Heinkel He 59

Heinkel

Industry	Aerospace
Founded	1922
Founder	Ernst Heinkel
Headquarters	Germany
Products	Aircraft, including the Heinkel He 59

The Heinkel He 59 was a German twin-engine biplane developed in 1930 to fulfill the requirement for a versatile aircraft capable of torpedo bombing and reconnaissance missions, adaptable for either wheeled landing gear or twin-float operation.

Development

File:Nadat-de-britse-overheid-medio-juli-1940-had-afgekondigd-dat-de-wit-gespoten-he-59-s-evengoed-zouden-worden-neergeschoten.jpg

Personnel from the 6. Seenotstaffel proceed from the Zeeburgereiland jetty to board their Heinkel He 59, likely during late 1940 or 1941.

In 1930, Ernst Heinkel initiated the design of an aircraft intended for the Reichsmarine. To mask its military purpose, it was officially presented as a civilian model. The initial prototype to take flight was the He 59B landplane, which first flew in September 1931. However, it was the He 59A floatplane prototype that led to the production of the He 59B series, with a total of 142 units produced across three variants. Pilots found the Heinkel He 59 to be a pleasant aircraft to operate, though it was noted for having underpowered engines, limited operational range, modest payload capacity, and insufficient defensive armament.

Design

The construction employed mixed materials. The wings featured a dual-spar wooden framework; plywood covered the leading edge while fabric stretched over the remaining wing surfaces. The fuselage consisted of a steel frame enveloped in fabric, with the tail section sheathed in lightweight metal panels.

Fuel storage utilized the keels of the floats as tanks, each capable of holding 900 L (240 US gal; 200 imp gal). Combined with an internal tank, total fuel capacity reached 2,700 L (710 US gal; 590 imp gal). Additionally, two fuel tanks could be installed within the bomb bay to increase capacity up to 3,200 L (850 US gal; 700 imp gal). The aircraft was equipped with fixed-pitch propellers featuring four blades.

Operations

In the early stages of World War II, the He 59 fulfilled roles as both a torpedo bomber and a minelaying aircraft. It was also actively deployed with several Seenotstaffeln (Air Sea Rescue units). During the spring of 1940, the aircraft assisted in amphibious landings in Norway and the Netherlands. From 1940 to 1941, four Küstenfliegergruppen (Coastal Reconnaissance Groups) operated the He 59, and between 1941 and 1942, it was utilized for transport duties, air-sea rescue missions, and as a training platform. Earlier, some He 59s had been employed by the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War in 1936, serving as coastal reconnaissance floatplanes equipped for torpedo operations.

Throughout the Battle of Britain, these aircraft were tasked with retrieving German aircrew who had ditched in the English Channel. The British contended that since these air-sea rescue planes were also conducting reconnaissance activities, they constituted valid military targets despite bearing Red Cross insignia. Prior to this period, several He 59s had already been forced down by British fighters.

Out of approximately 140 B-2 and B-3 models produced by Arado, most were subsequently modified by Walter Bachmann Flugzeugbau for specialized roles such as air-sea rescue (He 59C-2 and D-1 variants) or training in navigation (He 59C-1, D-1, and N), torpedo deployment (E-1), and aerial photography (E-2). All variants were unarmed except for the He 59N.

In August 1943, the Ilmavoimat (Finnish Air Force) leased four He 59s from Germany to conduct long-range reconnaissance patrols behind enemy lines; these aircraft were returned to Germany after four months.

Operators

Template:FIN

• Finnish Air Force

Germany

• Luftwaffe

Template:ESP

• Spanish Air Force

Variants

• He 59a : initial prototype.
• He 59b : second prototype.
• He 59A : evaluation and testing version; fourteen units produced.
• He 59B-1 : sixteen pre-production examples.
• He 59B-2 : enhanced model.
• He 59B-3 : reconnaissance configuration.
• He 59C-1 : unarmed trainer variant.
• He 59C-2 : configured for air-sea rescue operations.
• He 59D-1 : dual-purpose trainer and air-sea rescue version.
• He 59E-1 : trainer designed for torpedo bombing.
• He 59E-2 : photographic reconnaissance aircraft.
• He 59N : armed navigation training model.

See also

• Action in the North Atlantic, a 1943 American war movie featuring a scene where two He 59 aircraft engage a cargo ship

References

Bibliography

• Green, William. War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Six: Floatplanes. London: Macdonald, 1962.
• Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York: Doubleday, 1972. ISBN 0-385-05782-2.
• Kalevi Keskinen, Kari Stenman, Klaus Niska: Meritoimintakoneet - Suomen ilmavoimien historia 15, Apali Oy, Tampere 1995, ISBN 952-5026-03-5

External links

• Brandenburg Historica, The Luftwaffe Seenotdienst (Air Sea Rescue Service) of World War II