The DFS 228 was a
rocket
A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
-powered, high-
altitude
Altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum (geodesy), datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context (e.g., aviation, geometr ...
reconnaissance aircraft designed by the ''
Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug'' (DFS - "German Research Institute for Sailplane Flight") during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. By the end of the war, the aircraft had only flown in the form of two unpowered prototypes.
Design and development
Initial design of the DFS 228 was undertaken before the outbreak of war as a
research aircraft, the DFS 54, aimed at developing a high-altitude escape system for
sailplane
A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding (also called soaring). This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplan ...
s. The project was suspended by the
commencement of hostilities, but was revived in 1940 when the ''
Reichsluftfahrtministerium'' (RLM - "Reich Aviation Ministry") delivered the DFS with a requirement for a rocket-powered reconnaissance aircraft.
The advantages of a sailplane for
aerial reconnaissance
Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance for a military or Strategy, strategic purpose that is conducted using reconnaissance aircraft. The role of reconnaissance can fulfil a variety of requirements including Artillery observer, artillery spott ...
included its silence, its low speed relative to the ground (allowing for higher-quality photography), and its potential ability to loiter above an area of interest. The project gave the DFS the opportunity to investigate two additional areas that it was interested in: the effects of
wing sweep on sailplane design, and
supersonic
Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound (Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...
flight.
The DFS 228 was designed by
Felix Kracht and a first
prototype
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototype ...
was completed in March 1944; it was undergoing gliding tests by that August, carried aloft piggyback and
strut-mounted atop a
Dornier Do 217. The aircraft was of conventional sailplane arrangement with long,
slender wings and designed to land on a
retractable skid mounted on its belly. The nose of the aircraft could be separated in an emergency and formed a self-contained,
pressurized escape capsule for the pilot.
Because of problems with the
cabin pressurization
Cabin pressurization is a process in which conditioned air is pumped into the aircraft cabin, cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft in order to create a safe and comfortable environment for humans flying at high altitudes. For aircraft, this air i ...
system, the second prototype accommodated the pilot in a prone position.
Forty flights were made with the prototypes, and installation of a rocket was to have taken place in February 1945, but the project fell by the wayside as the war situation became more desperate. The second prototype was destroyed in an air raid in May 1945, and the first prototype was captured by
U.S.
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
troops in June. In 1946 it was sent to the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
for study where it was apparently scrapped in 1947, although its exact fate is unknown.
Variants
;DFS 54
:Experimental glider with a pressure cabin, oxygen, cabin heating and insulation for high altitude flying.
;DFS 228
:Powered variant of the DFS 54 with a
Walter HWK 509D rocket propulsion unit.
Specifications (DFS 228 estimated)
See also
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
* Green, William. ''Warplanes of the Third Reich''. London: Macdonald and Jane's Publishers Ltd., 1970 (fourth impression 1979). .
* Myhra, David. ''DFS 228''. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing, 2000. .
* Smith, J.Richard and Kay, Anthony. ''German Aircraft of the Second World War''. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1972 (third impression 1978). .
* Wood, Tony and Gunston, Bill. ''Hitler's Luftwaffe: A pictorial history and technical encyclopedia of Hitler's air power in World War II''. London: Salamander Books Ltd., 1977. .
{{Authority control
Abandoned military aircraft projects of Germany
1940s German military reconnaissance aircraft
Prone pilot aircraft
Rocket-powered aircraft
DFS aircraft
High-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1944