Post
by Bader's Briar » 30 Sep 2017 18:42
Der Fellow Amerika Bomber Fans:
Bader's Briar here again, and from a similar "assertion" from one Mr. Gunson earlier this year about "real-world He 277s" he asserted that "actually existed", I've been able to counter him on each and EVERY single assertion he's made (based on each individual aircraft example he'd specified himself), as to exactly WHAT each exact example he had "asserted" had been, with documentation from the Griehl/Dressel book backing me up every single time.
So, "here goes" with my VERY detailed "refutation file" of Mr. Gunson's "assertions"...the Griehl/Dressel book on the "Gruesome Griffin" is a GOLD MINE of info that completely "smashes" the "oft-told story" about any "completed He 277s" ever existing!
The Sy Gunson REFUTATION Textfile of Phony "He 277" aircraft data, and the
ACTUAL records of He 177As he's alleged that were never "He 277s" to begin with...
His listings:
"The three He 177B were NN+QQ (first prototype He 177B) W.Nr.535550, GA+QQ former He 177 A-08 (He 277 W.Nr.23). Only one of the He 177B ever became an He 277. The He 277 was developed as a kitset modification that could be applied to existing He 177. However a number of He 177 A-6 prototypes were converted at E-2 Rechlin workshops as production prototypes and issued Stkz: GA+QQ Heinkel He 277 V9 (delivered to Eprobungstelle Reichlin); GA+QR Heinkel He 277 V10 (delivered to Eprobungstelle Reichlin); GA+QM Heinkel He 277 V26 (delivered to Eprobungstelle Reichlin); GA+QX Heinkel He 277 V18 (delivered to Eprobungstelle Reichlin). These He 277 were not produced by Hienkel Schwechat."
ACTUAL Listings of He 177B quartet of prototypes and purported "He 277" airframes qouted by Sy Gunson, with all verifications from the pages (where mentioned in this reply) and appendices of the Manfred Griehl/Joachim Dressel book ISBN 1-85310-364-0, appendices existing on pages 220-241:
Format of: RLM/Luftwaffe individual a/c type designator, serial number/Werknummer, alphabetic Stammkennzeichen (StmKz) factory a/c ID, role of aircraft/eventual fate.
He 177B Prototype Airframe notes, from Griehl/Dressel book's pgs. 162-163, 165-167 & 226:
He 177 V101: Serial number 535 550, NN+QQ, an A-3 airframe rebuilt to B-5 standard with four separate DB 603-dedicated Heinkel/Kraftei He 219 style nacelles/annular radiators, intended for fitment (but never fitted) with "drag rudders" on stab for engine-out testing as shown on Heinkel engineering drawing - the He 177 V101 was almost certainly the four-engined He 177B-series prototype found wrecked at Cheb, Czech Republic in May 1945 (fuselage blown to tiny bits), only one surviving photo of it intact, on a foggy German airfield from a near nose-on attitude (the photo's vantage point was offset to airframe's starboard side). Said to have been allegedly fitted with a quartet of Jumo 222s (which in reality had a trio of exhaust stack sets per nacelle [upper flanks P/S and bottom-center] as with Ju 288s powered with them), but as the Cheb photos show He 219-pattern Kraftei nacelles ONLY, with twin exhaust stack sets fitted per nacelle as with He 219, and hinged upper-flank nacelle panels identical in outline to those on an He 219 Kraftei nacelle. The "Jumo 222 refit" supposition remains unproven, and likely an incorrect assumption. The He 177 V101 wreck at Cheb had four-blade props fitted, as with early He 219 V1-V5 and Fw 190C prototypes powered with DB 603s.
He 177 V102: Serial number 00 0023, GA+QQ, the eighth 177A service test airframe (He 177A-08 or He 177 V9), rebuilt as the V101 was (but HAD to include the 1.6 meter lengthening of the rear fuselage first mandated for A-3s onward in the initial refit) for quartet of Heinkel He 219/Kraftei DB 603s, but with He 219-inspired twin tail unit (only one so equipped); first to fly on four DB 603s on December 20, 1943, after fitment of twin-tail unit, stated "as scrapped" after February 1945, no surviving photos.
