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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 0505.PDF
FEBRUARY 15, 1940 Foreign Service Aviation DIVE- BOMBERS in POLAND Work of the Ju 87s THE Junkers company has issuer!an account of the employmen;of Ju 87 dive-bombers in the Polish campaign. The fighting value of such machines, it is stated, has been the subject of much discussion in recent years, but little authentic in- formation has been available. The preferred targets were concrete forts, aerodromes, level crossings and bridges behind the lines, railway stations, staff headquarters and other positions or fortifica- tions which otherwise would be practically unassailable. It was found that a well-placed 500-kg. bomb was suffi- cient to make a crater which would paralyse traffic even on a modern road, and, as the movements of troops in a country like Poland were largely dependent on road trans- port, even the smallest formation of dive-bombers proved very efficient in disturbing communications. One 500-kg. bomb which hit a track in front of an armoured train in motion derailed practically the whole train. The Junkers Nachrichten states that there was not a single instance of failure on the part of German dive- 163 Ju 87s operating from an advanced aerodrome. In the background is a Ju 52 bomber-transport. bomber units to respond to a call owing to engine or air- frame trouble. The practice of sending out Ju 87s with an escort of fighters was abandoned after a time as their crews felt that they could deal single-handed with the opposition. A fair number of Polish fighters were thus brought down by the Junkers dive-bombers, among them the first Polish fighter to be defeated during the war. There were some remarkable instances of severely damaged machines making safe landings. In one case a landing flap was almost completely shot off, and in another a 4-cm. anti-aircraft shell passed clean through a wing, making a hole about 8in. in diameter on the underside and another of 2oin. in the upper covering. A second pro- jectile tore off what is described as the " side fin." shooting by the Poles : as shown on the right one Ju 87 had half its fin shot away and the rest shattered. But it got home. DIRECT-INJECTION IN POLAND A POLISH engineer in a letter to Les Ailes comments on theuse of direct-injection Mercedes Benz engines in Messer-schmitt fighters in Poland. He states that a reduction in weight (of the order of 180 gms. per h.p. instead of 230 gms. pei h.p.) is obtained in comparison with engines fitted with carburettors. Despite the importance of this advantage there is an even greater benefit: fuel injection permits a rapid take-off even with a cold engine and changes of engine speed are easier than with normal carhuration. The writer presumes that it was only because of a relatively slow change of engine speed that the famous Junkers diesel engines have not bocn used in greater numbers by the German Air Force. This lack of rapidity in the change from one speed to another greatly fatigues the pilots, this is especially the case when flying in formation. ^ , In Poland, Messerschmitts surprised'Sy Polish aircraft, took off immediately on the alarm with engines still cold. The great speed of the take-off was a tribute to tht properties of fuel injec- tion, which is not so sensitive to variations of fuel as is the carburettor. In order to be able to take off with a cold engine the Messerschmitts have supplementary tanks controlled by the pilot. On starting, the pump delivers a mixture of ether and petrol. This, with a good spark, gives a sure and immediate start. Following this the pilot changes the fuel, and with a mixture of petrol and oil. is able to " give her the gun " for an immediate take-off. As soon as the engine reaches its running temperature and the oil is circulating normally, the pilot changes over to ordinary petrol.
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