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Focke-Wulf

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This article is about the German airplane firm. For the Dutch aircraft company, see Fokker.

Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau
FormerlyBremer Flugzeugbau
Company typeoriginally AG, subsequently GmbH
IndustryAerospace
FoundedOctober 24, 1923; 103 years ago (1923-10-24)
Founders
Defunct1964
FateConsolidated with Weser Flugzeugbau
SuccessorVereinigte Flugtechnische Werke
Headquarters
Bremen
,
Germany
Key people

Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau AG (German pronunciation: [ˌfɔkəˈvʊlf]) was a German enterprise specializing in both civilian and military aircraft production prior to and throughout World War II.[1] Numerous successful fighter models from the company were derived as minor adaptations of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190. It is recognized as one of the foundational companies that ultimately contributed to the formation of today's Airbus.

History

Established on 24 October 1923 in Bremen, the firm began as Bremer Flugzeugbau AG, founded by Prof. Henrich Focke,[lower-alpha 1] Georg Wulf [lower-alpha 2] and Dr. rer. pol. Werner Naumann.[lower-alpha 3] Shortly thereafter, the company was renamed Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau AG (later converted to Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau GmbH).[2]

Under pressure from the Weimar Republic government, Focke-Wulf merged with Berlin-based Albatros Flugzeugwerke in 1931. The engineer and test pilot from Albatros, Kurt Tank, assumed leadership of the technical division and began development of the Focke-Wulf Fw 44#Fw 44 Stieglitz (Goldfinch).

In 1925, Dr Ludwig Roselius became chairman, later succeeded by his brother Friedrich in early 1933. By 1938, Roselius' HAG conglomerate had increased its ownership stake to 46%, while C. Lorenz AG acquired 28%. At this point, the firm was reorganized as Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau GmbH, no longer obligated to disclose financial statements publicly. This reorganization included a significant capital infusion.[3]

By August 1933, Hans Holle and Rudolf Schubert held power of attorney for Focke-Wulf’s Berlin branch. Subsequently, in October 1933, the entity Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau A.G. Albatros Berlin was officially registered with the Trade Department.[4]

Dr Roselius remained a pivotal figure within the company throughout his tenure, frequently collaborating with technical director Professor Kurt Tank alongside his close associate Barbara Goette. Upon Roselius' death in May 1943, Heinrich Puvogel—who would later chair Focke-Wulf—secured four million Reichsmarks and managed the company's financial matters via his role at Seehandel A.G.[5]

In 1938, Hanna Reitsch showcased the fully controllable helicopter prototype, the Focke-Wulf Fw 61, in Berlin—a pioneering achievement distinct from earlier autogyros.[6] On 10 August that same year, the four-engine airliner Focke-Wulf Fw 200#Fw 200 completed a nonstop flight between Berlin and New York City in just under 25 hours—the first aircraft to accomplish this nonstop transatlantic journey. The return flight on 13 August lasted less than 20 hours. These historic flights are commemorated by a plaque located on Bremen’s Böttcherstraße.

The Würger (Shrike/butcher-bird), known as the Focke-Wulf Fw 190#Fw 190, was designed starting in 1938 and produced extensively from early 1941 through 1945 as a primary single-seat fighter for the Luftwaffe during WWII.

File:Focke-Wulf works at Bremen 1945.jpg
Bomb-damaged Focke-Wulf factory in Bremen (1945)

Due to persistent bombing raids on Bremen during WWII, mass production facilities were relocated eastward into Germany and into the General Government territory, with major subcontracting carried out by companies such as AGO Flugzeugwerke in Oschersleben for the Fw 190 manufacture. These factories employed numerous foreign workers and forced laborers; from 1944 onward, prisoners of war were also utilized. The approximately 100 acres (0.40 km2) manufacturing site at Malbork (Marienburg) was responsible for about half of all produced Fw 190s before being targeted by an Eighth Air Force bombing raid on 9 October 1943.[7]

After the war, many former Focke-Wulf personnel including chief designer Kurt Tank worked at Argentina’s Instituto Aerotécnico in Córdoba between 1947 and 1955. Meanwhile, founders like Henrich Focke contributed to Brazil’s aerospace development at its Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, playing a role in establishing Embraer.[8] Beginning in 1951, Focke-Wulf resumed glider production and expanded into powered aircraft by 1955. In 1961, it partnered with Weserflug GmbH and Hamburger Flugzeugbau to form Entwicklungsring Nord (ERNO), focusing on rocket development.

