Henschel Hs 132

History of Henschel Hs 132

The Henschel Hs 132 was another of the ambitious German jet engine designs developed at the end of World War II (1939-1945). Development of the aircraft dates back to the prewar 1930s in response to the increasing casualties that accompanied the slow but still effective Ju 87 Stuka dive bomber against the ever-increasing number of Soviet fighter jets.

The alternative it proposed offered a revolutionary design, but as the Soviet Union outgrew development facilities, it never made it past the prototype stage - only one prototype was completed, three of which were still being built in the final months of the 1945 conflict middle. All three were confiscated by the Soviet invaders.

The core of the Hs 132 is primarily a basic design, with a streamlined and slim body. The nose is covered by the cockpit under large transparent panels for maximum visibility. The stern uses a traditional split rudder fin arrangement. The main plane of the wing is a straight V-shaped (upward angle), using three-wheel landing gear, which can be fully retracted. The aircraft's most interesting design feature is the spine-mounted BMW 109-003E02 turbojet, which sits above and behind the cockpit and flows down the rear of the fuselage to form the tail.

The Hs 132 mimicked much of what made the Heinkel He 162 "Volksjager" an iconic wartime jet fighter.

Unlike the He 162, which was developed as a low-cost, low-maintenance point defense fighter, the Hs 132 is an imitation of the dive bomber that led to the success of the Ju 87 series. Due to the slim design of the fuselage, the pilot should lie prone in the cockpit - the idea being that a person lying prone can experience higher G-forces when diving to a target.

The suggested weapon is a 1,102-pound bomb placed in a recessed area under the abdomen. Proposed stationary weapons include 2 x 20mm MG-151 cannons or 2 x 20mm MG-151 cannons and 2 x 30mm MK-103 cannons.

Preliminary work on Hs 132 began in 1944, when Henschel submitted her design to the authorities. Due to restrictions on certain war materiel (i.e. precious metals), wooden construction should make up a large part of the Hs 132 design.

Three prototypes were eventually built: the Hs 132 V1 was the first model and the only one of the three to reach the full construction stage. The V2 prototype will carry the same 1,102-pounder, but with a pair of MG 151 20mm cannons mounted on the fuselage.

Likewise, the upcoming V3 prototype aims to expand the V2's armament by adding 2 x 30mm MK-103 cannons, while retaining a single underbelly bomb.

Of course, all this work came to naught when Soviet troops closed and seized development facilities. This leaves a chapter of history and fantasy for the Hs 132 - possibly a formidable performance bomber on the battlefield of WWII - and certainly a much-needed upgrade over the original Ju 87.

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