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Walther Wever (general)
Walther Wever (11 November 1887 – 3 June 1936) was a pre-World War II ''Luftwaffe'' Commander. He was an early proponent of the theory of strategic bombing as a means to wage war, while supporting the theories of Giulio Douhet. He died in an air crash in 1936. Early life Walther Wever was born on 11 November 1887 in Wilhelmsort in the county of Bromberg (now in Poland, then in East Prussia). He was the son of Arnold Wever, the one-time director of a Berlin bank and the grandson of the Prussian Prosecutor-General Dr. Carl George Wever. After his final secondary examinations, he settled in Schweidnitz where he trained as an officer. Wever saw action as an aerial observer in World War I and served as a staff officer for the OHL ( Oberste Heeresleitung, Army High Command). Luftwaffe Wever became the Commander of the Reichsluftfahrtministerium on 1 September 1933. On 1 March 1935, he became Chief of Staff of the Luftwaffe shortly after its creation on 26 February 1935, a post ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sicienko, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
Sicienko () is a village in Bydgoszcz County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Sicienko. It lies north-west of Bydgoszcz. In 2006 the village had a population of 653. Walther Wever (general), pre-war commander of the Luftwaffe, was born here. History The area of the modern village has been inhabited at least since early Middle Ages, there were numerous archaeological finds in the area dated between 5th and 10th century. The village for most of its history shared the fate of the nearby city of Bydgoszcz, as well as the nearby village of Sitno. In the 19th century, when Poland was partitioned among Russia, Prussia and Austria, the area was part of Prussian province of West Prussia. Initially named "Małe Sitno" (lit. Little Sitno), its name was Germanised to "Klein Sittno", while the administrative division around it was named "Wilhelmsort". At the end of the 19th century the villag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Åšwidnica
Świdnica (; ; ) is a city on the Bystrzyca (Oder), Bystrzyca River in south-western Poland in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. As of 2021, it has a population of 55,413 inhabitants. It is the seat of Świdnica County, and also of the smaller district of Gmina Świdnica, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Gmina Świdnica (although it is not part of the territory of the latter, as the town forms a separate urban gmina). It is the seventh largest city of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Świdnica became part of the Wałbrzych urban agglomeration, agglomeration on 23 January 2014. A city with almost a thousand years of history, recorded in 1070, Świdnica was one of the main cities of Silesia and southwestern Poland in the Middle Ages, the second most important center of culture and art in the region (after Wrocław), a famed brewing center, and in 1291–1392 the capital of an eponymous principality ruled by a local line of the Piast dynasty. The city has a preserved Old Town with several G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heinkel He 111
The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and medium bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a wolf in sheep's clothing. Due to restrictions placed on Germany after the First World War prohibiting bombers, it was presented solely as a civil airliner, although from conception the design was intended to provide the nascent Luftwaffe with a heavy bomber. Perhaps the best-recognised German bomber of World War II due to the distinctive, extensively glazed "greenhouse" nose of the later versions, the Heinkel He 111 was the most numerous Luftwaffe bomber during the early stages of the war. It fared well until it met serious fighter opposition during the Battle of Britain, when its defensive armament was found to be inadequate. As the war progressed, the He 111 was used in a wide variety of roles on every front in the European theatre. It was used as a strategic bomber during the Battle of Britain, a to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Junkers Ju 87
The Junkers Ju 87, popularly known as the "Stuka", is a German dive bomber and ground-attack aircraft. Designed by Hermann Pohlmann, it first flew in 1935. The Ju 87 made its combat debut in 1937 with the Luftwaffe's Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 and served the Axis powers, Axis in World War II from beginning to end (1939–1945). The aircraft is easily recognisable by its inverted gull wings and fixed Aircraft fairing, spatted Landing gear, undercarriage. Upon the leading edges of its faired main gear legs were mounted ram-air Siren (alarm), sirens, officially called "Lärmgerät" (noise device), which became a propaganda symbol of German Aerial warfare, air power and of the so-called ''Blitzkrieg'' victories of 1939–1942, as well as providing Stuka pilots with audible feedback as to speed. The Stuka's design included several innovations, including automatic pull-up dive brakes under both wings to ensure that the aircraft recovered from its attac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hans Jeschonnek
Hans Jeschonnek (9 April 1899 – 18 August 1943) was a German military aviator in the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' during World War I, a general staff officer in the ''Reichswehr'' in the inter–war period and ''Generaloberst'' (Colonel-General) and a Chief of the General Staff (Germany), Chief of the General Staff in the Luftwaffe, the aerial warfare branch of the ''Wehrmacht'' during World War II. He was born in 1899 and joined the military as a cadet in 1909. Trained as an officer at a military academy, he was granted his commission in 1914 and served in the infantry on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front. In 1916 he transferred to the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' and trained as a fighter pilot. Jeschonnek shot down two enemy aircraft by the time of the German defeat in November 1918, earning the Iron Cross 2nd and 1st class. Jeschonnek remained in the military, joining the ''Reichswehr'', the Weimar Republic armed forces. He fought in the Silesian Uprisings in 1919 and then se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ernst Udet
