Heinkel He P.1079A (Zerstorer)

History of Heinkel He P. 1079A (Zerstorer)

During the final phase of World War II (1939-1945), one of the greatest threats to Germany was the bombing of German war capabilities by British and American bombers. The battle is relentless, arriving during the day and continuing through the night, destroying factories, bridges, supply depots, and more.

Ultimately, the Luftwaffe was forced to consider all concepts involving interceptors, fighters and "bomber-destroyer" in order to turn the tide of air combat to some extent.

In Germany, the "Zerstorer" bomber was named "Zerstorer", which was used to describe several designs initiated for the character. A classic early war example of the Luftwaffe was their twin-engine Messerschmitt Bf 110 (described in detail elsewhere on this page), followed by other types, albeit less successfully.

As effective as Messerschmitt's design was, it reached the peak of its usefulness early on and stayed in the field long enough to become cannon fodder for more advanced Allied fighters over time.

The arrival of viable turbojets in Germany rewrote its approach to military aircraft design. While not entirely reliable and often requiring fuel, the new propulsion method provided inherent speed and power gains that would surely give German pilots the upper hand. It was believed that this type of force could be effectively unleashed as formations of Allied bombers advanced towards their targets, and the jet interceptors dismembered these formations with artillery fire.

The main challenge for aeronautical engineers is to design airframes suitable for turbojets - the speeds involved require special aerodynamic properties.

Heinkel became a well-known German aircraft designer and manufacturer, supplying classics such as the propeller-driven He 111 medium bomber, as well as the development of the He 178 and He 280 jets, in addition to which the project received many Offers, only a few of which have yielded little success. Having said that, the turbojet inspired Heinkel engineers to think "outside the box", which led to several very unique initiatives by the company - the He 162 "People's Fighter" - or "VW Fighter" - which went on to become One of the most iconic models, the jet, saw combat service before the end of the war.

A design team led by Siegfried Gunther has created a new destroyer platform for the role of interceptor, fighter and night fighter. To ensure the destruction of specific targets, no less than 6 x 30 mm Mk 108 series were installed on the fuselage, four for front firing and two for rear aiming. Thus, the aircraft can engage targets in front or behind (including following enemy interceptors).

Power will come from two Heinkel HeS 011-series turbojets placed side-by-side across the wing roots of the fuselage and producing 5,732 pounds of total thrust. The engine will exhaust before the tail.

Externally, the engineers developed a very modern looking fighter - streamlined and uncluttered. The cockpit sits behind a short nose cone, providing excellent visibility for its two crew members (the couple sit in a row, back to back). The fuselage is slender, teardrop-shaped, with the main wing plane swept back and mounted in the middle of the sides of the fuselage, while remaining forward of the midship.

The fuselage tapers to become the tail, and it is here that the product has perhaps its most unique design feature - the "V-tail" arrangement that previously prevented the use of traditional horizontal tails (the V-tail serves as both a rudder and a rudder) . elevator surface). A tricycle landing gear (fully retractable) is also planned, as well as a pressurized cockpit.

The radar will be installed in the nose cone assembly to allow the aircraft to have some success against bombers at night. Forward guns were mounted under the nose at the rear of the fuselage to keep the nose clear of radar interference.

Use airborne radar with a machine gun deployed by the pilot himself (used via retractable "rear sighting binoculars" for visual fine-tuning). ). With no armor (to keep the aircraft as light as possible), the rear-facing artillery played a vital defensive role.

Throwable missile packs will be mounted on aircraft prior to flight and thrown when fuel is depleted. This mass would allow the interceptor to take off and reach the required attack altitude for short periods of time without having to rely entirely on turbojets - which are usually underpowered and cannot be pushed too hard during this time.

The plane was called "Project 1079" - or "P. 1079". It was an optimistic design for an early jet, trying to combine multiple crews, radar customization, good range and top performance features in a single airframe.

If successful, swarms of such aircraft could hinder Allied bombing operations, while if unsuccessful, the design would set German priorities back for a while and worsen an already dire situation.

At least three versions of P. 1079 are planned as "A", "B" and "B-2". The original model was a true V-tail version with the main wing swept back at a 35-degree angle. The Model B featured a "gull-wing" main aircraft with a simplified tail to accommodate a more traditional vertical tail. Additionally, the brand is intended to serve as an all-weather heavy fighter with a crew reduction of one, while still largely following the form and function of the planned A-Type.

The B-2 product is an all-tail form with a very good swept wing main aircraft for high speed performance and extended operational range, the latter achieved by installing additional fuel storage in the wings.

A model going forward, the system is estimated to reach speeds of 615 to 620 mph and a range of 1,300 miles while cruising over 30,000 feet. The choice of metal because of its structure demonstrates at least one sticking point - metal was a precious commodity for Germany, especially in the postwar years.

Aerodynamic efficiency was a priority for Heinkel engineers, as there was sufficient speed to squeeze out of the fuselage, flush surfaces were used where it made sense, and weight reduction measures were taken wherever possible.

Wind tunnel testing is basically what the P. 1079 initiative is all about. Several variations were made to the tail - one version even resembled a flying wing - but the "T-shaped" tail proved to be the most suitable design (as seen in several classic post-war fighters such as the North American F-86) "Sabre" and Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15).

The P. 1079 failed to become a full-scale model or airworthy prototype before the end of the war, leaving the project to a chapter in the history of the Luftwaffe.

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