Focke-Wulf Fw 189
| Fw 189 Uhu | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Role | Tactical Reconnaissance and Army Cooperation Aircraft, Light Bomber |
| Manufacturer | Focke-Wulf |
| Designer | Kurt Tank |
| First flight | July 1938 |
| Introduction | August 1941 |
| Retired | 1945 |
| Primary users |
Luftwaffe Hungarian Air Force Slovak Air Force |
| Produced | 1940–44 |
| Number built | 864 |
The Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Uhu ("Eagle Owl") was a German twin-engine, twin-boom, three-seat tactical reconnaissance and army cooperation aircraft. It first flew in 1938 (Fw 189 V1), entered service in 1940 and was produced until mid-1944. It should not be confused with the Heinkel He 219 night fighter also named Uhu.
In addition, Focke-Wulf used this airframe in response to a tender request by the RLM for a dedicated ground attack airplane, and later submitted an armored version for trials. However, the Henschel Hs 129 was selected instead.
In 1937, the German Ministry of Aviation issued a specification for a short-range, three-seat reconnaissance aircraft with a good all-round view to support the German army in the field, replacing the Henschel Hs 126, which had just entered service. A power of about 850–900 hp (630–670 kW) was specified. The specification was issued to Arado and Focke-Wulf. Arado's design, the Ar 198, which was initially the preferred option, was a relatively conventional single-engined high-wing monoplane with a glazed gondola under the fuselage. Focke-Wulf's chief designer Kurt Tank's design, the Fw 189, was a twin-boom design, powered by two Argus As 410 engines instead of with an expected single engine. As a "twin-boom" design like the earlier Dutch Fokker G.I from 1938, the Fw 189 used a central crew gondola for its crew accommodation, which for the Fw 189 would be designed with a heavily glazed and framed "stepless" cockpit forward section, which used no separate windscreen panels for the pilot (as with many German medium bombers from 1938 onwards). Blohm & Voss, however, proposed as a private venture something even more radical: chief designer Dr. Richard Vogt's unique asymmetric BV 141. Orders were placed for three prototypes each of the Arado and Focke-Wulf designs in April 1937.
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