The booms are VERY thin - another idea could be a tandem landing gear arrangement (à la Harrier) with small outriggers in the booms? But I doubt that this would have been a realistic solution for rough airfields...

[Army of One]

How about using something like half a fuel tank split length wise as some sort of u/c housing grafted under the wing with the boom...legs at rear n u/c folding/retracting forward....?

[Dizzyfugu]

Feasible, but the booms are very slender. IMHO it would even be easier to enlarge the original landing gear wells (arrangement looks to me a lot like the Gloster Meteor landing gear) and extend the struts or replace them with slightly longer donations? Anyway, I'd be interested to see a hardware solution... 

[KiwiZac]

I definitely prefer this to the real deal. Wonderful! Can I have one?