Germany's Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber^1,2,3 ("Griffon")^2,3

Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber:

Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber:

Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber:

Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber:

Heinkel He 177A-5/R2 Greif bomber with Hs293A missile³:

Heinkel He 177 Greif bomber with missile attached to fuselage:

Design

The RLM went to Heinkel with a requirement for a heavy bomber.²

One of the limitations on the design of the He 177 was that it was supposed to be able to do 60° diving attacks.¹

Due to the unreliability of the He 177's engines it was nicknamed the "flying coffin" by it's crews.³

Cockpit

The nose glazing allowed for excellent forward visibility for the crew.¹ There was a 7.9 mm MG 81 with 2,000 rounds that could be fired from the cockpit.¹

Missiles

The bombardier used a FuG 203 transmitter that took the inputs from a joystick in the under nose gondola that directed the Hs 293 or FX 1400 missile.¹ The missiles had flares in the tail to help the bombardier visually follow its flight.¹

Gunners

Originally all the gun turrets were to be remotely controlled but they were replaced by manned positions which added weight.¹

The forward turret was remotely controlled by the gunner that sat under a dome above the flight deck.¹ This turret has two MG 131s with 1,500 rounds total.¹

The tail gunner sat under the rudder with a MG 151.¹

Engines

The exhausts, fuel lines, and oil lines were crammed together in a very small space which contributed to the engine fires that plagued the He 177.¹

The prototype Heinkel He 177 had four DB 601 engines (1,000 HP) mounted in pairs and known as the DB 606.^2,3

Initially there was an advanced cooling system for the engines, but this was scrapped and bigger radiators were used.¹ This caused more drag, so more fuel was needed, which lead to strengthening the fuselage which made the aircraft heavier and reduced performance for the He 177.¹

Prototype

The He 177V1 first flew on November 19, 1939² / December 19, 1939³.

Six of the prototypes crashed due to structural failures or engine fires.³

Production

Arado built five of the pre-production He 177A-0s.¹

It was planned to produce 70 He 177s per month, but only five per month were completed.¹

• Prototypes: 8³, 30²
• He 177A-0: 35³
  • Built starting in November 1941.³
• He 177A-1: 130³
  • Deliveries started in March 1942.³
• He 177A-3: 170³
• He 177A-5: 565³
  • Deliveries started in February 1943.³
• Total: 908³, 1,000¹, 1,160²
  • Manufacturer: Heinkel and Arado³

Variants

• He 177 V1: First prototype.¹
• He 177 V2: Second prototype that broke up in flight.¹
• He 177 V3:
• He 177 V4: Prototype that was lost.¹
• He 177 V5: Prototype that was lost.¹
• He 177V38: Designed to carry Germany's atomic bomb.²
• He 177A-0: Five pre-production aircraft built by Arado.¹
• He 177A-3: Longer fuselage.³ Mounting points for engines were redesigned.³
• He 177A-3/R3: Carried three Hs 293 anti-shipping weapons.²
• He 177A-3/R5: Had a 75 mm in the ventral gondola.²
• He 177A-3/R7: Was able to launch the LT 50 glider torpedo.^1,2
• He 177A-5: Had a stronger wing.² Was able to launch the LT 50 glider torpedo.¹ Some had 33 upward firing rockets.²
• He 277: Three He 177s were converted to having four separate engines with their own propellars.^1,3 Flown in 1943.³ Cancelled in 1944.³
• He 274: One prototype of the four propeller version was produced by Farman in France and flew in December 1945.¹

Usage

The I./KG 50 flew He 177A-1s with Mk 101 cannons for flak suppression assignments.¹

Starting in the spring of 1944 the II./KG 40 started using the He 177A-5/R6s for reconnaissance missions in the Atlantic.¹

The He 177 had a tendency to swing its tail on takeoff.¹

More He 177s were lost to engine fires than to combat.¹

He 177A-0

Out of 35 He 177A-0s built, 25 were lost to accidents or fires.¹ Seven crashed during take-off.¹

Operational Trials

The I./KG 40 received the He 177 in July 1942 for operational trials.² They were used in raids on England.²

Stalingrad

Some of the He 177s were used in relief efforts at Stalingrad.²

	Heinkel He 1773	Heinkel He 177A-13	Heinkel He 177A-53	Heinkel He 177A-5/R2 Greif1,2
Type	Heavy bomber3			Heavy bomber1,2 Reconnaissance1 Anti-shipping1
Crew	5 - 63			62
Engine (Type)		2: Daimler-Benz DB 606 (joined DB 601s)3	2: Daimler-Benz DB610A/B (joined DB 605A)3	2: Daimler-Benz DB 6101 2: Daimler-Benz DB 610A 1/B-1 piston2
Cylinders		24 (2 inverted V 12)3	Inverted V 243	241 Inline2
Cooling				Liquid1
HP		2,700 each3	2,950 each3	2,950 each1,2
Propeller blades		4 each3	4 each3	4 each1
Fuel capacity
Dimensions
Span		103' 2"3 31.44 m3		103' 1.75"2, 103' 2"1 31.44 m1,2
Length		66' 11"3 20.4 m3	72' 2"3 22 m3	66' 11.25"2, 72' 2"1 20.4 m2, 22 m1
Height		21'3 6.4 m3		20' 11"1, 20' 11.75"2 6.39 m1, 6.4 m2
Wing area				1,098 ft2 1,2 102 m2 1,2
Weight
Empty		35,494 lb3 16,100 kg3	37,038 lb3 16,800 kg3	37,257 lb2, 39,960 lb1 16,800 kg1, 16,900 kg2
Loaded		66,139 lb3 30,000 kg3	68,343 lb3 31,000 kg3	68,200 lb1, 68,342 lb2 31,000 kg1,2
Performance
Speed @ 19,685' / 6,000 m				303 mph2 488 kph2
Speed @ 20,000' / 6,100 m				303 mph1 488 kph1
Speed @ 20,015' / 6,100 m			303 mph3 487 kph3
Cruising speed			210 - 258 mph3 338 - 415 kph3
Climb			620'/minute3 189 m/minute3	623'/minute2 190 m/minute2
Climb @ sea level				623'/minute1 190 m/minute1
Service ceiling			26,250'3 8,000 m3	26,2452, 26,250'1 8,000 m1,2
Range with Hs 293 missiles				3,400 miles1, 3,418 miles2 5,500 km1,2
Range			3,417 miles3 5,500 km3
Armament
Guns				2: 20 mm1 3: 7.92 mm MG1 3: 13 mm MG1
Nose			1: 7.9 mm MG3	1: 7.92 mm MG 812
Forward turret			1: 13 mm MG3	1: 13 mm MG 1312
Dorsal turret			2: 13 mm MG3	1: 13 mm MG 1312
Ventral gondola			1: 20 mm3	1: 13 mm MG 1312 1: 20 mm MG FF2
Rear gondola			2: 7.9 mm MG3
Tail			1: 20 mm3	1: 20 mm MG FF2
Bombs			13,225 lb3 6,000 kg3	2,200 lb1, 13,228 lb2 1,000 kg1, 6,000 kg2
OR
Missiles			2: Hs 2933	2 under wing1 2: Hs 2932
OR			2: Fritz X3

Sources:

1. Aircraft of WWII, General Editor: Jim Winchester, 2004
2. Fighting Aircraft of World War II, Editor: Karen Leverington, 1995
3. Aircraft of WWII, Stewart Wilson, 1998

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