He 177 V103: Serial number 550 036, KM+TL, an A-5 that was the first and only aircraft from the "quartet of Heinkel He 219/Kraftei DB 603"-engined He 177B prototype airframes whose rear fuselage was completely rebuilt to use the Borsig hydraulically-driven Hecklafette HL 131V quadmount tail turret (not completely like the He 177 V32 through V34 trio of test airframes actually used for the Borsig quadmount turret tests), had single vertical tail only as V101 did, blown to pieces on July 8th, 1944 by USAAF 15th Air Force raid on Heinkel-Süd/Vienna suburb facility at Floridsdorf.
He 177 V104: Serial number 550 005, KM+TE, an A-5 meant to be the "pattern aircraft" for the Arado Flugzeugwerke-built He 177B-5 airframe series production project meant to have a twin-tail empennage as V102 had, meant to start by November 1944 - conversion never completed, "in-progress" airframe blown apart in same July 1944 American air raid in Floridsdorf that wrecked the V103.
True facts about the aircraft alleged by Mr. Gunson to have been purportedly rebuilt as "He 277s", when in reality this never happened: No He 177A-6 production aircraft were ever completed, as pre-production work on the type was shelved after its initiation in January 1943, with engineering work on both the He 177A-5 and B-series taking over during 1943 causing the A-6's shelving (G/D book pg. 106), so no A-6s were available for the purported "He 277" conversions...the alleged aircraft's corrected identities are documented using same format as before, most documentation coming from Griehl/Dressel book's appendix page 232...
Purported "He 277V9" (only a trio of He 277 prototypes were ever called for by the RLM in the first place, expected to be completed by May/June 1943 timeframe) was actually the aforementioned He 177 V103...mention of requested trio of prototypes [and ten further A-0 service test airframes, also never-built] for 8-277 category airframes mentioned on Griehl/Dressel book's pg.104.
Purported "He 277V10" was actually the He 177 V10, WkNr 00 0024, StmKz GA+QR, started out as the He 177A-09 service test series airframe, used for testing of the He 177A-4's high altitude pressurized cockpit, remained with DB 606 "welded-together engines" for power, last metioned on June 20, 1944, stated as "cannibalized" for parts. The He 177 V11 airframe, otherwise identical to the V10 but with s/n of 00 0025 and StmKz code of GA+QS, was used for flying the A-4 format pressurized test cockpit to 9.2 km altitude on August 9, 1943. (G/D ISBN 1-85310-364-0 pg. 179)
Purported "He 277V26" was actually the He 177A-04 service test airframe, WkNr 00 0019, StmKz GA+QM, remained with DB 606 "welded-together engines" for power, last officially mentioned on April 24, 1943 with the prototype designation V26 at Rechlin with "improved aerial torpedo installation", victim of aircrash. (G/D ISBN 1-85310-364-0 pgs. 226 & 232)
Purported "He 277V18" was actually the He 177A-015 service test airframe, WkNr 00 0030, StmKz GA+QX, last mentioned on June 28, 1943 as the He 177 V18 prototype airframe for the He 177A-1/U2 Zerstörer version, using twin MK 101 30mm flexible-mount autocannon at front of dramatically forward-extended Bola for anti-ship/close support attack, solely powered with DB 606 "welded-together engines", fate otherwise unknown past last official mention. (G/D ISBN 1-85310-364-0 pg. 110)
No known documentation exists for the anomalous, Heinkel He 219/Kraftei DB 603 engined He 177B prototype airframe bearing the Stammkennzeichen "NE+OD" on the only other surviving photo (in this one, the aircraft is seen from its starboard side, almost side-on) of an intact, four-engined He 177B prototype, as fragmentary evidence exists for the "NE+Ox" code block being used for He 177A-3 airframes, of an unknown number.
The actual He 277 Amerika Bomber project designs, from February 1943 onward (that February 1943 date from G/D book pg. 179) the Amerika Bomber proposal itself pre-dated the He 277's latest verifiable mention date by some ten months, in April 1942). Despite proposal sideviews and 3-views for inline inverted-V12 planned formats from the Heinkel engineering departments, the He 277 Amerika Bomber design was only meant to be powered by a quartet of BMW 801E radials with four-meter diameter, three-bladed propellers, as mentioned on pg. 196 of the Griehl/Dressel book. The 3-view on page 159 of the book is mis-marked as an "He 177B-5", but with this 3-view having the 7 m x 1.75m bomb bay, as shown on pg. 184 of the G/D book of a May 12, 1943-dated bom loadout chart, meant specifically for the He 277.
Let's hope this CLEARS UP a few parts of that cobwebbed, "oft-told story" that far too many people have been "convinced to believe" for far too long.
Thanks and Yours Sincerely,
Bader's Briar