World War II Database

1.  Bill says:
18 Jun 2010 06:20:05 PM

The He 162 was armed with two MG 151/20mm cannons with 100 rounds per-gun, or two
MK 108 30mm cannons with 50 rounds per-gun.
First operational unit was 1./JG 1 this unit
previously flew Focke-Wulf Fw 190's. 1/JG 1,
lost 13 He 162's and 10 pilots, 10 of the
lost aircraft, were caused by flamout's and
structural failures.
The He 162 was a short-ranged aircraft with
only 30 minutes of fuel.
At the end of WWII,the Germans destroyed many
of the aircraft, to keep them from falling
into enemy hands. After WWII some He 162's were captured by the US, USSR, Britain and
France and were tested and evaluated.
Post-War testing lead to a number of He 162's
crashing, and a number of pilots were killed
due to in-flight failures. A number of 162's
survive today in museums through the world.

2.  Bill says:
18 Jun 2010 06:30:37 PM

Today you can see a He 162 on display at the Planes of Fame Museum located in Chino, California USA.
The aircraft was captured by British forces
at Leck,Germany May 1,1945 it flew with JG/1

3.  Bill says:
18 Jun 2010 06:51:51 PM

Photograph shows Luftwaffe Officers carring
sidearms, the weapons could be the Walther
P-38 9mm, or the Walther PPK 7.65mm this
pistol, was introduced in 1929 However, both pistols were popular with the Luftwaffe and
Army Officers.

This is my guess, but then again I've been wrong before.

When I was stationed in W.Germany,I was able to fire the Walther P-38/9mm Pistol, at the
Rod and Gun Club.

4.  Bill says:
24 Oct 2010 06:30:22 PM

Did You Know...

Many of the Luftwaffe pilots removed the rigid framing from their 'Schirmmutze' caps,
like the pilots of the USAAF did.

1./JG 1. flew the He 162 near the end of the war, in two months it lost twenty aircraft
lost in crashes, ten pilots killed and six injuried.

5.  Bill says:
25 Dec 2010 09:50:58 AM

The He 162 Salamander/Volksjaeger was built from non-strategic materials, by semi-skilled labor.
The fuselage was built from aluminum components, and the wings were made from a single piece of wood, this became its Achilles heel the glue was not of good quality, during flight with stress on the wings, the glue was not strong enough to support the weight, and would fail leading to structural failure.

Powered by one BMW-003 jet engine, and equiped with an ejection seat the Volksjaeger
was a demanding aircraft to fly, even for
experienced Luftwaffe pilots

6.  Bill says:
9 Apr 2013 08:41:41 PM

WARS END: FILE PHOTOGRAPH

1./JG1 pilots in front of their He162 and wait for
the British to arrive at Leck.
Officer on the far left is Major Zorber, the CO, Commanding Officer of 1./JG1 and next to him, is Oberst Lhlefeld, the Geschwaderkommodore.

FINAL INSPECTION:

Thirty He162's were lined up on each side of the airstrip, 1./JG1 was the only Luftwaffe unit that was equipped with this aircraft. The unit lost ten pilots and thirteen planes only two of which were lost in combat.

TO THE VICTOR GO THE SPOILS:

So what happened to the He162's the Allies had at Leck field. Thirty examples could be used for testing.
However, ten of them were destroyed right on the airfield, the British held another ten, and used three for flying tests. Others were shipped to the USA, another was stripped down to learn its construction.
France received five He-162's for testing and evaluation. The Russians captured two and used them for tests.
Plans were made to build 4,000 He162's However, the Luftwaffe received 200 aircraft before wars end. Today there are eight (8) survivors in museums world-wide.

SUGGESTED READING:

Heinkel He 162 From Drawing Board to Destruction: The Volksjager Spatz

By Robert Forsyth
Classic Publications (2009)
ISBN-10 1907537003