Heinkel HE 12

The Heinkel HE 12 was built in 1929 in a single copy in the German Reich float plane. It was designed specifically for use on the fast steamer Bremen, from which they could be launched with a catapult on the Atlantic to bring mail from the ship early on land. The abbreviation " U " stands for " Heinkel monoplane " and is not to be confused with the 1932 by RLM assigned "Hey " plant identifier.

History

The North German Lloyd ( NDL) had in 1927 already carried a Junkers F -13 float plane on the steamer Lützow to offer the passengers at the port stays sightseeing flights can. The management of the NDL realized that a float plane on board an ocean liner opened additional earning potential, since at greater distances from the target port this transport the mail would bring much earlier ashore from the fast steamer. Then the aircraft manufacturer Heinkel began the construction of a catapult and the NDL was planning on his new fast steamers Bremen and Europa catapult and aircraft for the mail transport a. As the crew of the Lützow problems with the maintenance of the F had 13, the Lufthansa agreed to provide operational support to the project. When the Bremen in 1929 set off on her maiden voyage, she had the Heinkel HE 12 D- 1717 on board.

Construction

The only Heinkel HE 12 was a development of designed for military use HE 9 She was a conventional low-wing strutted. The structure was made ​​of wood construction with fabric covering, the hull consisted of a fabric -covered welded steel tube frame. The hull top to behind the second seat was like the engine porch planked with light sheet metal. Pilot and radio operator sat behind each other in open cockpits and the post office was located in a cargo space behind them.

Inserts

On July 22, 1929-110 km before New York - launched the HE 12 under Jobst of Studnitz and Karl Kirchhoff successfully from Bremen. The next day the mayor Jimmy Walker baptized before 3500 onlookers HE 12 in the name of his city. Actually, the start should be 400 km in front of New York done, but the ship's management delayed the start because they wanted to secure the Blue Riband and would not be stopped by a possible breakdown of the machine. On the return trip, the now "New York" said machine launched on August 1, near Cherbourg and flew 4.5 hours 940 km up to Bremerhaven, where the post office was reloaded and reached a different machine in the afternoon Berlin - 5 ½ days after she left New York. By the end of the season the machine led by six more flights, of which only failed to New York on September 9 in the fog. The HE 12 turned around, found the fast steamer again and was after 4 hours 21 minutes back on board.

1930, the machine through 18 post ahead flights between 29 April and 28 September, 1931 from 10 May 15 more in July but had five flights are canceled because of an injury.

Fatal Accident

On 5 October 1931, the Heinkel HE started 12 D- 1717 already 2500 km ahead of New York. It was her 39th post advance flight. They first wanted to Sydney ( Nova Scotia ) approach, as it had already made the machine of the sister ship Europe in September. The plane landed after 9.5 hours of flight time before Glace Bay, but after a short time then flew on to Sydney is only 25 km away. In the four hours -long break, the radio operator machinist Wagenknecht said to have worked there almost continuously on the engine. Shortly after midnight, the machine started then to the connecting flight to New York. About 300 km south-west Sydney crashed the machine over the Cobequid Bay. The machine was found the next day at low tide. From the remains closed, the pilot Fritz Simon tried to land with engine trouble, and it confuses the Watt with the water surface. The pilot's body was found three days later also. Rudolf Wagenknecht's body could not be found.

This was the only serious accident until the end of the catapult flights from fast steamers in 1935. According to the pilot Fritz Simon, Lufthansa named 1936 Junkers Ju 52 D- AQUI WNr.5489. This machine belongs today after a tumultuous fate of the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin-Stiftung and was on 30 October 2008, the last machine that took off from Berlin -Tempelhof airport before it was officially closed.

Europe and the new aircraft

The following year coming into service in Europe was a stronger catapult and a similar but slightly heavier float plane, the Heinkel HE 58 This aircraft (D - 1919 Bremen) had a wider fuselage, in which the crew sat next to each other. The engine was partially dressed. The machine came 1932 on the Bremen for use until it was replaced in 1933 by new board type aircraft Junkers Ju 46.

Specifications

381865
de