Ernst Udet (26 April 1896 – 17 November 1941) was a German pilot during World War I and a ''Luftwaffe'' Colonel-General (''Generaloberst'') during World War II. Udet joined the Imperial German Air Service in April 1915 at the age of 19, and eventually became a notable flying ace of World War I, scoring 62 confirmed victories. The highest scoring German fighter pilot to survive that war, and the second-highest scoring after Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus, Udet rose to become a squadron commander under Richthofen, and later under Hermann Göring. Udet spent the 1920s and early 1930s as a stunt pilot, international barnstormer, light-aircraft manufacturer, and playboy. On 1 May 1933 Udet joined the Nazi Party. He became involved in the early development of the ''Luftwaffe'' (officially founded on 15 May 1933), where he was appointed director of research and development. Influential in the adoption of dive-bombing techniques as well as of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ural Bomber
The Ural bomber was the initial aircraft design program/competition to develop a long-range bomber for the Luftwaffe, created and led by General Walther Wever in the early 1930s. Wever died in an air crash on June 3, 1936, and his successor Albert Kesselring continued the project until he left office. Wever, the chief of staff of the newly formed Luftwaffe in 1933, realized the importance that strategic bombing would play in a war. In a war with the Soviet Union, he expected that German forces would not attempt to move very far east of Moscow, which would leave much of Joseph Stalin's recently relocated industry out of reach of existing bombers. Wever proposed using a strategic bomber to target those factories, hampering the Soviet ability to fight, without the need for ground forces to advance. Development Under the Ural bomber program, he engaged in secret talks with Dornier and Junkers, requesting designs for a long-range bomber. They responded with the Dornier Do 19 an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dornier Do 19
The Dornier Do 19 was a German four-engine heavy bomber that first flew on 28 October 1936. Only one prototype flew, and it was converted to a transport in 1938. The other two were scrapped. The ''Luftwaffe'' lacked an efficient heavy bomber fleet. ''Generalleutnant'' Walther Wever, the ''Luftwaffe''s first Chief of Staff, was the most persistent advocate of a German long-range strategic bomber fleet. The Dornier Do 19 was built for the ''Luftwaffe''s Ural bomber program under General Wever, competing against the Junkers Ju 89. The RLM ''Technisches Amt'' issued a specification for a four-engine heavy bomber. But after Wever's death in an airplane crash in June 1936, Wever's successor, Albert Kesselring, canceled Germany's long-range bomber projects to concentrate on tactical bombers. Both Dornier and Junkers were competitors for the contract, and each received an order for three prototypes in late 1935. The Dornier design was given the project number Do 19, while the Junke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ju 89
The Junkers Ju 89 was a heavy bomber designed for the ''Luftwaffe'' prior to World War II. Two prototypes were constructed, but the project was abandoned without the aircraft entering production. Elements of its design were incorporated into later Junkers aircraft. Development From the very beginnings of the Luftwaffe in 1933, General Walther Wever, the chief of staff, realised the importance that strategic bombing would play in any future conflict. A ''Langstrecken-Grossbomber'' ("long-range big bomber") was needed to fulfill this role. Under the Ural bomber programme, he began secret talks with two of Nazi Germany's leading aircraft manufacturers - Dornier and Junkers - requesting designs for a long-range bomber. The two companies responded with the Dornier Do 19 and the Junkers Ju 89, respectively, and the ''Reichsluftfahrtministerium'' (RLM) ordered prototypes for both aircraft in 1935. The RLM request asked for two prototypes and a prototype series of nine aircraft. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dornier Flugzeugwerke
Dornier Flugzeugwerke was a German aircraft manufacturer founded in Friedrichshafen in 1914 by Claude Dornier. Over the course of its long lifespan, the company produced many designs for both the civil and military markets. History Originally Dornier Metallbau, Dornier Flugzeugwerke took over Flugzeugbau Friedrichshafen production facilities ( Weingarten, Warnemünde, and the former Zeppelin shed at Manzell) when it failed in 1923. Dornier was well known between the two world wars as a manufacturer of large, all-metal flying boats and of land based airliners. The record-breaking 1924 Wal () was used on many long distance flights and the Do X set records for its immense size and weight. Dornier's successful landplane airliners, including the Komet (''Comet'') and Merkur (''Mercury''), were used by Lufthansa and other European carriers during the 1920s and early 30s. Dornier built its aircraft outside Germany during much of this period due to the restrictions placed on G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Junkers
Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG (JFM, earlier JCO or JKO in World War I, English language, English: Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works) more commonly Junkers , was a major German aircraft manufacturer, aircraft and aircraft engine manufacturer. It was founded in Dessau, Germany, in 1895 by Hugo Junkers, initially manufacturing boilers and radiator (heating), radiators. During World War I and following the war, the company became famous for its pioneering all-metal aircraft. During World War II the company produced the Luftwaffe, German air force's planes, as well as piston engine, piston and jet engine, jet aircraft engines, albeit in the absence of its founder who had been removed by the Nazis in 1934. History Early inter-war period In the immediate post-war era, Junkers used their J8 layout as the basis for the F-13, first flown on 25 June 1919 and certified airworthy in July of the same year. This four passenger monoplane was the world's first all-metal airliner. Of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strategic Bomber
A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range Penetrator (aircraft), penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombing, tactical bombers, Penetrator (aircraft), penetrators, fighter-bombers, and attack aircraft, which are used in air interdiction operations to attack enemy combatants and military equipment, strategic bombers are designed to fly into enemy territory to destroy strategic targets (e.g., infrastructure, logistics, Military base, military installations, factories, etc.). In addition to strategic bombing, strategic bombers can be used for tactical bombing, tactical missions. There are currently only three countries that operate strategic bombers: the United States, Russia and China. The modern strategic bomber role appeared after Strategic bombing during World War II, strategic bombing was widely employed, and Atomic bombing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