Prior to WWII, ITT Corporation had acquired a quarter stake in Focke-Wulf and later received $27 million compensation during the 1960s for wartime damages caused by Allied bombing to its share of the company’s facilities.[9] In a notable event from 1936, Colonel Sosthenes Behn, Ludwig Roselius and Barbara Goette successfully resisted Adolf Hitler’s attempt to remove Roselius as a significant shareholder; this led to restructuring that established the privatized entity Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau GmbH.[10] Ultimately, Focke-Wulf formally merged with Weserflug in 1964 to form Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke (VFW), which through subsequent mergers evolved into European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company N.V. (EADS), later rebranded as Airbus.

In early 2021, the trademark "Focke Wulf Aircraft" was re-registered across Europe Union member states, the United Kingdom and Australia for use as a retailer specializing in aviation watches and official merchandise associated with Focke Wulf.[11]

Aircraft

File:Fliegerwerft 2008 Borkum 061.jpg
1932 – Focke-Wulf Fw 44 Stieglitz
File:Focke-Wulf Fw 190 050602-F-1234P-005.jpg
1939 – Focke-Wulf Fw 190
File:Focke-Achgelis Fa-330 Bachstelze Deutsches Museum.jpg
1943 – Focke-Achgelis Fa 330
File:IWM-ATP8143C Cierva C30A 205127566.jpg
Focke-Wulf Fw 30
File:Fw 61 im Hubschraubermuseum Bueckeburg 2012.jpg
Focke-Wulf Fw 61
File:Borgward Focke BFK 1 Kolibri im Hubschraubermuseum Bueckeburg.jpg
Borgward Kolibri

Company designations

Listed alphabetically:

RLM designations

  • Focke-Wulf Fw40 – short-range reconnaissance parasol monoplane prototype from1932; internally designated as A40.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw43 Falke (Falcon) – utility aircraft prototype developed in1932; internally called A43.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw44 Stieglitz (Goldfinch) – biplane trainer introduced in1932.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw47 Höhengeier (Vulture) – meteorological aircraft from1931; internally known as A47.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw55 – biplane floatplane derived from the Albatros L102, produced in1932.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw56 Stösser (Goshawk) – advanced parasol monoplane trainer, debuted in1933.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw57 – twin-engine heavy fighter-bomber prototype created in1935.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw58 Weihe (Kite) – versatile transport, photo reconnaissance and weather research aircraft introduced in1937.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw61 – helicopter prototype developed during1936.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw62 – shipborne reconnaissance biplane seaplane from1937.
  • Focke-Wulf Ta152 – interceptor and fighter derived from the Fw190, launched in1944.
  • Focke-Wulf Ta154 Moskito (Mosquito) – night fighter featuring wooden construction similar to its British counterpart, developed in1943.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw159 – fighter prototype built in1935.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw186 – autogiro reconnaissance aircraft prototype from1937.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw187 Falke (Falcon) – twin-engine heavy day fighter ("Zerstörer") seating two, introduced in1936.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw189 Uhu (Eagle Owl) – three-seat army cooperation and tactical reconnaissance twin-engine aircraft from1938.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw190 Würger (Shrike or butcher-bird) – single-seat fighter and interceptor first flown in1939.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw191 – twin-engine competitor for the Bomber B program; prototype produced in1942.
  • Focke-Wulf Fw200 Condor – four-engine airliner also used as maritime patrol bomber, introduced in1937.

Licensed Production

Concepts and Incomplete Designs

Design Initiatives

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ In 1937, shareholders removed Henrich Focke from the company.
  2. ↑ Georg Wulf was killed during a test flight on 29 September 1927.
  3. ↑ Dr. rer. pol. Werner Naumann should not be confused with Dr. rer. nat. Werner Naumann, who served as state secretary in Joseph Goebbels's Ministry of Propaganda.

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)..
  2. ↑ The initial production focused on several commercial aircraft featuring thick wings positioned high above relatively bulky fuselages.Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  3. ↑ Dieter Pfliegensdörfer; Volker Bergmann; Willi Elmers; Manfred Fittkau; Michael Jung; Michael Wolf; Wolfgang Günther. Wellblech & Windkanal. Arbeit und Geschäfte im Bremer Flugzeugbau von den Anfängen 1909 bis heute. Steintor, 1989, ISBN 3926028513
  4. ↑ Thiel, Reinhold. Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau. Bremen, Verlag H.M. Hauschild GmbH, 2011. ISBN 9783897574892
  5. ↑ Leidig, Ludwig. Bombshell. sbpra 2013. ISBN 978-1-62516-346-2
  6. ↑ Hanna Reitsch “Fliegen, mein Leben” on p. 180–198. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt Stuttgart 1952
  7. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  8. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  9. ↑ Sampson, Anthony: The Sovereign State, Hodder and Stoughton, 1973, ISBN 0-340-17195-2
  10. ↑ The Office of Military Government US Zone in Post-war Germany 1946-1949, declassified per Executive Order 12958, Section 3.5 NND Project Number: NND 775057 by: NND Date:1977
  11. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).

External links

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