SI 2009–12381
Diving out of the sun over Dunkirk, France, and shooting down three Spitfire Mk Vs with no losses to themselves, four Focke-Wulf Fw 190s made the type’s combat debut in September 1941. The Allies were taken by surprise by the previously unknown fighter. Designed from 1937 to 1939 as a backup to the Messerschmitt Me 109, the Würger (Shrike), as it was known in the field, would go on to perform in several roles and become one of the outstanding fighter aircraft of the war.
The Fw 190 was designed around an air-cooled radial engine and, in fact, was the only operational German fighter to have that type of power plant. The design included a bubble canopy, which gave the pilot excellent visibility, and a widely spaced landing gear that provided stability and allowed the aircraft to operate from primitive airfields. Beginning life as an air superiority fighter, the Fw 190 evolved through numerous variants and subvariants, with a bewildering variety of factory and field modification kits provided to perform a multitude of roles.
By 1942, the Luftwaffe decided that since earlier versions had performed well in the close ground-support role, a variant specifically designed for this was needed. The Jabo (short for Jagdbomber or fighter-bomber) version would be designated the Fw 190 F. With attachment points for bombs and increased armor under the engine and fuselage, the Jabos were excellent fighter-bombers, but paid a price in performance due to the extra weight.
This example is an Fw 190 F–8/R1, which entered service in 1944. It was identical to the Fw 190 A–8 fighter—the most-produced version of the Fw 190—with the addition of a central bomb rack and the removal of the outboard cannon to save weight. This variant could also be fitted with additional wing-mounted bomb racks, underwing 30 mm cannon, rockets, and various other modifications. This aircraft was originally built as an Fw 190 A–7 fighter, but was converted to an Fw 190 F–8 after suffering damage during operations. This example served with ground-attack wing SG2 in Hungary during the last months of the war.
The Fw 190 cockpit has an unusual segmented instrument panel. On top were the ammunition counters, the gunsight, and the radio navigation homing indicator. The separate main panel contained the flight and navigation instruments. Engine instruments were housed on a small panel below and recessed slightly from the main panel. The cockpit features the Kommandogerät power level discussed previously in regard to the Fw 190 D–9.
FW 190 F–8 ON DISPLAY AT THE UDVAR-HAZY CENTER.
SI 2005–35239
SI 2009–12383