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Heinkel He 66

He 50
Heinkel He50a.jpg
A Heinkel He 50 of a night ground-attack unit on the Eastern Front.
Role Dive bomber
Manufacturer Heinkel
First flight 1931
Introduction 1935
Retired 1944
Primary user Luftwaffe
Number built 78

The Heinkel He 50 was a German World War II-era dive bomber, originally designed for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Serving in Luftwaffe prewar dive-bombing units, the He 50 served until almost the end of World War II as a night harassment bomber.

In 1931, the Japanese Navy placed an order with the Heinkel aircraft company for a two-seat dive bomber, capable of carrying 250 kg (550 lb) of bombs, stressed for catapult launches, and capable of using either wheeled or float undercarriages.

A prototype, the Heinkel He 50aW, was completed in the summer of 1931. It was a biplane of mixed construction. The aircraft had twin floats and was powered by a Junkers L5 inline engine. The engine was found to be underpowered. A second prototype, the He 50aL, was built, powered by a Siemens Jupiter VI radial engine, having a wheeled undercarriage. A second He 50aL was built and redesignated He 50b. Based on the He 50b, a third prototype designated Heinkel He 66 was completed for the Japanese Navy, and used as the basis of the Aichi D1A.

The He 50 was an equal-span biplane based on a rectangular-section fuselage with a primary structure of welded steel tube construction, faired out to an oval shape by wooden formers and stringers and covered with fabric except in the extreme nose, which was skinned in light alloy. The wings were of fabric-covered wooden construction with a marginal stagger and very slight sweep, carrying ailerons on all four panels.


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