The Heinkel He 112 was a German military aircraft, which was in service with the Luftwaffe from the late 1930s until 1945. Although it was a very maneuverable and reliable fighter, it could not compete with the Messerschmitt Bf 109, which was much faster. Thus, only about 110 Heinkel He 112 aircraft were made, with more than half of them being exported to Japan. During World War II, it was also used as a ground-attack aircraft.
The prototype, the He 112V1, was flown for the first time in the Summer of 1935. It was powered by a 650-HP Rolls-Royce Kestrel V engine. Operated with open cockpit, it would also be tested with different power plants. The first production variant, the He 112 A-0, would feature a Jumo 210C engine. The He 112 B-0 version was produced for the Imperial Japanese Navy as it had already been tested in combat action in the Spanish Civil War. In service with the Luftwaffe, it would be used during Operation Barbarossa, in the Summer of 1941, before it would be relegated to carry out ground-attack and reconnaissance missions.
Technical Characteristics
The Heinkel He 112 was a single-seat, single-engine monoplane. It had inverted gull elliptical wings, which were broad. The landing gear was retractable. The power plant consisted of one Junkers Jumo 210Da, V12, liquid-cooled piston engine, which put out almost 700 HP.
Specifications
Type: Fighter
Length: 9 m
Wingspan: 11.5 m
Wing Area: 23.2 sq. meters
Height: 3.7 m
Maximum Speed: 488 km/hour
Range:1,100 km
Crew: 1
Armament: two 7.92-mm MG-15 machine guns; two 20-mm cannons.
Below, front view of the Heinkel He 112 A-0 in 1937
Heinkel He 112 B-0s parked at a military base before the German invasion of the Soviet Union.
