He 111 restoration

[Zimme83]

The problem is structural integrity. In order to make a plane like that flying again there is only one option, take the plate with the serial number and build a new plane around it. When you do like them and banging the twisted metal back to the original shape you get Micro cracks etc so you don't have the structural integrity left.

[Skuzzy]

If they get brought back to flying status, from wreckage like that, I call them resurrections, not restorations.

For either, my hat is off to those who do it.  It is a pain staking process.

[Guppy35]

Does this include the 111 that was brought up the same time the two 88s were?  Those two are being restored too if I remember right.  One in Germany and one in Norway.

[Zimme83]

AFAIK. No. One 111 was recovered from Norway in 2004 and is being restored in Germany but i dont have any info on that one:


And there seems to be one in Austria that is being restored to flying condition (with a lot of help from a CASA 2.111)


I dont know how accurate this info is.
http://axis.classicwings.com/Luftwaffe/heinkel/he111.htm

[Guppy35]

AFAIK. No. One 111 was recovered from Norway in 2004 and is being restored in Germany but i dont have any info on that one:
(Image removed from quote.)

And there seems to be one in Austria that is being restored to flying condition (with a lot of help from a CASA 2.111)
(Image removed from quote.)

I dont know how accurate this info is.
http://axis.classicwings.com/Luftwaffe/heinkel/he111.htm

The top image is the 111 I was remembering.  They got the Ju88s at the same time if memory serves

[Zimme83]

Correct, the Germans had a base at the ice of the lake Jonsvatnet in 1940 and a number of aircraft where abandoned and sunk when the ice melted. He 111 and a Ju 88 where recovered in 2003. Another ju 88 was recovered in Norway in 2000 and is also being restored in Germany.

[Zimme83]

A very interesting detail, a catapult launch hook, suggesting that the 111 was intended for carrier operations.

[Mister Fork]

Where is that hook?  Could be a hook for the He-111 to tow gliders.

[Zimme83]

It would be a lot more resonable if it was a glider tow hook, will try to find out some more about it. A carrier equiped 111 would be a bit sensational..

[Serenity]

Where is that hook?  Could be a hook for the He-111 to tow gliders.

Sounds like a safe bet to me!

[Zimme83]

From Wiki:

The P-3 was powered with the same DB601A-1 engines. The aircraft was also designed to take off with a land catapult (KL-12). A towing hook was added to the fuselage under the cockpit for the cable. Just eight examples were produced, all without bomb equipment

The problem is that the Heinkel is obviously not a P-3 and it have bomb equipment. So why was this one equipped with the catapult hook?

[Devil 505]

It's probably a hook for another purpose. The lock makes me think it was for towing or being towed

[Krusty]

You may be taking it too specifically Zimme. Just because something looks like something used on a carrier doesn't mean this was. Even USAF planes have arrestor hooks, similar to carrier planes. Doesn't mean they're used on carrier decks. There were a number of catapult systems used on dry land. There was always an effort to shorten takeoff runs or to use JATOs to overload a plane's weight and get it safely off the ground. Either this was for towing (which He111s were widely known for -- towing gliders) or it was for some kind of ground catapult system. He111s were also known to haul heavy weights, cargo cannisters, and even versions of the V-1 underneath. There are any number of logical reasons to have that kind of fitting on the airframe.

There was no such thing as a carrier He111.

[Zimme83]

They say on the website that rhe hook is for carrier operations, which as i said, would be quite sensational given the size of the 111.
But what ive found out so far is that land catapults indeed was used for the 111 and that it seem like it was not just on a few planes.

So its the most resonable explanation.

[Zimme83]

Got some info on a Swedish aviation history board: An image of a flight test of the rocket plane Bachem Natte, here seen hanging in a wire under a 111, the hook seems to be attached on a similar position as the catapult hook so it might be the same hook used


Here is an image of the 'land catapult', it seems to be more like a winch similar to those used for gliders: