[caption id="attachment_10767" align="alignleft" width="400"] The original blueprint illustration of the Fw 190 mit DB 609. [War Thunder Forums][/caption]The Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Würger (Shrike) was one of Nazi Germany’s most iconic fighters of the Second World War. First introduced in August of 1941, the Fw 190 gave contemporary Allied fighters a run for their money and…

[caption id="attachment_10137" align="alignnone" width="400"] A cutaway drawing of the Ar 233 in its passenger configuration. [Dan Sharp][/caption]The first couple years of the Second World War appeared to have been going firmly in favor of Germany. Most of Western Europe had been conquered by then, and the Wehrmacht was making steady progress in its advance eastwards…

When first fielded in August of 1941, the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Würger (Shrike) made a positive impression with Luftwaffe pilots. Seemingly equal or superior to most contemporary Allied fighters, the Fw 190 gained a fearsome reputation among the Allied pilots, who at first did not even realize the Fw 190 was a new aircraft model.…

In early 1944, the Soviet High Command was beginning to realize the obsolete nature of the Polikarpov U-2 (Po-2) in its liaison role. In the wake of the quickly advancing aircraft industry, Yakovlev OKB (Experimental Design Bureau) was called upon to design a multipurpose light aircraft capable of performing liaison missions, ferrying passengers, cargo, and…

On October 1st 1958, the People’s Republic of China celebrated the ninth anniversary of the founding of the nation. As their personal way of celebrating this national holiday, representatives of the Shanghai Bulb Factory unveiled a model of a hybrid design as a gift to the government. Unorthodox and, some may rightfully argue, ridiculous in…

Diplomacy between the Allied countries during the Second World War was an essential step in defeating the Axis powers. With the increasing successes of the Allies during the war, meetings between representatives from the United States, Soviet Union and United Kingdom were held to discuss the future of Europe along with battle plans. In order…

According to the April 1980 edition of the Hungarian aviation magazine “Repülés”, while working for the Hungarian Manfréd Weiss Steel and Metal Works, (Weiss Manfréd Acél- és Fémművek, also known as “Csepel Works”) engineer Pál Nemisch designed a jet attacker aircraft in 1944. Due to the frequent Allied bombing and Hungary’s shortage of supplies, Nemisch…

[caption id="attachment_5079" align="alignleft" width="202"] A closeup view of the Me 163S showing the right wing. [Yefim Gordon][/caption]The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was one of Nazi Germany’s most famous aircraft produced during the Second World War. Although bearing the title of the world’s first mass-produced rocket-powered interceptor, the Komet did have its fair share of flaws,…

In the recent months, an experimental variant of the English Electric Canberra jet bomber was discovered in the National Archives in Greater London. Surprisingly enough, the variant was developed in the Dominion of Canada, which never officially operated or received any Canberras! This experimental variant bears the title of Canberra T.25 and was a testbed…

The Curtiss P-40 (affectionately known as the Kittyhawk for early variants and Warhawk for later variants) is perhaps one of the most recognizable American fighters of the 1930s. Most well known for having served with the “Flying Tigers” American Volunteer Group in the Pacific Theatre, the P-40 also had a fruitful service life on the…